Which Team Did These NFL Legends Play Their Last Game With?
- by D_Lamoureux
- – on
- in Sports
It’s always a nice story in sports when an athlete can play his entire career with a single franchise. For some reason, this happens less in football than in other sports. A player can have literally the best career of anyone else to ever play their position, but if the time comes where the team feels he’s too old to be paid what he’s asking for, that’s it. There’s the door. To quote Batman, you either die a hero (Barry Sanders), or you live long enough to see yourself die a villain (Brett Favre). You could argue in most circumstances that it’s the teams who are the villains, not the players, but it's sports. You put on that jersey and all those feelings quickly go away. That is, if they actually do anything in the new jersey. A lot of these players had such long careers before leaving, that even seeing them in a different uniform looks wrong. It feels wrong. You very well may not have known that Joe Montana and Joe Namath played anywhere other than San Francisco or New York, because they shouldn't have. But they did.
Sometimes the franchises will try to be sneaky with it and sign a player to a one-day contract so that he can “retire as a member of the team”, but let's be honest, that doesn't make any difference to anyone. For this quiz, it’s not whichever team “they retired as a member of”, we’re asking which team he played his last NFL game with. A fair warning, this will not be easy.
Which team did Brett Favre play his final game for?
Love him or hate him, Brett Favre is one of the NFL’s best all-time quarterbacks. He was the prime example of a “gunslinger” because he wasn’t afraid to throw the ball downfield, even if it resulted in an interception instead of a touchdown. The amount of turnovers were just enough to give your team hope, before Favre would lead the Packers down the field for a last-minute win. He currently holds all-time NFL records for pass attempts, completions, and interceptions. Which team did he finish up his 20 year career with?
Which team did Joe Montana play his final game for?
Joe Montana is widely considered one of the greatest NFL QBs ever. Montana won four Super Bowls with the 49ers in the 80s, and was the first NFL player to win three Super Bowl MVPs. The only quarterback with more wins, or MVPs in the big game is Tom Brady. So, if you’re ranking all-time QBs, he may not be #1 anymore, but Montana was the guy for a long while. Montana didn’t finish his career in San Francisco, do you know which team he played his last game for?
Which team did Randy Moss play his final game for?
Randy Moss began his career in Minnesota, and boy, what a career it was. He had 1,313 receiving yards on just 69 catches in his rookie season, plus 17 touchdowns. His next stop, Oakland, was not as kind to the speedster from Rand, West Virginia. When it looked like his career was on the downswing, he teamed up with Tom Brady in New England and set the record for touchdowns in a single season with 23. After he got a ring with the Pats, he was on the move again, joining two different franchises before retiring.
Which team did Jerry Rice play his final game for?
The only player other than Randy Moss to catch 20+ touchdowns in a single season is the man voted as NFL Network’s #1 Player of All-Time, Jerry Rice. Rice was a massive part of those 49ers teams that dominated the late 80s and early 90s. He holds all the major receiving records: catches, touchdowns, and yards. Like his quarterback Montana, he didn’t finish his career in San Francisco either. Do you remember what team Jerry Rice played his last NFL game for?
Which team did Peyton Manning play his final game for?
If he wasn’t taken out of the playoffs by Brady, Belichick, and the Pats every year, we might be referring to Peyton Manning as the best QB ever. But, since he did struggle in Foxborough in January, he’ll have to settle with only being talked about as the best regular season QB of all-time. Manning had a stretch between 2003 and 2014 where he only had one season where his team finished with five losses. The consistency was remarkable. Again, he didn’t finish his career in the jersey that most would recognize him in. Which jersey was it?
Which team did Joe Namath play his final game for?
Playing in a big city where there are high expectations can be problematic for some young quarterbacks, but not for someone with as much confidence as Joe Namath. He was so comfortable in the spotlight in New York that he adopted the nickname “Broadway Joe”, and didn’t shy away from doing underwear advertisements. When his Jets were underdogs against the Baltimore Colts ahead of Super Bowl III, Namath guaranteed a victory, and followed through. It was the first Super Bowl win for an AFL team, although Namath would not finish his career with that same team.
Which team did Tim Brown play his final game for?
Tim Brown played in three different cities, for two different franchises over his 17-season Hall of Fame career. Brown had his best years with the Raiders, where he had a nine year stretch of at least 1,000 yards receiving and five touchdowns in every season. Currently, he also ranks top ten all-time in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns. Like so many others, he’d play his last season, and only his last season, with a different team. Which team was it?
