Terry Paxton Bradshaw (born September 2, 1948) is a
former American football quarterback with the
Pittsburgh Steelers in the National Football League (NFL). He is currently a
football analyst and co-host of FOX NFL Sunday. In a six-year span, he won an
unprecedented four Super Bowl titles with Pittsburgh (1975, 1976, 1979 and
1980), becoming the first quarterback to do so, and led the Steelers to eight AFC Central
championships. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in
1989 in his first year of eligibility.
A tough competitor, Bradshaw had a powerful – albeit at times erratic – throwing arm and called his own plays throughout his
pro career. His physical skills and on-the-field leadership played a major role in Pittsburgh sports history. Bradshaw also
excelled in big games. During his career, he passed for more than 300 yards in a game only seven times, but three of those
performances came in post-season play, two of them in Super Bowls. In four career Super Bowls he passed for an impressive 932
yards and 9 touchdowns, both Super Bowl records at the time of his retirement. In 19
postseason games he completed 261 passes for 3,833 yards.
Biography
High school and college
Bradshaw was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, the son of Novis and Bill
Bradshaw.[1] He attended Woodlawn High School and led the Knights to the AAA High School Championship
game where they lost to the Sulphur Tors 12-9. While at Woodlawn, he set a national record for throwing the javelin with 245 feet. His exploits earned him a spot in the Sports
Illustrated feature Faces In The Crowd.
He originally signed with LSU, but later decided to enroll at
Louisiana Tech after failing to earn a high enough score on the
ACT college-entrance exam.[2] In 1969, he was considered by most pro scouts to be the most outstanding college football player. As
a junior, he amassed 2,890 total yards, ranking #1 in the NCAA,
and led his team to a 9-2 record and a 33-13 win over Akron in the Rice Bowl. In his senior season, he gained 2,314 yards,
ranking third in the NCAA, and led his team to an 8-2 record. His decrease in production was mainly because his team only played
ten games that year, and he was taken out of several games in the second half because his team had built up a huge lead. As
quarterback, Bradshaw threw his passes principally to teammates Larry C. Brewer
(1948-2003) of Minden, the offensive end, and Thomas
Allen "Tommy" Spinks (1948-2007), the split end who had also been Bradshaw's Woodlawn High School teammate. As a result,
Brewer and Spinks were recorded among the top pass receivers in Louisiana Tech history. Bradshaw was also a member of
Tau Kappa Epsilon Fraternity
before being the first player selected in the 1970 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers.
In 1996, Bradshaw was voted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
NFL career
Bradshaw became a starter one year after he was drafted in 1970. During his first several seasons, the 6'3", 215 lb.
quarterback was erratic, threw many interceptions (he threw 210 interceptions over the course of his career) and was widely
ridiculed by the media for his rural roots and perceived lack of intelligence.
It took Bradshaw a few seasons to adjust to the pro game but once he did, he eventually became the premier quarterback in the
NFL, leading the Steelers to eight AFC Central
championships and an unprecedented collection of Super Bowl rings. The Steelers featured the "Steel Curtain" defense and a powerful running attack led by Franco
Harris, but Bradshaw's strong arm gave them the threat of the deep pass, helping to loosen opposing defenses. In
1972, he threw the pass leading to the "Immaculate Reception", among the most famous plays in NFL history.
Bradshaw temporarily lost the starting job to Joe Gilliam in 1974, but Bradshaw took over
again during the regular season and in the 1974 AFC Championship Game against the
Oakland Raiders, his fourth-quarter touchdown pass to Lynn
Swann proved to be the winning score in a 24-13 victory. In the Steelers’ 16-6 Super Bowl
IX victory over the Minnesota Vikings that followed, Bradshaw completed 9 of 14
passes and his fourth-quarter touchdown pass put the game out of reach and helped take the Steelers to their first Super Bowl
victory.
As he acknowledged in his first autobiography, Man of Steel, by 1974 Bradshaw felt like he was bottoming out. His first
marriage to Melissa Babish had failed, his shoulder had been injured, and he was often sullen and depressed. The turnaround came
when, according to his memoir, Bradshaw, already a born-again Christian, had a revelation: "I had separated myself from God. I
lived only for Terry Bradshaw, not for God. I tried to be one of the boys and went to every honky-tonk I could find and chased
women and behaved in a way that was totally alien to anything I had ever known before … my whole life was out of control … I was
trying to be someone else and was doing a rotten job of it."
