Sid Luckman Sidney Luckman , known as Sid Luckman , ( November 21 , 1916 – July 5 , 1998 ) was an American football quarterback for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League ( NFL ) from 1939 to 1950 . During his 12 seasons with the Bears he led them to four NFL championships . Luckman was the first modern T - formation quarterback and is considered the greatest long range passer of his time . He was named the NFL ' s Most Valuable Player in 1943 , and Pulitzer prize winning sports writer Ira Berkow wrote that Luckman was " the first great T - formation quarterback " . Following his retirement from playing , Luckman continued his association with football by tutoring college coaches , focusing on the passing aspect of the game . Luckman was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1965 , and in 1988 he was declared a joint winner of the Walter Camp Distinguished American Award . Early life . Luckman was born in Brooklyn , New York , to Jewish immigrants from Germany . His father sparked his interest in American football at age eight , by giving him a football to play with . He and his parents lived in a residence near Prospect Park and it was here as a youngster that Sid first started throwing the football around . He played both baseball and football for Erasmus Hall High School , with his football skills impressing recruiters from about 40 colleges . Luckman chose Columbia University after meeting Lions coach Lou Little during a Columbia / Navy game at the university ' s Baker Field athletic facility . Luckman was not admitted to Columbia College ; instead , he attended the New College for the Education of Teachers , an undergraduate school , which was within Teachers College at Columbia . He competed on the football team from 1936 until the New College closed in 1939 , when he transferred to Columbia College . Coach Little had a problem of getting good high school athletes because of the entrance requirements at Columbia , and Columbia didn ’ t have any physical education undergraduate program , and so , when New College was started Lou Little was happy because they had a P . E . Department . In fact , the 1936 varsity football squad had five other New College students , Hubert Schulze , Edward Stanzyk , Oscar Bonom , Harry Ream , and Antoni Mareski . At Columbia he was a member of the Zeta Beta Tau fraternity . Sid , keen to remain in Columbia to stay close to his family , took on jobs such as dish - washing , baby - sitting , and messenger delivery around the campus . At Columbia , as a part of the football team , he completed 180 of 376 passes for 2 , 413 yards and 20 touchdown s and finished third in the 1938 Heisman Trophy voting , behind Davey O ' Brien and Marshall Goldberg . Chicago Bears . Draft . Hearing of Sid Luckman ' s exploits as a single - wing tailback at Columbia University , Chicago Bears owner and coach George Halas believed Luckman had the ability to become an effective T - formation quarterback , and traveled to New York to watch him play . Halas then convinced the Pittsburgh Pirates ( football team ) to draft Luckman second overall and then trade him to the Bears because he was interested in using Luckman ' s skills to help him restructure the offensive side of the game . However , despite his successes at Columbia University , Luckman initially declined any further interest in pro football , instead preferring to work for his father - in - law ’ s trucking company . Halas went to work on convincing him otherwise . After gaining an invitation to Luckman ' s tiny apartment for a dinner which Luckman ' s wife Estelle prepared , Halas produced a contract for $ 5 , 500 ( $ today ) which Luckman immediately signed . At that time both at the college and pro levels , offenses were a drab scrum of running the ball with only occasional passes . In what was then the predominant single - wing formation , the quarterback was primarily a blocking back and rarely touched the ball . Most passing was done by the tailback , and then usually only on third down with long yardage to go . Halas and his coaches , primarily Clark Shaughnessy , invented a rather complex scheme building on the traditional T - formation , but needed the right quarterback to run it properly . Upon starting with Halas , Luckman mastered an offense that revolutionized football , and became the basis of most modern professional offenses . Eventually , Luckman tutored college coaches across the Big Ten , Notre Dame and West Point in the intricacies of the passing game . T - formation . In 1940 , during his second season with the Bears , Luckman took over the offense and led the Bears to the title game against Sammy Baugh and the Washington Redskins . The Redskins had beaten the Bears 7 – 3 during the regular season . Using the " man - in - motion " innovation to great advantage , the Bears destroyed the Redskins 73 – 0 , stated to be " the most one - sided game in the history of the sport " . Luckman passed only six times , with four completions and 102 yards in the rout . From 1940 to 1946 the Bears displayed their dominance in the game , playing in five NFL championship games , winning four , and posted a 54 – 17 – 3 regular season record . In 1942 , the Bears posted a perfect 11 – 0 record and outscored their opponents 376 – 84 , however they lost the championship game to the Redskins . Although the T - formation had been used many years before Luckman joined the Chicago Bears , he was central to Chicago ' s successful use of this style of play because of his game - sense and versatility . Perfecting Halas ' complex offensive scheme of fakes , men in motion , and quick hitting runs , Luckman added the dimension of accurate downfield throwing . He was instrumental in his team ' s record - setting 73 – 0 over the Washington Redskins in the 1940 NFL championship game . Sportscaster Jimmy Cannon once said in reference to Luckman ' s years at Columbia , " You had to be there to realize how great Sid was . " Luckman later became a sought - after tutor and instructor for universities wishing to install the T - formation as an offense . Service with the Merchant Marine . In 1943 , as soon as the season had ended , Luckman volunteered as an ensign with the U . S . Merchant Marine . He was stationed stateside and while he could not practice with the team , he did receive permission to play for the Bears on game days during the following seasons . He returned again to the Bears , as a full - time occupation , in 1946 and led them to a fifth NFL championship . Numbers and accomplishments . During his career , Luckman completed 51 . 8 % of his passes for 14 , 686 yards and 137 touchdowns with 134 interception s . He averaged 8 . 4 yards per attempt , second all - time only to Otto Graham ( 8 . 6 ) , and also has a career touchdown rate ( percentage of pass attempts that result in touchdowns ) of 7 . 9 percent . In 1943 , Luckman completed 110 of 202 passes for 2194 yards and 28 touchdowns . His 13 . 9 % touchdown rate that year is the best ever in a single - season , while his 10 . 9 yards per attempt is second all - time . During one game that year , Luckman threw for 443 yards and seven touchdowns , still tied for the most passing touchdowns in one game ; it was also the first 400 - yard passing game in NFL history . His 28 touchdown passes in 1943 ( in only 10 games ) was a record that lasted for many years . Luckman led the NFL in yards per attempt an NFL record seven times , including a record five consecutive years from 1939 to 1943 , and led the NFL in passing yards three times . Luckman was a five - time All - NFL selection , was named the National Football League ' s Most Valuable Player Award in 1943 , and led the " Monsters of the Midway " to championships in 1940 , 1941 , 1943 , and 1946 . Despite the fact that his career ended in 1950 , Luckman still owns most major Bears ' passing records , including career yards and touchdowns . Later years . After retiring from the NFL , Luckman went to work for Cel - U - Craft , a Chicago - based manufacturer of cellophane products , eventually becoming its president . The company was a part of the Rapid American Corporation of which he also obtained shares . In 1969 , RAC was the subject of an IRS investigation over the payment of these shares and dividends , a case that Luckman and his wife appealed . Luckman ' s wife Estelle Morgolin died of cancer in 1981 , and he underwent a triple heart bypass operation the following year . Luckman eventually retired to Aventura , Florida where he died on July 5 , 1998 at the age of 81 . He is survived by a son , Bob , and two daughters , Gale and Ellen .