While it is true that comparing the raw statistics of Starr versus Manning is meaningless, the way the game is played did not suddenly change from 1965 to 1966. It is much more a marketing and promotional footnote in the history of professional football as opposed to a point in time when the game changed.
If one wants to mark off a time when the game (or more specifically, the passing game) changed then I would look at three points of time:
- 1940: the Bears and Sid Luckman run the T-formation and beat Washington 73-0 for the NFL title.
- 1978: defensive backs could not contact a receiver more than five yards beyond the line of scrimmage, and offensive linemen were allowed to extend their arms and use open hands to pass block.
- 2004: Bill Polian used the Competition Committee to make a 'point of emphasis' to officiating crews about illegal contact in an attempt to undermine the effectiveness of the New England Patriots; Peyton Manning sets a new (since broken) NFL record with 49 touchdown passes.
I agree that comparing passing and receiving statistics over different periods of time is an exercise in futility. I just don't believe that is a valid reason to create a wholesale omission of a group of players from a 'greatest ever' discussion.
The 'Super Bowl era' is a convenient line in the sand, but the way the game is played did not change that year.