What happened to Bradshaw amounted to a second "conversion" experience. "I just put my head in my hands and began to cry and
tremble all over and finally I blurted out, 'Here I am, God. I've tried to handle it all by myself and I just can't get the job
done. So I'm placing my life in Your hands. I need some peace of mind and I know You can give it to me.'" The quarterback recalls
feeling suddenly "stronger mentally and physically.… Being a starting quarterback didn't matter.… What mattered was that I was
myself again and I was determined to stay that way."
In Super Bowl X following the 1975 season,
Bradshaw threw for 209 yards, most of them to Swann, as the Steelers beat the Dallas Cowboys, 21-17. His 64-yard touchdown pass
to Swann—released a split-second before defensive tackle Larry Cole flattened him, causing a
serious concussion—late in the fourth quarter is considered one of the greatest passes in NFL history.
Neck and wrist injuries in 1976 forced Bradshaw to miss four games. He was sharp in a 40-14
victory over the Baltimore Colts, completing 14-of-18 passes for 264
yards and three touchdowns, but the Steelers' hopes of a three-peat ended with a 24-7 loss to Oakland in the AFC Championship
game.
Bradshaw had his finest season in 1978 when he was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player by the Associated Press after a
season in which he completed 207 of 368 passes for 2,915 yards and a league-leading 28 touchdown passes. He was also named
All-Pro and All-AFC that year.
Before Super Bowl XIII, a Steelers-Cowboys rematch, Cowboys linebacker Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson
famously ridiculed Bradshaw by saying, "He couldn't spell 'cat' if you spotted him the 'c' and the 't'." Bradshaw got his
revenge by winning the Most Valuable Player award, completing 17
of 30 passes for a then-record 318 yards and four touchdowns in a 35-31 win. Years later, Henderson, who struggled for years to
conquer drug addiction, admitted he was high on cocaine
at the time of the interview. Bradshaw has in later years made light of the ridicule with quips such as "it's football, not
rocket science."
Bradshaw won his second straight Super Bowl MVP in 1979 in Super Bowl XIV. He passed
for 309 yards and 2 touchdowns in a 31-19 win over the Los Angeles Rams. Bradshaw also
shared the Sports Illustrated magazine's "Sportsmen of the Year" award with
Willie Stargell that season.
After two seasons of missing the playoffs, Bradshaw played through pain - he needed a cortisone shot before every game because
of an elbow injury sustained during training camp - in a strike-shortened 1982 NFL
season. He still managed to tie for the most touchdown passes in the league with 17. In a 31-28 playoff loss to the
San Diego Chargers - Bradshaw's last postseason game - he completed 28-of-39 passes
for 325 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.
After undergoing offseason elbow surgery, Bradshaw was idle for the first 14 games of the 1983 NFL season. Then against the
New York Jets, he felt a pop in his elbow while throwing his final pass, a touchdown.
Bradshaw later left the game and never played again. The two touchdowns Bradshaw threw in what would be the final football game
played at Shea Stadium allowed him to finish his career with two more touchdowns (212) than
interceptions (210) for his career.
In his 14-season career, Bradshaw completed 2,025 of 3,901 passes for 27,989 yards and 212 touchdowns. He also rushed 444
times for 2,257 yards and 32 touchdowns. He was 107-51 as the starting quarterback and the Steelers reached the playoffs 10
times. His career postseason record as a starter was 14-5. He was also selected to play in three Pro Bowl games.
While the Steelers do not officially retire uniform numbers, Bradshaw's number 12 has not been issued by the team since he
retired, and it is generally understood that no Steeler will wear that number in the foreseeable future.
In 1999, he was ranked number 44 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest
Football Players.
After retiring
Terry Bradshaw (right) holds a t-shirt with Chief Electrician's Mate Daniel C. Stonebrake during a USO Show.
Bradshaw retired from football in 1983, and quickly signed a television contract with CBS to
become a NFL game analyst in 1984 where he and play-by-play announcer Verne Lundquist had the top rated programs. Prior to his
full-time work for them, he served as a guest commentator for CBS Sports' NFC postseason broadcasts from 1980–82.
Bradshaw was promoted into television studio analyst for The NFL Today in
1990 (which he hosted with Greg Gumbel through the
1993 season), and FOX NFL Sunday, where he normally acts as a comic foil to his co-hosts. On FOX NFL Sunday he hosts two semi-regular features, Ten
Yards with TB, where he fires random questions at an NFL pro, and The Terry Awards, an annual comedic award
show about the NFL season.
