Terry Bradshaw | Biography, Stats, & Facts (2024)

American football player

verifiedCite

While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies.Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.

Select Citation Style

Feedback

Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

Print

verifiedCite

While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies.Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.

Select Citation Style

Feedback

Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

Also known as: Terry Paxton Bradshaw

Written by

Adam Augustyn Adam Augustyn was a senior editor at Encyclopædia Britannica.

Adam Augustyn

Fact-checked by

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Article History

Terry Bradshaw

See all media

In full:
Terry Paxton Bradshaw
Born:
September 2, 1948, Shreveport, Louisiana, U.S. (age 75)
Awards And Honors:
Pro Football Hall of Fame (1989)
Pro Football Hall of Fame (inducted 1989)
1 NFL Most Valuable Player award
4 Super Bowl championships
1 All-Pro selection
3 Pro Bowl selections
1978 Bert Bell Award (Player of the Year)

See all related content →

Terry Bradshaw (born September 2, 1948, Shreveport, Louisiana, U.S.) is an American professional gridiron football quarterback who led the Pittsburgh Steelers to four Super Bowl championships (1975, 1976, 1979, and 1980).

A highly prized collegiate football recruit coming out of high school, Bradshaw shunned traditional powerhouse Louisiana State University to attend the smaller Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, which was only about 70 miles (113 km) from his hometown. He broke all of the major school passing records in his four years at Louisiana Tech and was selected by the Steelers with the first overall selection of the 1970 National Football League (NFL) draft. Bradshaw became the team’s full-time starting quarterback in his second season in Pittsburgh, and in 1972 he led the team to the first of eight consecutive play-off appearances. While the well-balanced team was one of the most successful in the league, Bradshaw struggled with his passing accuracy and was demoted to backup quarterback early in the 1974 season. He played his way back into the starting lineup over the course of the season and led the Steelers to their first Super Bowl title the following January.

Britannica QuizGreat Moments in Sports Quiz

Entrenched as the Steelers’ quarterback, Bradshaw guided the team to a second consecutive championship in 1976. In 1978 he threw a league-high 28 touchdown passes and was named the NFL’s Most Valuable Player (MVP). In the subsequent postseason, he ran an efficient offense that averaged 34 points per game, and the Steelers garnered another Super Bowl victory (with Bradshaw earning game MVP honours). The team again repeated as champions in 1980, and Bradshaw was once more named Super Bowl MVP for his efforts. He retired after the 1983 season and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1989.

After retiring as a player, Bradshaw became a prominent television football analyst. In addition, he acted in a number of television programs and films, and he had some success as a gospel and country music singer. His family is the focus of the reality TV series The Bradshaw Bunch (2020– ). The memoir It’s Only a Game (2001; written with David Fisher) chronicles Bradshaw’s life from his early years to his post-football exploits.

Adam Augustyn The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Terry Bradshaw | Biography, Stats, & Facts (2024)

FAQs

Terry Bradshaw | Biography, Stats, & Facts? ›

In four Super Bowls, he passed for an impressive 932 yards and 9 touchdowns. In 19 postseason games, he completed 261 passes for 3,833 yards. In his 14-season career, Bradshaw

Bradshaw
Terry Paxton Bradshaw (born September 2, 1948) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Since 1994, he has been a television sports analyst and co-host of Fox NFL Sunday.
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Terry_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.

How many MvPs did Terry Bradshaw win? ›

Terry Bradshaw | Pittsburgh Steelers - Steelers.com
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
Super Bowl MVPXIII, XIV
Pro Bowl1975, 1978, 1979
NFL MVP1978
Hall of Fame1989
2 more rows

How many years did Terry Bradshaw play football? ›

Terry Paxton Bradshaw (born September 2, 1948) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Since 1994, he has been a television sports analyst and co-host of Fox NFL Sunday.

How many 300 yard passing games did Terry Bradshaw have in his career? ›

Terry Bradshaw played 4 games with 300+ passing yards.

Is Terry Bradshaw really 6 3? ›

Terry Bradshaw was 6 feet 3 inches tall.

