Terry Bradshaw facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

This page is about the American football player. For the baseball player, see Terry Bradshaw (baseball).

Quick facts for kids
Terry Bradshaw

Bradshaw in 2018

No. 12

Position:

Quarterback

Personal information

Born:

September 2, 1948 (age 76)
Shreveport, Louisiana, U.S.

Height:

6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)

Weight:

215 lb (98 kg)

Career information

High school:

Woodlawn
(Shreveport, Louisiana)

College:

Louisiana Tech (1966–1969)

NFL Draft:

1970 / Round: 1 / Pick: 1

Career history

Pittsburgh Steelers (1970)

Career highlights and awards

4× Super Bowl champion (IX, X, XIII, XIV)
2× Super Bowl MVP (XIII, XIV)
NFL Most Valuable Player (1978)
First-team All-Pro (1978)
3× Pro Bowl (1975, 1978, 1979)
2× NFL passing touchdowns leader (1978, 1982)
NFL 1970s All-Decade Team
SI Sportsman of the Year (1979)
Bert Bell Award (1978)
Pittsburgh Steelers Hall of Honor
Pittsburgh Steelers All-Time Team
First-team Little All-American (1969)
Pittsburgh Pro Football Hall of Fame
Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame
Louisiana Tech Athletic Hall of Fame

Career NFL statistics

Passing attempts:	3,901
Passing completions:	2,025
Completion percentage:	51.9%
TD–INT:	212–210
Passing yards:	27,989
Passer rating:	70.9
Rushing yards:	2,257
Rushing touchdowns:	32

Player stats at PFR

Pro Football Hall of Fame

College Football Hall of Fame

Terry Paxton Bradshaw (born September 2, 1948) is a famous American former football quarterback. He played for 14 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers in the National Football League (NFL). After his playing career, he became a television sports analyst. He is also a co-host of Fox NFL Sunday.

Bradshaw is also an actor and a recording artist. He has appeared in several TV shows and movies. One of his most notable roles was in the movie Failure to Launch. He has also released country music albums.

People sometimes called him the Blonde Bomber. He won four Super Bowls in just six years. These wins were in 1974, 1975, 1978, and 1979. He was the first quarterback to win three and then four Super Bowls. He also led the Steelers to eight championships in their division. Bradshaw was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1989. This was his first year of being eligible. He was also inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1996.

Bradshaw was known for being a very tough player. He had one of the strongest arms in NFL history. His skills and leadership helped the Steelers become a dominant team in the 1970s. During his career, he threw for over 300 yards in seven games. Three of these big games were in the playoffs, including two Super Bowls. In his four Super Bowl appearances, he threw for 932 yards and nine touchdowns. These were Super Bowl records when he retired. In 19 playoff games, he completed 261 passes for 3,833 yards.

Early Life and High School Football

Terry Bradshaw was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, on September 2, 1948. His father, William Marvin "Bill" Bradshaw, was a veteran of the United States Navy. His mother was Novis Gay. Terry has two brothers, Gary and Craig.

When he was very young, his family lived in Camanche, Iowa. There, he decided he wanted to play professional football. As a teenager, Bradshaw moved back to Shreveport with his family. He went to Woodlawn High School. He led his team, the Knights, to the state championship game in 1965. They lost that game 12–9.

While at Woodlawn, he set a national record in the javelin throw. He threw it 245 feet (75 meters). His achievements were even featured in Sports Illustrated magazine. Another future NFL quarterback, Joe Ferguson, took over as Woodlawn's starting quarterback after Bradshaw.

College Football Career

Bradshaw playing for Louisiana Tech in 1967

Bradshaw chose to attend Louisiana Tech University in Ruston. He was recruited by future Hall of Fame coach Jimmy Johnson. Bradshaw loves his college and is part of the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity.

When he first arrived at Tech in 1966, he was the second-string quarterback. The starter was Phil Robertson, who later became famous for inventing the Duck Commander duck call. Robertson decided not to play football in 1968. He famously told Bradshaw, "I'm going for the ducks, you [Terry] can go for the bucks."

In 1969, many professional scouts thought Bradshaw was the best college football player in the country. In 1968, he gained 2,890 total yards, which was the most in the NCAA. He led his team to a 9–2 record and a 33–13 win in the Rice Bowl. In his senior year, he gained 2,314 yards, ranking third in the NCAA. His team had an 8–2 record. He often left games early because his team had such big leads.

