Brady, Belichick Left Off NFL's Super Bowl 'Golden Team'; Vinatieri Only Patriots Player On List
By Michael Hurley, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- It's been a golden year for the NFL in advance of Super Bowl 50, with golden logos and golden 50-yard lines. Now, there's even a Super Bowl "Golden Team."
The NFL announced the roster for this Golden Team on Thursday, a list that includes players who performed the best in football's greatest game.
And no, Patriots fans. Tom Brady is not the quarterback.
And Bill Belichick is not the coach.
Those spots are manned by Joe Montana and Chuck Noll, respectively, and it's hard to argue with either one. Montana went 4-0 in Super Bowls, throwing 11 touchdowns and zero interceptions in those contests. Brady has certainly excelled as well, owning the all-time records for passing yards (1,605, which is 449 more yards than second-ranked Kurt Warner) and passing touchdowns (13, two more than Montana), so it's not as if Brady is far behind. Both players own three Super Bowl MVPs as well.
Noll, who coached the Steelers from 1969-1991, won four Super Bowls with Pittsburgh between 1974-79. Belichick has, of course, won four Super Bowls as well from 2001-14, with two Super Bowl losses mixed in.
Despite those four Patriots Super Bowl victories, only one Patriot made the list: kicker Adam Vinatieri. He also happened to be the only player selected unanimously by the Pro Football Hall of Fame selectors. Vinatieri famously hit the game-winning kick to beat the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI, and he repeated the feat two years later to beat the Panthers in Super Bowl XXXVIII. His field goal in Super Bowl XXXIX proved to provide the winning points, as well. Vinatieri won a fourth Super Bowl with the Colts in 2006.
The complete list is below:
Quarterback
Joe Montana, 49ers
Running Back
Franco Harris, Steelers
Emmitt Smith, Cowboys
Wide Receiver
Jerry Rice, 49ers/Raiders
Lynn Swann, Steelers
Tight End
Jay Novacek, Cowboys
Tackle
Art Shell, Raiders
Forrest Gregg, Packers
Guard
Larry Allen, Cowboys
Gene Upshaw, Raiders
Center
Mike Webster, Steelers
Defensive End
Charles Haley, Cowboys/49ers
Reggie White, Packers
Defensive Tackle
Joe Greene, Steelers
Randy White, Cowboys
Outside Linebacker
Lawrence Taylor, Giants
Jack Ham, Steelers
Inside Linebacker
Jack Lambert, Steelers
Ray Lewis, Ravens
Cornerback
Mel Blount, Steelers
Deion Sanders, Cowboys/49ers
Safety
Ronnie Lott, 49ers
Jake Scott, Dolphins
Kicker
Adam Vinatieri, Colts/Patriots
Punter
Ray Guy, Raiders
Kick returner
Desmond Howard, Packers
Coach
Chuck Noll, Steelers
