Joe Montana: The NFL's Coolest Quarterback

Montana, of course, played most of his storied career with the 49ers. But before he retired, he had two productive seasons with the Chiefs.

He faced many seemingly insurmountable challenges during his career, but even in the most pressure-packed situations, Montana was unflappable. He was Joe Cool.

Joe attended Notre Dame, which was already having a run of great success when he arrived on campus. The coaches hoped that Montana would help them maintain that momentum.

Montana wasn't the starter. He wasn't even the backup -- he was listed at third string. Injuries to the top two QBs forced him into action in the third game, in which he rallied the team to a win. It was the start of his legend.

The Fighting Irish were down 34-12 in the final quarter, but Montana willed his team to a victory over Houston. The Irish won by a single point, 35-34, by scoring three TDs in the final eight minutes.

Montana was suffering terribly from the flu during the cold, icy game. At halftime, he ate some hot chicken noodle soup that revived his spirits -- and the contest became known as the Chicken Soup Game.

In the 1979 draft, San Francisco got a steal of a pick -- they grabbed Montana in the third round. Joe wasn't considered to be a very good NFL prospect.

Montana is tied with Terry Bradshaw for second all-time with four Super Bowl rings. Tom Brady has won five (so far) with New England.

Thanks to San Francisco's up-tempo West Coast offense, Montana was free to air it out -- and he did just that. He lofted 31 TD passes that year. He also ran for a single TD.

Early in the '86 season, Montana was tackled hard and suffered a spinal injury that required surgery. He was placed on injured reserve and then sat out until November.

San Francisco nabbed Steve Young from Tampa Bay to serve as a backup to Montana, whose health was iffy at times. Montana was at first a mentor to Young, who almost immediately challenged him for the starting job.

The 49ers played the St. Louis Cardinals on the day that Montana returned. He didn't skip a beat -- threw for 270 yards and three TDs in a triumphant victory.

Joe was a prolific passer who threw for more than 40,000 yards in his career. By comparison, Steve Young threw for 33,000 yards.

Montana was a fantastic passer who finished with a career rating of 92.3, good for 13th all-time. There are some active players ahead of him, but their ratings may drop as they age, perhaps lifting Montana into the top 10.

Young didn't throw for as many yards as Montana, but he was deadly accurate with his throws. His 96.8 passer rating currently puts him at fifth place on the all-time QB rating list and well ahead of Montana.

Seven times in his career, he threw for more than 400 yards. He also had 35 games with 300 yards or more passing.

The 49ers were down by 6 points with under a minute to play when Montana rolled to his right on a critical third down play. He chucked a high pass to the corner of the end zone and Dwight Clark made "The Catch" with his fingertips.

After three of his four Super Bowl titles, Montana also won MVP. His dominance in big games was nearly unrivaled.

Down by three points, San Francisco was buried on its own 8-yard line. Montana coolly trotted onto the field.

With about a half a minute left in the game, Montana hurled a perfect throw to wide receiver John Taylor. The 49ers won 20-16.

Montana threw for an amazing 357 yards and 2 TDs. But it was Jerry Rice, with 215 receiving yards and 1 TD, who claimed the MVP.

Joe led an incredible 31 fourth quarter rallies during his career. Peyton Manning, however, had 45.

In a pointless 1991 pre-season game, Joe's elbow was badly injured and he missed the entire season. In Montana's absence, Steve Young proved to be a more-than-capable starter, a fact that soon caused conflict.

Young's performance was so phenomenal that it was hard to justify bringing Montana back as a starter. A loud QB controversy erupted.

Joe saw the writing on the wall -- he was getting older and Young was the franchise's new star. He asked to be traded and wound up in Kansas City.

Joe was transcendental in his biggest games. He threw 11 TDs in those four Super Bowls without a single interception, for a crazy-high 127.8 passer rating.

It was an epic showdown between the two former teammates and not one that Montana took lightly. In the end, the old master schooled his former apprentice as the Chiefs won, 24-17.

Joe immediately had a positive impact with the Chiefs. He guided the team to the 1993 AFC Championship game, where they lost to Buffalo.

Young won one Super Bowl as a starter and two as a backup to Montana. Like Montana, he never tasted defeat in the NFL's biggest game.

For a while, Montana was frustrated about the way he parted with the 49ers. But once his career was over, he was all smiles with the organization and they happily retired his number.