Bradshaw graduated holding almost all of Louisiana Tech's passing records at that time. In 1984, he was inducted into Louisiana Tech's sports hall of fame. Four years later, he joined the state of Louisiana's sports hall of fame.

College Statistics Overview

Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
Season	Record	Passing								Rushing
Season	Record	Cmp	Att	Pct	Yds	Avg	TD	Int	Rtg	Att	Yds	Avg	TD
1966	1−9	11	34	32.4	14	0.4	0	3	76.5	26	−74	−2.8	0
1967	3−7	78	139	56.1	981	7.1	3	10	108.1	31	−118	−3.8	0
1968	9−2	176	339	51.9	2,890	8.5	22	15	136.1	87	97	1.1	0
1969	8−2	136	248	54.8	2,314	9.3	14	14	140.6	77	177	2.2	11
Totals	21−20	401	760	52.8	6,199	8.2	39	42	127.2	221	75	0.3	11

NFL Career with the Pittsburgh Steelers

Bradshaw arriving at Steelers training camp

In the 1970 NFL draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers chose Bradshaw as the very first player. The Steelers got the first pick after winning a coin flip. They had a 1–13 record in 1969, just like the Chicago Bears. Bradshaw was seen as the top player to pick.

Bradshaw became a starter in his second season. In his first few years, he sometimes struggled and threw many interceptions. The media often made fun of him for his country background.

It took Bradshaw a few seasons to get used to the NFL. But he eventually led the Steelers to eight division championships. He also led them to four Super Bowl titles. The Pittsburgh Steelers had a very strong defense, called the "Steel Curtain". They also had a powerful running game with Franco Harris and Rocky Bleier. Bradshaw's strong arm allowed them to throw long passes. This helped open up the opposing defenses. In 1972, he threw the "Immaculate Reception" pass to Franco Harris. This is one of the most famous plays in NFL history. It helped them beat the Raiders in the playoffs.

Bradshaw briefly lost his starting job in 1974. But he took it back during the season. In the 1974 AFC Championship Game, his touchdown pass to Lynn Swann won the game. The Steelers then won Super Bowl IX 16–6 against the Minnesota Vikings. Bradshaw's fourth-quarter touchdown pass helped secure their first Super Bowl victory.

In Super Bowl X (after the 1975 season), Bradshaw threw for 209 yards. Most of these yards went to Swann. The Steelers beat the Dallas Cowboys 21–17. His 64-yard touchdown pass to Swann in the fourth quarter is famous. NFL Films called it the "Greatest Throw of All Time."

Injuries in 1976 caused Bradshaw to miss four games. He played very well in a 40–14 win over the Baltimore Colts. He completed 14 of 18 passes for 264 yards and three touchdowns. He achieved a perfect passer rating of 158.3 in that game.

Bradshaw in 1979, the same year he won back-to-back Super Bowl MVPs (XIII & XIV)

Bradshaw had his best season in 1978. He was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player (MVP). He completed 207 of 368 passes for 2,915 yards. He also led the league with 28 touchdown passes. He was named All-Pro and All-AFC that year.

Before Super Bowl XIII, a rematch against the Cowboys, a Cowboys player made fun of Bradshaw. Bradshaw got his revenge by winning the Super Bowl MVP award. He completed 17 of 30 passes for a record 318 yards and four touchdowns. The Steelers won 35–31. Bradshaw later joked about the criticism, saying "it's football, not rocket science."

Bradshaw (12), hands the ball off to Franco Harris during Super Bowl XIV

Bradshaw won his second straight Super Bowl MVP award in 1979. This was in Super Bowl XIV. He threw for 309 yards and two touchdowns. The Steelers won 31–19 against the Los Angeles Rams. Early in the fourth quarter, Bradshaw threw a 73-yard touchdown to John Stallworth. This helped the Steelers win the game. Bradshaw shared the Sports Illustrated's Sportsman of the Year award that season. He shared it with Willie Stargell, whose baseball team also won the World Series.