Which team did LaDainian Tomlinson play his final game for?
LaDainian Tomlinson was the best running back in the NFL for at least a few years in the 2000s. He wasn’t super flashy, and didn’t run too many guys over, but he moved so fluidly and was able to break tackles with ease. His best season was 2006, where he set the record for touchdowns in a season with 31, 28 of those were rushing touchdowns, which is also a record. He did all that with the San Diego Chargers, but do you remember which team he played his final game with?
Which team did Deion Sanders play his final game for?
Deion Sanders was a one of a kind football player, and still is a one of a kind human being. Sanders has to be one of the best trash talkers of all-time, and his “look good, feel good, play good” line is one that it is still parroted by players around the world. He made eight Pro Bowls, six All-Pro First Team selections, and was one of the only cornerbacks to consistently frustrate Jerry Rice. Oh, and he was also one of the best kick and punt returners, and played in the MLB. He was a decent athlete.
Which team did Kurt Warner play his final game for?
Kurt Warner was the leader of the St. Louis Rams’ “Greatest Show on Turf” offence, although he wasn’t expected to be. Warner got the job because the expected starter for the 1999 season, Trent Green, was injured in preseason. He excelled, taking the Rams to a Super Bowl victory, and keeping the starting QB job for another couple seasons, until he himself was injured. Warner would get back to the Super Bowl with another team, but fail to win it the second time around. Which team did he play his final game with?
Which team did Emmitt Smith play his final game for?
Emmitt Smith is the NFL’s all-time leader in rushing yards, but that doesn’t automatically make him the best running back of all-time. Smith played behind probably the best offensive line in the history of the NFL, that of the Dallas Cowboys. Smith also played for much longer than most running backs. Despite not averaging more than 65 yards per game in any of his last three seasons, those are what separates him from Walter Payton on the all-time rushing list. Which team did Emmitt Smith play for last?
Which team did Torry Holt play his final game for?
Torry Holt was a big part of the St. Louis Rams’ “Greatest Show On Turf” in the late 90s and early 2000s. In his rookie season, Holt had 7 catches for 109 yards in the Rams’ Super Bowl win over the Tennessee Titans. He led the league in receiving yards twice, and receptions once in his ten years in St. Louis. Holt spent his final NFL season playing for a different team, do you remember which team he played his last game for?
Which team did Tony Gonzalez play his final game for?
Not only is Tony Gonzalez right near the top of almost all receiving categories for tight ends, he’s right up there with a lot of the NFL’s best receivers in general. He’s 2nd all-time and 1st out of tight ends in receptions, 6th all-time and 1st for tight ends in receiving yards, and 7th all-time and 2nd for tight ends in receiving TDs. Gonzalez played a 17-year career between two franchises. Do you remember which team he played for last?
Which team did Earl Campbell play his final game for?
Earl Campbell was one of the most physical running backs the NFL has ever seen. At 238 lbs. And 5’11” his strength paired with his low centre of gravity allowed him to bowl right through smaller tacklers. In his first three seasons in the league, he ran for over 5,000 yards with the Houston Oilers. Unfortunately, Campbell would only post a 1,000 yard season twice more in his career. Do you know which team he played his last game with?
Which team did Shaun Alexander play his final game for?
When the Seattle Seahawks made the Super Bowl in 2006, it was more due to the contributions of their running back than their quarterback. Their running back was Shaun Alexander, fresh off breaking the NFL record for most touchdowns in a single season. Alexander’s time on top did not last long. The Seahawks lost Super Bowl XL, Tomlinson broke his record the next season, by 2008 he was on a different team, and retired when the season came to an end. Which team did he play for in his last season?
Which team did Cris Carter play his final game for?
Although Cris Carter has been really good on TV since retiring, he’ll probably never be as good of a football analyst as he was a football player. He sits 4th all-time in touchdown catches, 6th in receptions, and 13th in receiving yards. And even though he played 12 years in Minnesota, making eight Pro Bowls, he might not be the best Vikings wide receiver of that era. Randy Moss isn’t as good an analyst, though. Do you remember which team Cris Carter made 8 catches for in his last NFL season?
Which team did Ronnie Lott play his final game for?