Bradshaw has also written or co-written five books and recorded six albums of country/western and gospel music. In
July 1997, Bradshaw served as the presenter when Mike
Webster, his center on the Steelers' four Super Bowl title teams, was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
In 2001, Bradshaw entered the world of NASCAR by joining with HighLine Performance Group
racing team to form FitzBradshaw Racing. He also is the spokesman for Jani-King international, Inc.
In November 2005, Bradshaw announced that he and a group of investors from
Louisiana were interested in buying the New Orleans
Saints. The Saints, who had been forced out of the Louisiana Superdome for
the 2005 season by Hurricane Katrina, were
operating out of San Antonio, Texas, and had to play most of their 2005 home games at
the Alamodome there and at LSU's Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge. Several actions and
statements by Saints owner Tom Benson and several San Antonio and Texas officials fueled speculation that Benson wanted to move the team to San Antonio permanently. While the NFL
opposed a move to San Antonio, there were rumors that they may allow the team to move to Los Angeles, which has been without an NFL team since 1995. Bradshaw, a Louisiana native, said that he did not want his home state to lose the Saints because
of Katrina, and was willing to purchase the team to see to it that that would not happen. However, his plans fell through as
Benson was unwilling to sell the team.
In 2006, despite the Steelers being one of the teams playing in the game, Bradshaw did not attend a pregame celebration for
past Super Bowl MVP's during Super Bowl XL in Detroit,
Michigan. According to reports, Bradshaw requested a $100,000 guarantee for
his appearance in the Super Bowl MVP Parade, and associated appearances. The NFL could not guarantee that they would make that
much and refused. A representative for Bradshaw has since denied this report. After an appearance on The Tonight Show (February 6, 2006) Bradshaw stated that the reason why he did not attend the MVP parade was because he was
spending time with family, that he hates the crowds and the Super Bowl media circus, and also that the only way he would attend a
Super Bowl is when FOX is broadcasting the game. Bradshaw also stated that money was not an issue.
In April 2006, Bradshaw donated his four Super Bowl rings, College Football Hall of Fame
ring, Pro Football Hall of Fame ring, Hall of Fame bust, four miniature replica Super Bowl trophies, and a helmet and jersey from
one of his Super Bowl victories to his alma mater, Louisiana Tech.
In August 2007, Bradshaw was announced as a co-owner and spokesperson for Pay the Fan[3] a fantasy sports football and racing site.
Among U.S. consumers, Bradshaw remains as one pro football's most popular retired players. As of September 2007, Bradshaw was
the top-ranked former pro football player in the Davie-Brown Index (DBI), which
surveys consumers to determine a celebrity's appeal and trust levels.[4]
Personal life
Bradshaw has been married three times. He was married to Melissa Babich from 1972–73; to ice skater JoJo Starbuck from 1976–83; and from 1983–99, to Charlotte Hopkins, who is the mother of his two
daughters, Rachel and Erin. All three of Bradshaw's marriages have ended in divorce, a subject he ridicules frequently on his
pre-game show. For example, on October 2, 2005, he began a
Ten Yards with TB piece on the Eagles' Jeremiah Trotter by discussing Trotter's ejection from a game prior to the kickoff and joking,
"Nobody's been thrown out of a house that quickly since my last divorce."
After his NFL career ended, Bradshaw disclosed that he had frequently experienced anxiety
attacks after games. The problem worsened in the late 1990s after his third divorce, when he said he "could not bounce
back" as he had after the previous divorces or after a bad game. In addition to anxiety attacks, his symptoms included weight
loss, frequent crying, and sleeplessness. He was diagnosed with clinical depression. Since then he has taken Paxil regularly. He
chose to speak out about his depression to overcome the stigma associated with it and to urge others to seek help.[5]
Bradshaw's anxieties about appearing in public, away from the controlled environment of a television studio, led to an
unintentional estrangement from the Steelers. When team founder and owner Art Rooney died in
1988, Bradshaw did not attend his funeral. A year later, during his Hall of Fame induction speech, Bradshaw made a point of
saluting his late boss and friend, pointing to the sky and saying, "Art Rooney... boy, I tell you, I loved that man."