1983 Steelers Police - 04 Terry Bradshaw (crop)

Bradshaw playing with the Steelers in 1982

After two seasons of missing the playoffs, Bradshaw played through pain in 1982. He had an elbow injury and needed a shot before every game. Even so, he tied for the most touchdown passes in the league with 17. In his last playoff game, he completed 28 of 39 passes for 325 yards.

Bradshaw had elbow surgery in the off-season. He missed the first 14 games of the 1983 NFL season. On December 10, 1983, he felt a pop in his elbow while throwing his last pass. It was a 10-yard touchdown to Calvin Sweeney. Bradshaw left the game and never played again. He finished his career with 212 touchdowns and 210 interceptions.

The Steelers did not officially retire Bradshaw's number 12. However, they have not given it to another player since he retired.

Life After Football

Bradshaw's uniform exhibited at the Pro Football Hall of Fame

Bradshaw was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1989. In July 1997, he introduced his former teammate Mike Webster when Webster was inducted into the Hall of Fame.

In April 2006, Bradshaw gave his four Super Bowl rings to his college, Louisiana Tech. He also donated his Hall of Fame rings, bust, and other football items.

On November 5, 2007, Bradshaw joined former teammates to be honored. They were named to the Steelers' 75th Anniversary All-Time Team.

Broadcasting Career

Bradshaw interviews Jared Goff after the 2018 NFC Championship Game.

Bradshaw retired from football on July 24, 1984. He quickly signed a contract with CBS to become an NFL game analyst. He later became a studio analyst for The NFL Today.

In 1994, Bradshaw joined Fox NFL Sunday. He often acts as a funny character with his co-hosts. He hosts two regular segments: Ten Yards with TB and The Terry Awards. He has won three Sports Emmy Awards for his work as a studio analyst.

Business and Other Ventures

Bradshaw at a USO event in 2020.

Early in his career, Bradshaw sold used cars in the off-season. This helped him earn more money, as NFL players did not make as much back then.

Bradshaw has written or co-written five books. He has also recorded six albums of country and gospel music. His song "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" was a top 20 country hit in 1976.

In 2001, Bradshaw got involved in NASCAR. He formed a racing team called FitzBradshaw Racing. He ended his ownership in 2006.

Bradshaw is still one of the most popular retired football players. In 2020, he launched his own brand of bourbon whiskey.

Personal Life and Well-being

Bradshaw has been married four times. He has two daughters, Erin and Rachel, from his third marriage. Erin shows champion horses. Rachel is a musician and has appeared on TV shows. Bradshaw married his current wife, Tammy, in 2014.

Bradshaw (age 30) at his Quarter Horse ranch in Louisiana (1979).

After his NFL career, Bradshaw shared that he often had anxiety attacks. This problem became worse after his third divorce. He said he "could not bounce back" as he had before. He also had weight loss, frequent crying, and trouble sleeping. He was diagnosed with clinical depression. He has spoken about his depression to help others and reduce the stigma.

Bradshaw's anxiety about public appearances caused some distance from the Steelers. He did not attend the funeral of team owner Art Rooney in 1988. However, during his Hall of Fame speech, he honored Rooney.

Bradshaw did not return to the Steelers' stadium for a game for 20 years. He finally returned to Pittsburgh in 2002 for the funeral of his friend and teammate, Mike Webster. In October 2002, he was on the Steelers sideline for the first time in two decades. He has made some appearances at Steelers events since then.

Health Updates

In September 2022, Bradshaw shared that he had been treated for bladder cancer and neck cancer. These treatments took place between 2021 and 2022.

Relationship with Coach Chuck Noll

Bradshaw had a complex relationship with Steelers head coach Chuck Noll. Bradshaw felt that Noll was too hard on him and did not like him. Bradshaw wanted more positive encouragement. However, they made peace publicly before Noll's death in 2014.

In a 2016 interview, Bradshaw said their personalities clashed. He felt Noll constantly criticized him. Other former teammates said Noll protected Bradshaw from certain issues. Noll described their relationship as "professional" and "business-like." He said Bradshaw's personality needed to fit the team. Bradshaw did not attend Noll's funeral, even though he was in Pittsburgh at the time.

Television and Film Appearances

Bradshaw during a meet and greet in July 2021

Bradshaw has appeared in many television commercials. He has also had small roles as himself in shows like Everybody Loves Raymond and Modern Family. He hosted a short TV series in 1997 called Home Team with Terry Bradshaw.

