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Montana earned the nickname “Joe Cool” for staying calm when the stakes were high. The story is that before he led the Niners on that winning 92-yard drive against the Bengals in the Super Bowl he pointed out John Candy in the stands to his teammates. He was known for his come-from-behind wins, which helped him to two MVPs and three Super Bowl MVPs. Montana made an All-Pro team six times, and he was efficient for his era. Montana led the league in completion percentage five times. Efficiency matched with calm. That’s how you become a legend.
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A bit of cheating, yes, but these two are interlocked and have similar Jaguars origin stories. A former Cowboys Round 2 pick, Smith caught on with the Jags in 1995 on a low-end deal. McCardell, an ex-Browns auxiliary wideout, joined him a year later. No Jaguar receiving tandem has approached their work, and their first four seasons together produced six 1,000-yard campaigns between them and four Jacksonville playoff berths. Both landed higher-paying extensions, but the Jags capitalized on the exclusive negotiating rights that came with signing the duo in the mid-'90s. The partnership lasted six years.
Sam Robinson is a Kansas City, Mo.-based writer who mostly writes about the NFL. He has covered sports for nearly 10 years. Boxing, the Royals and Pandora stations featuring female rock protagonists are some of his go-tos. Occasionally interesting tweets @SRobinson25.