Great NFL Quotes

“Everybody loves a good quote.” ~Anonymous

To date, the most-read article in the history of SilverAndBlueBlood is the article, Top Ten Quotes from Dallas Cowboys. Since my momma didn’t raise no dummies, I have quickly deduced that people love a good quote.

I know I do.

Few industries have conspired to contribute more memorable, honest, hilarious, inspiring, (insert additional adjectives here) quotes than the National Football League. From legendary coaches like Vince Lombardi to barely-remembered players like former Cowboys running back Duane Thomas, memorable quotes have given immortality to the men and the game they play with such passion.

I will break the quotes down into a few general categories. Enjoy!

For the Love of the Game

1. “I wouldn’t ever set out to hurt anyone deliberately unless it was important – like a league game.” ~Dick Butkus
2. “Pro football is like nuclear warfare. There are no winners, only survivors.” ~Frank Gifford
3. “Football is an incredible game. Sometimes it’s so incredible, it’s unbelievable.” ~Tom Landry
4. “If my mother put on a helmet and shoulder pads and a uniform that wasn’t the same as the one I was wearing, I’d run over her if she was in my way. And I love my mother.” ~Bo Jackson
5. “Gentlemen, it is better to have died as a small boy than to fumble this football.” ~John Heisman

It’s a Man’s Game

1. “If my mother put on a helmet and shoulder pads and a uniform that wasn’t the same as the one I was wearing, I’d run over her if she was in my way. And I love my mother.” ~Bo Jackson
2. “I just wrap my arms around the whole backfield and peel ‘em one by one until I get to the ball carrier. Him I keep.” ~Big Daddy Lipscomb
3. “My knees look like they lost a knife fight with a midget.” ~E.J. Holub
4. “I like to believe that my best hits border on felonious assault.” ~Jack Tatum
5. “If you’re mad at your kid, you can either raise him to be a nose tackle or send him out to play on the freeway. It’s about the same.” ~Bob Golic

You Have to Be Prepared

1. “I’m a light eater. As soon as it’s light, I start to eat.” ~Art Donovan
2. “When it’s third and ten, you can take the milk drinkers, and I’ll take the whiskey drinkers every time.” ~Max McGee
3. “I learned that if you want to make it bad enough, no matter how bad it is, you can make it.” ~Gale Sayers
4. “The road to Easy Street goes through the sewer.” ~John Madden
5. “The dictionary is the only place where success comes before work.” ~Vince Lombardi

This is NOT Rocket Science

1. “He couldn’t spell cat if you spotted him the C and the T.” ~Thomas “Hollywood” Henderson (on the intelligence of Terry Bradshaw)
2. “I never graduated college, but I was only there for two terms – Truman’s and Eisenhower’s.” ~Alex Karras
3. “If defensive linemen’s IQs were 5 points lower, they’d be geraniums.” ~Russ Francis
4. “Nobody in football should be called a genius. A genius is a guy like Norman Einstein.” ~Joe Theismann
5. “Most football players are temperamental. That’s 90 percent temper and 10 percent mental.” ~Doug Plank

Vince Lombardi Quotes: Are You Not Inspired?

1. “It’s not whether you get knocked down, it’s whether you get up.” ~Vince Lombardi
2. “Winners never quit, and quitters never win.” ~Vince Lombardi
3. “The spirit, the will to win, and the will to excel are the things that endure. These qualities are so much more important than the events that occur.” ~Vince Lombardi
4. “Obstacles are what you see when you take your eyes off the goal.” ~Vince Lombardi
5. “Show me a good loser, and I’ll show you a loser.” ~Vince Lombardi

Great NFL Coaches Quotes

1. “Leadership is a matter of having people look at you and gain confidence, seeing how you react. If you’re in control, they’re in control.” ~Tom Landry
2. “The only discipline that lasts is self-discipline.” ~Bum Phillips
3. “I firmly believe that any man’s finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is the moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle–victorious.” ~Vince Lombardi
4. “Setting a goal is not the main thing. It is deciding how you will go about achieving it and staying with that plan.” ~Tom Landry
5. “Ability is what you’re capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it.” ~Lou Holtz
6. “It’s not the load that breaks you down – its the way you carry it.” ~Lou Holtz
7. “Nothing is more effective than sincere, accurate praise, and nothing is more lame than a cookie-cutter compliment.” ~Bill Walsh
8. “Nobody who ever gave his best regretted it” ~George Halas
9. “I don’t know any other way to lead but by example.” ~Don Shula
10. “If things came easy, then everybody would be great at what they did, let’s face it.” ~Mike Ditka

Now, That’s a Funny Quote

1. “In Montana, they renamed a town after an all-time great, Joe Montana. Well, a town in Massachusetts changed their name to honor my guy Terry Bradshaw — Marblehead.” ~Howie Long
2. “The Bears are so tough when they finish sacking the quarterback, they go after his family in the stands.” ~Tim Wrightman
3. “It’s a good idea. I’m in favor of it.” ~Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ coach John McKay (when asked what he thought about his team’s execution.)
4. “What’s the difference between a 3-week-old puppy and a sportswriter? In six weeks, the puppy stops whining.” ~Mike Ditka
5. “Most of my clichés aren’t original.” ~Chuck Knox
6. “Men, I want you just thinking of one word all season. One word and one word only: Super Bowl.” ~former Oilers coach Bill Peterson