So, Craig Morton, the old gunslinger who quarterbacked your grandpappy's Cowboys and Broncos, finally bought the farm at 83. Another one bites the dust. He's shuffling off this mortal coil, leaving behind a legacy of… well, getting to the Super Bowl twice and losing twice. But hey, at least he's got that participation trophy, right?

Morton's claim to fame is being one of the few QBs dumb enough to start a Super Bowl for two different teams. The others – Manning, Brady, and Warner – actually managed to win. Talk about a skill issue. At least he’s in that elite company...sort of.

Super Bowl V in '71? A turnover fiesta. Cowboys lost to the Colts 16-13. Morton tossed the first TD in a Super Bowl for Dallas. Baby steps, I guess. Then, seven years later, after a pit stop with the Giants (who traded him for Randy White, a smart move), he's leading the Broncos against his old team. Disaster. 39 yards, four picks, benched. The '77 Orange Crush defense carried his sorry rear end all the way to Pasadena.

Let's be real, his peak was probably at Cal, slinging pigskins for Marv Levy and Bill Walsh. Got drafted fifth overall by the Cowboys in '65, then had to play second fiddle to Don Meredith and then that choir boy Roger Staubach. Tough luck, buddy. Staubach stole his job, won a Super Bowl, and made Morton irrelevant. Ouch.

The Cowboys dumped him to the Giants for draft picks that became Randy White. Score one for Jerry Jones...err, Tex Schramm. Morton resurrected his career in Denver, leading the Broncos to their first Super Bowl. Good for him. Red Miller gets the credit for that '77 season, though. No cap.

He did get a sweet 12-2 record and some playoff wins, even though he was hobbling around with a hip injury. Can’t fault him for toughness. Then, the Broncos went back to being the Broncos after the loss to Dallas, until Elway showed up and made everyone forget Morton existed. Savage.

In '81, he had a decent season, but who cares? He retired after the strike-shortened '82 season, just in time for the Broncos to trade for John Elway and become relevant again. Timing is everything, Craig. The dude threw for almost 28,000 yards and 183 TDs. Not bad, but not Staubach/Elway legendary, either.

He's in the Broncos' Ring of Fame, alongside some other guys no one remembers. So, pour one out for Craig Morton, the quarterback who almost was. The dude tried. At least he didn't kneel for the anthem. That's a W in my book.