If you haven’t watched a Ronnie Lott hit compilation on YouTube, I suggest you do that as soon as possible. Playing the safety position lends itself to big collisions, and Lott took full advantage many times. Aside from being a good tackler, he could cover, make interceptions, and do anything else you needed from a defensive back. Lott made ten Pro Bowls, six All-Pros, the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s All-Decade Team for the 1980s, and won four Super Bowls with the 49ers. Which team did Lott play his final game with?
Which team did Terrell Owens play his final game for?
There’s a lot of interesting discussion around the football world when it comes to Terrell Owens’ legacy. If you look purely at numbers, he’s an obvious Hall of Famer. 2nd all-time in receiving yards, 5th all-time in touchdowns, and 8th all-time in receptions. However, some pundits point to the fact that he was disruptive to the teams he played for, supported by the fact that he never won a Super Bowl. Really the worst thing that he’d do is complain on the sideline that he isn’t getting the ball enough. Looking at his stats, he probably wasn’t.
Which team did Larry Allen play his final game for?
Larry Allen was an absolute monster when he played football. It wasn’t just the fact that he was 6’3” and 330 lbs. as a left guard, it was the fact that he could bench press DOUBLE that weight. He was an 11-time Pro Bowler for good reason. He was unstoppable. Legend has it that Larry would make the sound of a train whistle to tell the defense that they were going to run the ball behind Allen, and they still couldn’t stop it. Allen didn’t finish his career with Dallas, but he was responsible for a lot of their success.
Which team did Deacon Jones play his final game for?
The first time I saw Deacon Jones must have been at least 25-30 after he retired, and he still scared the life out of me. I can only imagine what it was like to go up against him in his prime. Jones actually coined the term “quarterback sack” himself, and his signature move was the “head slap”, which I’m very confident has since been banned from the NFL. His list of accolades includes being named the “Defensive End of the Century” by Sports Illustrated in 1999. However, the “Most Valuable Ram of All-Time” didn’t finish his career with the Rams.
Which team did OJ Simpson play his final game for?
OJ Simpson is probably the only player in this list who is more famous for something that has nothing to do with the sport of football. Disregarding all that, he was a hell of a football player. He was the first player to rush for 2,000 yards in a single season, and remains the only player to reach that mark in a 14-game season. He averaged 143 yards per game that season, and scored 12 touchdowns. He’d go from Buffalo to this team for his final two NFL seasons.
Which team did Steve McNair play his final game for?
Steve McNair played quarterback for two NFL franchises in his career. With the first one, he came about as close as humanly possible to winning a Super Bowl as you could without winning one, when Kevin Dyson was tackled a yard short of the endzone as time expired. McNair was selected to the Pro Bowl the following season, as well as two other seasons after that, all with the Titans. He’d go 13-3 in 2006 with his new team, but injuries would catch up to him, and he retired after the 2007 campaign. Which team was he with when he retired?
Which team did Franco Harris play his final game for?
Franco Harris was the man who scored the touchdown in “The Immaculate Reception”, a controversial play that led to the Pittsburgh Steelers winning the 1972 AFC Divisional Game, and is one of the most famous plays in history. He also helped the Steelers to four Super Bowl victories in the 70s and early 80s. He retired with eight seasons of 1,000 yards rushing, but did it after switching teams due to a pay dispute before his final season. Do you know which team he closed out his career with?
Which team did Eddie George play his final game for?
The Tennessee Titans drafted Eddie George after he won the Heisman Trophy with Ohio State. His success continued in the NFL, as George made the Pro Bowl in four straight seasons between 1997 and 2000, a stretch which included a trip to the Super Bowl. By the end of the 2003-04 season, George had ran for 1,000 yards in all but one season with the Titans. However, he was 30, so he moved on to a different team for what would be his final season. Which team did he go to?
Which team did Isaac Bruce play his final game for?
Isaac Bruce was never really a dominant receiver over the course of his career, but he was extremely consistent. He never led the league in receptions, or receiving touchdowns, but he is top 15 all-time in both of those categories. He is also 5th all-time with over 15,000 receiving yards. Bruce spent 14 years with the Rams franchise, but still played his final two NFL seasons elsewhere. Do you know which team Isaac Bruce played his last NFL game with?
Which team did Thurman Thomas play his final game for?
