4 Quarterbacks, 1 Super Bowl

This is the time of year that can make or break a quarterback.

Terry Bradshaw couldn’t spell “cat” until he starred in a Super Bowl.

Phil Simms was never good enough in New York until he was perfect in a Super Bowl.

Doug Williams never got the payday he deserved until he broke down barriers in a Super Bowl.

If this is January, then the NFL spotlight must be on the quarterback. Heading into the AFC and NFC championship games, this year’s roll call of Final Four quarterbacks is typical of the times.

There’s Bernie Kosar and John Elway -- the unorthodox, side-arming flinger against the once golden boy -- in Sunday’s AFC showdown between Cleveland and Denver.

There’s Jim Everett and Joe Montana -- the new kid on the block against the master -- in the NFC’s matchup between the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers.

Somewhere in that group is a Super Bowl winner: if it’s Montana, a repeat winner, waiting the call of fame and fortune.

Elway and Montana know a little about the territory. Elway is a two-time Super Bowl loser with the Broncos, born of expectations that at times have been surrealistic. Montana is a three-time winner whose former coach was ready to phase him out as recently as November 1988.

Indeed, of the four, only Everett has not been drummed through the NFL’s school of hard knocks. Kosar was booed this season in Cleveland. All he did was win four division titles in five years as a pro. Elway was booed in Denver. All he did was win a pair of AFC championships.

“There (were) some unpleasant things said and John hasn’t had an easy year,” said Dan Reeves, Elway’s coach in Denver. “But he has performed well, and he showed last week he still is able to do great things.”

Elway, 29, became the third player in NFL history to have five straight 3,000-yard seasons. Dan Marino and Boomer Esiason are the others. Counting last week’s come-from-behind win over Pittsburgh, he has brought the Broncos back 16 times with last-minute rallies. It was Elway’s crucial 36-yard completion to Vance Johnson on a flea-flicker that set up the Broncos’ winning touchdown in a 24-23 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

If there’s one thing Marty Schottenheimer appreciates in Elway, it’s his competitive fire.

“When you talk about his mobility and strong arm, the one thing people fail to recognize is that he probably is as great a competitor as there is,” said Schottenheimer, head coach in Kansas City who lost two AFC title games to Elway while in Cleveland.

“I’ve coached him in the Pro Bowl, and I’ve seen enough of him to know the guy is a great competitor. And if you look at all four of these quarterbacks, that’s one common thread they all have.”

Kosar’s competitiveness helped him endure a year of insult and injury in Cleveland. The Browns’ quarterback bruised his right elbow in a Week 10 victory over Seattle. He played through the pain, and in the next four games the Browns went 0-3-1. When he went 20 quarters without a touchdown pass, he was booed at home.

“If you ask Bernie how he is, he won’t ever say he’s hurting,” said Bud Carson, who replaced Schottenheimer in Cleveland. “But we’ve discussed it with the doctors and they say he isn’t in any career-threatening situation. He just has had some different arm problems.

“When the time comes to throw the ball, especially in a big game when we have to have it, Bernie comes through. We were much more concerned about him last week, health-wise, than this week.”

Kosar, 26, has had elbow, shoulder and finger ailments this year. Last week, with various parts of his anatomy hurting, he completed 20 of 29 passes for 235 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. Despite the injuries, Kosar still passed for 3,533 yards and 18 touchdowns this season.

It doesn’t surprise Schottenheimer. “The thing that stands out is that at a point in time when everybody thought he would be at his worst, he got the job done,” his former coach said. “That speaks volumes about Kosar as a winning quarterback.”

At a point in time when then-coach Bill Walsh was ready to pass the 49ers’ quarterbacking torch from Montana to Steve Young last season, Montana responded with some of the best football of his life.

The 49ers won seven of their last eight games a year ago, and with Montana showing the way, capped the season with a dramatic 20-16 victory over Cincinnati in Super Bowl XXIII. His 92-yard drive at game’s end produced the winning touchdown, a 10-yard scoring pass to John Taylor. This year, the 49ers are 15-2 going into Sunday’s showdown, and Montana has elevated his game still another notch.

Montana, 33, completed a staggering 70.2 percent of his passes this season and posted the highest passer rating in NFL history, 112.4. His touchdown-to-interception ratio of 26-8 is the best of his 11-year career. Montana was named the NFL’s MVP for his superior season.

Said first-year 49ers Coach George Seifert, “Any superlative you can use to describe him fits.”

Montana’s next playoff touchdown pass will tie him with Bradshaw for the league record of 30.

As fate would have it, there are those who compare young Everett to the veteran Montana. In his second full season as the Rams’ starting quarterback, Everett passed for 4,310 yards and an NFL-high 29 touchdowns. He has a strong arm, quick release and soft touch.

“It’s a great compliment,” Everett said of the comparison. “He (Montana) has proven time and time again he’s a Super Bowl winner, and I think that’s the judgment on quarterbacks. Comparisons are great, but I don’t have a Super Bowl.”