Professional Football Researchers Association Forum

I've often heard it said the Sonny Jurgensen was the game's best "pure passer."

Well, what, exactly does "pure passer" mean?
Does it mean he threw a perfect spiral?
Does it mean he couldn't run?
Or call plays?

Is it really just a matter of personal opinion? Then what does "pure passer" mean to you?

When I hear the term "pure passer" I often think of Dan Marino... yet I'm not really certain why.
Does Marino qualify as a "pure passer" to you? How about Kurt Warner? Who else?

Warner, to me was not that, just because he threw so many wobbly balls... but it's a good question

Also, "throwing them open". What that means is QB throws to covered guy and WR is good enough to still make a play.

Warren Moon was the purest passer. Perfect form with a perfect spiral.

He didn’t have a strong arm but Kenny Stabler was deadly accurate and he didn’t throw many balls that weren’t a perfect spiral.

Jurgy was a brilliant passer, definitely one of the best ever, but he didn’t look as “pretty” as some others because of his body type. He also had a different throwing motion... kind of like a catapult. He didn’t really cock his arm before letting it go. He just brought his arm around from the set position and let it go. I love watching him.

JuggernautJ wrote:I've often heard it said the Sonny Jurgensen was the game's best "pure passer."

Well, what, exactly does "pure passer" mean?
Does it mean he threw a perfect spiral?
Does it mean he couldn't run?
Or call plays?

Is it really just a matter of personal opinion? Then what does "pure passer" mean to you?

When I hear the term "pure passer" I often think of Dan Marino... yet I'm not really certain why.
Does Marino qualify as a "pure passer" to you? How about Kurt Warner? Who else?

Great topic. I've always loved this term because of its absurdity. No idea how or why "pure passer" would be any different than "passer", but if you said Sonny Jurgensen was the game's best "passer" in history, you'd probably get a ton of pushback. But if you say Sonny Jurgensen was the game's best "pure passer" in history, people nod their heads in agreement.

A "pure passer" is almost like an NFL QB archetype...the guy who can't run, throws spirals, is stuck on a team with a bad defense, and doesn't have a Super Bowl ring. I think Dan Marino is a great "pure passer" example, but had he won SB XIX then that term wouldn't apply. I always thought of Lynn Dickey and Steve Bartkowski as "pure passers"...they were immobile (Bartkowski with the Rams was perhaps the most immobile QB in history), threw pretty spirals, and were usually on mediocre teams.

Namath while far from the best QB ever, was maybe the best pure passer. Just the motion, the release, the tightness of the spiral, the ball velocity. It was absolutely beautiful. His interceptions (and there were lots of 'em) were even gorgeous

sheajets wrote:Namath while far from the best QB ever, was maybe the best pure passer. Just the motion, the release, the tightness of the spiral, the ball velocity. It was absolutely beautiful. His interceptions (and there were lots of 'em) were even gorgeous

While doing a feature story about a summer football camp he conducted in Massachusetts, I had the opportunity to catch several passes from him and I was amazed at how the light the ball seemed when it dropped into my hands.

rhickok1109 wrote:While doing a feature story about a summer football camp he conducted in Massachusetts, I had the opportunity to catch several passes from him and I was amazed at how the light the ball seemed when it dropped into my hands.

That's awesome!

rhickok1109 wrote:

sheajets wrote:Namath while far from the best QB ever, was maybe the best pure passer. Just the motion, the release, the tightness of the spiral, the ball velocity. It was absolutely beautiful. His interceptions (and there were lots of 'em) were even gorgeous

While doing a feature story about a summer football camp he conducted in Massachusetts, I had the opportunity to catch several passes from him and I was amazed at how the light the ball seemed when it dropped into my hands.

It just occurred to me that I may be the only person ever to catch a pass from Joe Namath and play lacrosse against Jim Brown

rhickok1109 wrote:It just occurred to me that I may be the only person ever to catch a pass from Joe Namath and play lacrosse against Jim Brown

And criss-cross the highways and byways of Wisconsin and Minnesota in a convertible with Johnny Blood McNally!