Bradshaw has also been in several movies. He was in Hooper (1978) with Burt Reynolds. He also appeared in The Cannonball Run (1981) and Smokey and the Bandit II (1980). In 1994, he was a guest on The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr..

On October 11, 2001, Bradshaw received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He was the first NFL player to get this honor.

In 2006, Bradshaw was in the movie Failure to Launch. He and Kathy Bates played the parents of Matthew McConaughey's character.

Bradshaw is a Christian. He co-wrote a book called Terry Bradshaw: Man of Steel. Since 2010, he has hosted TV shows for United States Media Television.

In 2016 and 2018, Bradshaw had a main role in the NBC travel series Better Late Than Never. He traveled the world with other famous people like William Shatner and Henry Winkler. In 2017, he was in the comedy film Father Figures.

In 2019, Bradshaw competed on The Masked Singer as "Deer." In October 2019, he and his family were on Celebrity Family Feud. In January 2020, he was on the show Last Man Standing. On September 17, 2020, his family's reality show, The Bradshaw Bunch, premiered on E!.

NFL Career Statistics

Legend
	AP NFL MVP
	Super Bowl MVP
	Won the Super Bowl
	NFL record
	Led the league
Bold	Career high

Regular Season Performance

Year	Team	Games			Passing									Rushing					Sacked		Fum
Year	Team	GP	GS	Record	Cmp	Att	Pct	Yds	Y/A	Lng	TD	Int	Rtg	Att	Yds	Y/A	Lng	TD	Sck	SckY	Fum
1970	PIT	13	8	3−5	83	218	38.1	1,410	6.5	87	6	24	30.4	32	233	7.3	22	1	25	242	3
1971	PIT	14	13	5−8	203	373	54.4	2,259	6.1	49	13	22	59.7	53	247	4.7	39	5	33	287	7
1972	PIT	14	14	11−3	147	308	47.7	1,887	6.1	78	12	12	64.1	58	346	6.0	20	7	29	237	4
1973	PIT	10	9	8−1	89	180	49.4	1,183	6.6	67	10	15	54.5	34	145	4.3	21	3	24	186	3
1974	PIT	8	7	5−2	67	148	45.3	785	5.3	56	7	8	55.2	34	224	6.6	34	2	10	104	1
1975	PIT	14	14	12−2	165	286	57.7	2,055	7.2	59	18	9	88.0	35	210	6.0	27	3	31	290	6
1976	PIT	10	8	4−4	92	192	47.9	1,177	6.1	50	10	9	65.4	31	219	7.1	17	3	16	164	7
1977	PIT	14	14	9−5	162	314	51.6	2,523	8.0	65T	17	19	71.4	31	171	5.5	26	3	26	235	10
1978	PIT	16	16	14−2	207	368	56.3	2,915	7.9	70	28	20	84.7	32	93	2.9	17	1	21	222	8
1979	PIT	16	16	12−4	259	472	54.9	3,724	7.9	65T	26	25	77.0	21	83	4.0	28	0	24	196	10
1980	PIT	15	15	9−6	218	424	51.4	3,339	7.9	68T	24	22	75.0	36	111	3.1	18	2	33	245	13
1981	PIT	14	14	8−6	201	370	54.3	2,887	7.8	90T	22	14	83.9	38	162	4.3	16	2	17	155	7
1982	PIT	9	9	6−3	127	240	52.9	1,768	7.4	74T	17	11	81.4	8	10	1.3	6	0	18	131	5
1983	PIT	1	1	1−0	5	8	62.5	77	9.6	24	2	0	133.9	1	3	3.0	3	0	0	0	0
Career		168	158	107−51	2,025	3,901	51.9	27,989	7.2	90T	212	210	70.9	444	2,257	5.1	39	32	307	2,694	84

