Jeff Hostetler - Professional Career

Professional Career

Hostetler was drafted by the Giants in the third round of the 1984 NFL Draft, where he served as backup to Phil Simms. In his first five seasons, despite earning a Super Bowl ring with the 1986 Giants, he played sparingly, rarely making an appearance as he was the third string quarterback behind both Simms and Jeff Rutledge. His first start came late in the 1988 season, where he helped lead the Giants to victory in a road game against the New Orleans Saints. In 1989, he started a key game in the middle of the season, leading the Giants to a Monday night victory over the Minnesota Vikings. However, outside of these games Hostetler's primary roles were mop-up duty and holder for kickers Raul Allegre, Bjorn Nittmo, and Matt Bahr.

On December 15, 1990, Simms broke his foot during a game against the Buffalo Bills. The following week, Hostetler, who had thrown only 109 passes in his 7 years with the Giants, took over as the starting quarterback. The Giants won their final two regular seasons games and swept through the playoffs, defeating the Bills in Super Bowl XXV, 20–19. During the game, he completed 20 of 32 passes for 222 yards, with one touchdown and no interceptions. In 2008, ESPN ranked Hostetler's performance #30 for the best quarterback performances in Super Bowl history.

During the summer of 1991, new Giants’ head coach Ray Handley allowed Hostetler to compete with Simms for the starting job. Hostetler eventually beat out Simms for the starting job, winning the season opening Monday night game against the 49ers. Hostetler started 12 games for the Giants in 1991, winning six. However, in his twelfth start against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Hostetler broke his back and missed the rest of the season. Of the games Hostetler started (including the one he didn't finish), the Giants went 7-5. By comparison Simms, who finished the Week 13 win over Tampa Bay, only won once in his four starts after Hostetler's injury (the season finale against the Houston Oilers).

When Hostetler returned from his injury in 1992, he once again was placed in competition with Simms for the starting quarterback position. Simms won the job, but after a Week 4 loss to the Los Angeles Raiders, Hostetler again was pressed into service as Simms suffered a season-ending injury. Again, however, Hostetler was unable to stay healthy and he only managed 9 starts, playing in four more games, and missed three other games with injuries including a concussion. While Hostetler had the best record of any Giants starter in 1992 (5-4), he was not retained by the team following the season and signed with the Los Angeles Raiders to be their starter in 1993.

During his four years as a Raider, Hostetler was voted to his only Pro Bowl, in 1994. He also led them to an impressive 42-24 playoff win over the Denver Broncos in the 1993 season, throwing for 294 yards and three touchdowns. He finished his career with two seasons with the Redskins (1997 and 1998); during his last season he spent much of his time on injured reserve and did not see any playing time.

Hostetler retired with 1,357 of 2,338 completions for 16,430 yards and 94 touchdowns, with 71 interceptions. He also rushed for 1,391 yards and 17 touchdowns. Perhaps most impressive about Hostetler was his ability to perform very well in the post-season. In five playoff games, he completed 72 of 115 passes (62.6 percent) for 1,034 yards, seven touchdowns, no interceptions, and a 112.0 passer rating while going 4-1.