How many Super Bowls Terry Bradshaw win? ›

Terry Bradshaw (born September 2, 1948, Shreveport, Louisiana, U.S.) is an American professional gridiron football quarterback who led the Pittsburgh Steelers to four Super Bowl championships (1975, 1976, 1979, and 1980).

Who has more Super Bowl rings Terry Bradshaw or Tom Brady? ›

Tom Brady's seven Super Bowl wins are the most among any quarterbacks – and all players – in NFL history. Terry Bradshaw and Joe Montana are both tied for second all-time among starting quarterbacks with four Super Bowl victories.

What was Terry Bradshaw's salary? ›

Despite Bradshaw's other TV success, a large portion of his income comes from his contract with Fox. Estimates of Bradshaw's overall salary vary, but Celebrity Net Worth reports it is $5 million. However, estimates say that Bradshaw's Fox contract makes up $2 million of that number.

How many interceptions did Terry Bradshaw throw in his career? ›

Terry Bradshaw was intercepted 210 times in his career.

What person has won the most Super Bowls? ›

Which players have the most Super Bowl wins overall? Tom Brady has won the most Super Bowls of any player in NFL history with seven. Brady won the 2002, 2004, 2005, 2015, 2017, and 2019 Super Bowls quarterbacking the New England Patriots, and the 2021 Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Which QB has the most 500 yard games? ›

Ben Roethlisberger holds the record for most 500 yard performances in the regular season with three and most overall with four when including the postseason.

Who caught Terry Bradshaw's last touchdown pass? ›

Calvin Sweeney may not have had a great career, but he certainly seemed to enjoy his time in Pittsburgh and in catching Terry Bradshaw's last pass he played an under appreciated role in Steelers history.

Is Terry Bradshaw ADHD? ›

Terry Bradshaw struggled all his life because of ADHD.

Did Howie Long ever sack Terry Bradshaw? ›

7, 1981. Bradshaw started the game for the Steelers but was injured after completing 4-of-9 for 29 yards, with 1 touchdown and no interceptions, and he was replaced by Mark Malone. Howie Long did have a sack in that game, but he sacked Malone and not Bradshaw.

Is Terry Bradshaw a good QB? ›

Terry Bradshaw was an excellent QB that's for sure. However, he was not the greatest of that era. Terry benefited from playing with one of the greatest teams of all time. On offense, he had two of the best WR's ever in Lynn Swann and John Stallworth, he had Franco Harris and Rocky Bleier for a potent running game.

Who has the most Super Bowl Mvps of all time? ›

Tom Brady is the only player to have won five Super Bowl MVP awards (four with the New England Patriots and one with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers); Joe Montana and Mahomes won three times and three other players—Bart Starr, Terry Bradshaw and Eli Manning—have won the award twice.

How many Mvps did Joe Namath win? ›

Pro Football Hall of Fame

During his five AFL seasons, Namath was a two-time MVP and twice led the league in passing yards, while winning one AFL championship and one Super Bowl. Both victories remain the Jets' only championships.

Who is Super Bowl 58 MVP? ›

LAS VEGAS -- Moments after leading a winning scoring drive in overtime, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was named Super Bowl LVIII MVP on Sunday night. But it did not come without drama. Not with the Chiefs trailing and needing at least a field goal to extend the game.

Did Joe Montana win MVP? ›

Montana led the San Francisco 49ers to four Super Bowl victories (1982, 1985, 1989, 1990) and was named the Super Bowl's Most Valuable Player (MVP) three times. He also ranks among football's all-time leaders in passing yards (40,551) and touchdown passes (273).

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Aron Pacocha

Last Updated:

Views: 6238

Rating: 4.8 / 5 (48 voted)

Reviews: 95% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Aron Pacocha

Birthday: 1999-08-12

Address: 3808 Moen Corner, Gorczanyport, FL 67364-2074

Phone: +393457723392

Job: Retail Consultant

Hobby: Jewelry making, Cooking, Gaming, Reading, Juggling, Cabaret, Origami

Introduction: My name is Aron Pacocha, I am a happy, tasty, innocent, proud, talented, courageous, magnificent person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.