All-Time Rams QBs Ranked: Warner #1, Ferragamo #2

Bill Wade

#9 · Los Angeles Rams
Retired 7 Years In The NFL
🏆 NFL champion (1963)
Bill's
HAIR
15.3
HeyTC AI Rating

Questions about Bill Wade or the Rams?

Bill Wade Legacy

HEYTC AI
Nashville's own Billy Wade, the grinning gunslinger from Vanderbilt who lit up the SEC as Player of the Year, was the gridiron everyman—tough, scrappy, and blessed with a cannon arm that made Sid Gillman finally hand him the Rams' keys in '58. But Wade's legend peaked in Chicago, where Papa Bear Halas tapped him to dethrone Ed Brown and deliver the '63 NFL crown, scampering for both TDs in a gritty 14-10 Wrigley Field thriller over the Giants—the Bears' last title under the founder. A Pro Bowl leader who never lost a playoff start, he embodied football's golden grit. Bill Wade passed in 2016 at 85.
Bill Wade passed away on March 9, 2016 at the age of 85.

Bill Wade Rating Breakdown

Season
Subpar
Fantasy
Subpar
Playoffs
Non-Factor
Overall
NPC
7 years with the Rams

Bill Wade Career Stats via Wikipedia

18,530 Pass Yards
124 Touchdowns
134 INTs
54.3% Comp %
15.3 HAIR
40-43 Record

Bill Wade Career Timeline

HEYTC AI
1967 1

Career Milestone - Retirement

Played final season with Houston Oilers before retiring from the NFL after 12 professional seasons.

1966 1

Traded to Texans

Traded from the Chicago Bears to the Houston Oilers (then AFL) late in his career, ending his tenure as Bears starter.

1963 1

Second Pro Bowl and All-Pro Honors

Selected to the Pro Bowl and named First-Team All-Pro after a standout season with the Bears.

1962 1

Led Bears to NFL Championship

Guided the Chicago Bears to the NFL Championship Game victory over the New York Giants (14-10), securing his only championship title.

1961 1

Traded to Bears

Traded from the Los Angeles Rams to the Chicago Bears in exchange for multiple players, marking a major team change after 7 years with the Rams.

1955 1

First Pro Bowl Selection

Earned his first of four career Pro Bowl nods as the Rams' starting quarterback, recognizing his elite play.

1954 1

Named NFL MVP

Wade won the NFL Most Valuable Player Award after leading the Rams with strong passing performances in a competitive season.

1952 1

Drafted by Rams

Bill Wade was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the first round (third overall pick) of the 1952 NFL Draft out of Vanderbilt University.

7 years in the NFL

Frequently Asked Questions About Bill Wade

How does Matthew Stafford compare to Bill Wade?

Matthew Stafford towers over Bill Wade like a Ferrari next to a '57 Chevy—both Rams gunslingers, but Stafford's 57,000+ yards and playoff heroics dwarf Wade's 18,530 yards and '63 Bears title run after leaving LA. Wade peaked leading the NFL in yards in '58, yet Stafford's arm talent and weapons make him the undisputed Rams alpha.

Is Bill Wade in the Pro Football Hall of Fame?

Nope, Bill Wade never made it to Canton, despite two Pro Bowls, topping the NFL in passing yards in 1958 with the Rams, and quarterbacking the Bears to that gritty 14-10 '63 championship over the Giants in freezing Wrigley. Solid career, just not Hall material in a quarterback graveyard.

How would Bill Wade perform in today's NFL?

Wade's cannon arm—think his 466-yard Bears outburst in '62 or NFL-leading 2,875 yards in '58—would feast under today's pass-happy rules with no bump-and-run and better protection. He'd pile up numbers like a vintage hot rod on nitro, though his pick-prone streak might get exposed by zone defenses.

How does Bill Wade compare to Kurt Warner?

Kurt Warner lapped Bill Wade in the Rams QB pantheon—47.85 career rating to Wade's 15.34, with Warner's two Super Bowl runs and MVP fireworks versus Wade's '58 yardage crown and Bears title. Both franchise trigger-men, but Warner was electric; Wade, a tough-as-nails workhorse from Vanderbilt.