Postseason Performance

Year	Team	Games			Passing									Rushing					Sacked		Fum
Year	Team	GP	GS	Record	Cmp	Att	Pct	Yds	Y/A	Lng	TD	Int	Rtg	Att	Yds	Y/A	Lng	TD	Sck	SckY	Fum
1972	PIT	2	2	1–1	16	35	45.7	255	7.3	60	2	3	53.9	4	24	6.0	12	0	4	40	1
1973	PIT	1	1	0–1	12	25	48.0	167	6.7	26	2	3	57.0	3	9	3.0	5	0	1	9	0
1974	PIT	3	3	3–0	29	50	58.0	394	7.9	35	3	1	94.9	14	82	5.9	18	0	2	12	1
1975	PIT	3	3	3–0	32	57	56.1	527	9.2	64	3	5	68.4	9	60	6.7	16	1	5	46	1
1976	PIT	2	2	1–1	28	53	52.8	440	8.3	76	3	1	91.7	1	4	4.0	4	0	4	18	0
1977	PIT	1	1	0–1	19	37	51.4	177	4.8	48	1	3	40.0	4	21	5.3	11	1	0	0	0
1978	PIT	3	3	3–0	44	78	56.4	790	10.1	75	8	4	104.1	11	28	2.5	13	0	4	27	7
1979	PIT	3	3	3–0	53	82	64.6	758	9.2	73	6	4	98.5	4	34	8.5	25	0	4	32	0
1982	PIT	1	1	0–1	28	39	71.8	325	8.3	40	2	2	92.4	2	12	6.0	11	1	0	0	0
Career		19	19	14–5	261	456	57.2	3,833	8.4	76	30	26	83.0	52	274	5.3	25	3	24	184	10

Super Bowl Statistics

Year	SB	Team	Opp.	Passing								Result
Year	SB	Team	Opp.	Cmp	Att	Pct	Yds	Y/A	TD	Int	Rtg	Result
1974	IX	PIT	MIN	9	14	64.3	96	6.9	1	0	108.0	W 16−6
1975	X	PIT	DAL	9	19	47.4	209	11.0	2	0	122.5	W 21−17
1978	XIII	PIT	DAL	17	30	56.7	318	10.6	4	1	119.2	W 35−31
1979	XIV	PIT	LAR	14	21	66.7	309	14.7	2	3	101.9	W 31−19
Career				49	84	58.3	932	11.1	9	4	112.7	W−L 4−0

Music Career

Albums Released

Year	Album	Label
1976	I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry	Mercury
1981	Until You	Benson
1981	Here in My Heart	Heart
1996	Sings Christmas Songs for the Whole World	Dove
1996	Terry & Jake (with Jake Hess)	Chordant

Singles Released

Year	Single	Chart positions			Album
Year	Single	US Country	US	CAN Country	Album
1976	"I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry"	17	91	17	I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry
	"The Last Word in Lonesome Is Me"	90	—	—
	"Here Comes My Baby Back Again"	—	—	—
1980	"Until You"	73	—	—	Until You
2012	"Lights of Louisiana"	—	—	—
2020	"Quarantine Crazy"	—	—	—

Guest Appearances in Media

Married... with Children ("Dud Bowl II", 1995)
NFL Country (with Glen Campbell on "You Never Know Just How Good You've Got It", 1996)
Everybody Loves Raymond ("Debra's Sick", 1997)
The Larry Sanders Show ("Just the Perfect Blendship", 1998)
King of the Hill ("Peggy Makes the Big Leagues", 2000)
The League (Sunday at Ruxin's, 2009)
Modern Family ("Brushes With Celebrity", 2017)
The Masked Singer - (The Deer, 2019)
Celebrity Ghost Stories - (Terry Bradshaw, 2020)

Awards and Honors

Bradshaw's bust at the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

NFL Achievements

Four-time Super Bowl champion (IX, X, XIII, XIV)
Two-time Super Bowl MVP
1978 NFL MVP
1978 First Team All-Pro
Three-time Pro Bowl selection
NFL 1970s All-Decade Team

College Achievements

1969 First-team Little All-American

Media Recognition

1979 Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year
Three-time winner - Outstanding Sports Personality, Studio and Sports Event Analyst (Sports Emmy Awards)

Halls of Fame

Pro Football Hall of Fame (1989)
Pittsburgh Steelers Hall of Honor
Pittsburgh Pro Football Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame (1996)
Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame (1988)
Louisiana Tech Athletic Hall of Fame
Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

Images for kids

Bradshaw poses with Sailors during a visit aboard the guided missile cruiser USS Port Royal.