Thurman Thomas is, without a doubt, a legend of the Buffalo Bills franchise. He was there for all four of the team’s consecutive Super Bowl losses in the early 90s, and he made the Pro Bowl in every one of those seasons, doing his part to bring them back to the big dance. Thomas played 12 seasons in Buffalo before playing his final NFL season with team, a divisional rival of the Bills. Do you know which old AFC East team it was?
Which team did Andre Reed play his final game for?
Andre Reed was another Bills player unfortunate enough to be in Buffalo for all four of the team’s Super Bowl losses. He, like Thurman Thomas, also had a great career if you can overlook that one aspect. Reed is currently in the top 20 all-time in career receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns. Again, like Thomas, he only played one season for a team other than Buffalo, and that would be his last NFL season. Do you know which team that was for?
Which team did Johnny Unitas play his final game for?
Johnny Unitas is one of the first superstars of the NFL. Before the Super Bowl was a thing, Unitas led the Baltimore Colts to a win in the NFL’s first ever overtime game, also called the “greatest game ever played.” Unitas played quarterback for the Colts for a remarkable 17 seasons, where he won three NFL Championships, Super Bowl V, three NFL MVPs, and was also named to ten Pro Bowls. However, he did play his final season for a team that wasn’t the Baltimore Colts. Which team was it?
Which team did Reggie White play his final game for?
While many players in this quiz had the majority of their fame come with one team, Reggie White dominated with two. He spent eight years with Philadelphia and six with Green Bay, making the Pro Bowl seven times with the Eagles and six with the Packers. He’d retire the all-time sack leader, and is now behind just Michael Strahan. Of course, he didn’t play his final season with either of these two franchises. Do you remember which team the Hall of Fame defensive end played his last game with?
Which team did Tony Dorsett play his final game for?
Tony Dorsett was another great Dallas Cowboys running back who definitely benefited from having a great team around him. Dorsett made four Pro Bowls, and won a Super Bowl with the Cowboys in 1978. He currently ranks 9th in all-time rushing yards. After spending 11 years in Dallas, Dorsett made the move to this team, who he’d play just one season with before retiring at age 33. Can you remember which team he went to close out his career with?
Which team did Joey Porter play his final game for?
Joey Porter was one of the leaders of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ dominant defences of the 2000s. He, along with James Farrior, James Harrison, and Larry Foote among others, formed possibly the most complete linebacking core in Steelers history. That’s saying something. With Troy Polamalu behind them at safety, it’s no surprise they made as many playoffs as they did. Although he’d return to Pittsburgh as a coach, Porter didn’t play his last NFL game with the franchise. Which team did he play it with?
Which team did Shannon Sharpe play his final game for?
Shannon Sharpe was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2011, and deservedly so. Out of all tight ends, Sharpe is top five all-time in receptions, and receiving yards. He also won football’s greatest prize, the Super Bowl, in both the 1997 and 1998 seasons. Now, Sharpe has a different challenge on his hands, arguing 1-on-1 with sport’s most notoriously annoying pundit, Skip Bayless. Honestly, it’s probably the toughest matchup he’s ever had. Which team did Sharpe play his last game with?
Which team did Bo Jackson play his final game for?
Bo Jackson might have been the greatest athlete to play any sport. It wasn’t just that he was good enough to play both football, and baseball, it was the fact that he was dominant at both. He was both the fastest, and the strongest player on the football field, and you have to believe the same could be said for the baseball park. Unfortunately, a hip injury in a playoff game cut both of Jackson’s careers short. He’d only get to play in four NFL seasons. Which team did Jackson play his last NFL game for?
Which team did Warren Moon play his final game for?
Warren Moon is one of the better quarterbacks in NFL history, and certainly one of the best to never win a Super Bowl. His best years were the ten that he played in Houston. Although he never got past the second round in the NFL, Moon did a lot of winning in Canada. Moon won five Grey Cups before beginning his career down south. Moon ranks top ten all-time in passing yards, completions, and attempts. Which team did he play for last?
Which team did Ed Reed play his final game for?
Ed Reed is one of the best safeties of all-time. He was so good, that he often wasn’t allowed to take part in team practice scrimmages because he’d pick the ball too much. Seriously. Reed was a big part of the Ravens defences of the 2000s, which I believe were some of the best ever. He ranks first all-time in interceptions return yards, fifth in non-offensive touchdowns, and seventh in interceptions. He’ll be in the Hall of Fame in no time. Which team did Ed Reed play his last game for?