Stan Humphries is the kind of quarterback who gets overlooked until you remember he’s still the only one who ever got the Chargers to a Super Bowl. He spent his early years as a backup in Washington (including a Super Bowl ring as a spectator in 1991) before the Redskins traded him to San Diego prior to the 1992 season. He won the starting job right away, and even with a rough touchdown-to-interception ratio, he threw for 3,356 yards and helped turn a team that had gone 4-12 the year before into an 11-5 playoff squad—the only NFL team ever to reach the postseason after a 0-4 start.

Two years later he was back in the postseason, and this time he steered the Chargers all the way to Super Bowl XXIX. He wasn’t a flashy passer, but he was tough and competitive enough to keep the offense moving through a couple of gritty playoff wins, including a comeback against Dan Marino’s Dolphins and a road win over the Steelers. The Chargers got run over by San Francisco in the Super Bowl, but Humphries had done something no other San Diego quarterback had managed. He had another solid year in 1995 before concussions started piling up, and he was forced to retire after the 1997 season.

With the Chargers, he finished with roughly 17,000 passing yards, 89 touchdowns, and 84 interceptions. He wasn’t the most polished quarterback the franchise has had, but he got them closest to a championship.

The Chargers put him in their Hall of Fame in 2002, a fitting nod to the backup who showed up, took the hits, and became the only quarterback in team history to reach a Super Bowl.