Still, Bradshaw never returned to Three Rivers Stadium as long as the Steelers
played there. When the last regular-season game was played there on December 23,
2000, Bradshaw was with the Fox NFL Sunday crew, doing their pregame show aboard the
aircraft carrier USS Harry S Truman, while Fox covered the game
live. Bradshaw expressed regret that he couldn't be there, but would later say privately that he didn't feel he could face the
crowds. In 2003, when the Steelers played the 1,000th game in franchise history, Fox covered the game at Heinz Field, and Bradshaw returned to the Steeler sideline for the first time in 23 years.
Acting
He has appeared in numerous television commercials, including a 2004 Radio Shack ad.
Bradshaw also had cameo appearances in many shows, including Everybody Loves
Raymond and Married... with Children. He hosted a short-lived
television series in 1997 called Home Team with Terry
Bradshaw.
In addition to his television work, Bradshaw has appeared in several movies, including a part in the 1978 film Hooper which starred Burt Reynolds, Jan-Michael Vincent, and Sally Field, and 1981's appearance in Cannonball Run. In 1980 he had a cameo in Smokey and
the Bandit II which starred Burt Reynolds, Jerry Reed, and Sally Field. He made a
guest appearance in The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. in
1994, playing Colonel Forrest March, a rogue US Army officer who gave orders to his squad (played by NFL members Ken Norton, Jr., Carl Banks and Jim Harbaugh) in a huddle using football diagrams.
Bradshaw appeared on Jeff Foxworthy's short-lived sitcom, The Jeff Foxworthy Show as a motivational speaker for people needing to change their life.
Bill Engvall's character is affected by Bradshaw's character's speakings.
In 2006, Bradshaw returned to the silver screen in the motion picture Failure to
Launch. He and Kathy Bates played the parents of Matthew McConaughey's character. In one notable scene he appeared nude, a move which Jay Leno spent an entire segment mocking during
an appearance on The Tonight Show.
A short-lived return to football
In 2006, Bradshaw signed a contract to become the fourth-string quarterback for the Daytona Beach Thunder of the American
Indoor Football League. However, Bradshaw had to undergo back surgery and missed the season.
Passing stats
| Year |
Team |
G |
Att |
Com |
Pct |
Yards |
TD |
Int |
Rate |
| 1970 |
Pittsburgh Steelers |
13 |
218 |
83 |
38.1 |
1410 |
6 |
24 |
30.4 |
| 1971 |
Pittsburgh Steelers |
14 |
373 |
203 |
54.4 |
2259 |
13 |
22 |
59.7 |
| 1972 |
Pittsburgh Steelers |
14 |
308 |
147 |
47.7 |
1887 |
12 |
12 |
64.1 |
| 1973 |
Pittsburgh Steelers |
10 |
180 |
89 |
49.4 |
1183 |
10 |
15 |
54.5 |
| 1974 |
Pittsburgh Steelers |
8 |
148 |
67 |
45.3 |
785 |
7 |
8 |
55.2 |
| 1975 |
Pittsburgh Steelers |
14 |
286 |
165 |
57.7 |
2055 |
18 |
9 |
88.0 |
| 1976 |
Pittsburgh Steelers |
10 |
192 |
92 |
47.9 |
1177 |
10 |
9 |
65.4 |
| 1977 |
Pittsburgh Steelers |
14 |
314 |
162 |
51.6 |
2523 |
17 |
19 |
71.4 |
| 1978 |
Pittsburgh Steelers |
16 |
368 |
207 |
56.3 |
2915 |
28 |
20 |
84.7 |
| 1979 |
Pittsburgh Steelers |
16 |
472 |
259 |
54.9 |
3724 |
26 |
25 |
77.0 |
| 1980 |
Pittsburgh Steelers |
15 |
424 |
218 |
51.4 |
3339 |
24 |
22 |
75.0 |
| 1981 |
Pittsburgh Steelers |
14 |
370 |
201 |
54.3 |
2887 |
22 |
14 |
83.9 |
| 1982 |
Pittsburgh Steelers |
9 |
240 |
127 |
52.9 |
1768 |
17 |
11 |
81.4 |
| 1983 |
Pittsburgh Steelers |
1 |
8 |
5 |
62.5 |
77 |
2 |
0 |
133.9 |
| Career Totals |
|
168 |
3901 |
2025 |
51.9 |
27989 |
212 |
210 |
70.9 |
Further reading
References
External links
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