Rookie Quarterback Rankings
5 Andy Dalton, Cincinnati Bengals
We'll see whether or not Carson Palmer leaves Cincinnati and who quarterbacks the team this year, but Andy Dalton is the future for the Bengals. We just don't know exactly when that will be.
4 Blaine Gabbert, Jacksonville Jaguars
Many people think Gabbert is the best quarterback in this class. I am not one of those people. I think Gabbert is overrated and is not the right person to hand the future of Jaguars over to. He isn't a big time player and I don't see him producing in the NFL because he didn't really produce in college consistently.
3 Christian Ponder, Minnesota Vikings
I think this guy is Jake Delhomme. Not unbelievably talented, but he has those leadership intangibles already. I wasn't a Ponder guy at first but he continues to grow on me and I think he has the tools to become a good NFL quarterback. 2 Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers
I do not think Cam Newton is JaMarcus Russell. Cam Newton was extraordinary in college and I think he could be a big star in the NFL. But right now, I don't really know what to make of Cam Newton. I know he won't be JaMarcus Russell, but is he the next Donovan McNabb? Is he on a par with Vince Young? Steve McNair? The book is out, I can't wait to watch him this year.
1 Jake Locker, Tennessee Titans
I think Jake Locker has "it." He will get better at making the throws over time, but he has grit. He impresses me and I think Matt Hasselbeck is a perfect mentor for Locker right now.
Top 35
The Backups
35 Jon Kitna, Dallas Cowboys
2010 Stats: 65.7 Comp%, 2,365 yards, 16 TD, 12 INT, 88.9 Rat 5-6 Record as Starter
34 Shaun Hill, Detroit Lions
2010 Stats: 61.9 Comp%, 2,686 yards, 16 TD, 12 INT, 81.3 Rat 3-7 Record as Starter
33 Tavaris Jackson, Seattle Seahawks
2010 Stats: 58.6 Comp% 341 yards, 3 TD, 4 INT, 63.9 Rat 1-0 Record as Starter
We have seen all of these guys produce. They are the best backups in the business. We'll see now if Tavaris Jackson can have success as a starter like Jon Kitna did in particular last season with the Cowboys.
The Low End Starters
32 Donovan McNabb, Minnesota Vikings
2010 Stats: 58.3 Comp%, 3,377 yards, 14 TD, 15 INT, 77.1 Rat 5-8 Record as Starter
31 Tim Tebow, Denver Broncos
2010 Stats: 50 Comp% 654 yards, 5 TD, 3 INT, 82.1 Rat 1-2 Record as Starter
30 Bruce Gradkowski, Cincinnati Bengals
2010 Stats: 52.9 Comp%, 1,059 yards, 5 TD, 7 INT, 66.3 Rat 1-3 Record as Starter 29 Colt McCoy, Cleveland Browns
2010 Stats: 60.8 Comp%, 1,576 yards, 6 TD, 9 INT, 74.5 Rat 2-6 Record as Starter
28 Alex Smith, San Francisco 49ers
2010 Stats: 59.6 Comp%, 2,370 yards, 14 TD, 10 INT, 82.1 Rat 3-8 Record as Starter
27 Chad Henne, Miami Dolphins
2010 Stats: 61.4 Comp%, 3,301 yards, 15 TD, 19 INT, 75.4 Rat 7-8 as Starter
26 Vince Young, Philadelphia Eagles
2010 Stats: 59.6 Comp%, 1,255 yards, 10 TD, 3 INT, 98.6 Rat 4-5 Record as Starter
All of these guys have something to prove. If you go down the list, with the exception of Gradkowski I would say, from Donovan McNabb to Vince Young, all have been hyped up and with the exception of McNabb, none of them have lived up to the hype. Most of these guys will have starting opportunities next year, so we'll see who steps up and who doesn't.
The Underrated
25 Kevin Kolb, Arizona Cardinals
2010 Stats: 60.8 Comp%, 1,197 yards, 7 TD, 7 INT, 76.1 Rat 2-3 Record as Starter
24 Jason Campbell, Oakland Raiders
2010 Stats: 59 Comp%, 2,387 yards, 13 TD, 8 INT, 84.5 Rat 7-5 Record as Starter
23 Ryan Fitzpatrick, Buffalo Bills
2010 Stats: 57.8 Comp%, 3,000 yards, 23 TD, 15 INT, 81.8 Rat 4-9 Record as Starter
22 Matt Hasselbeck, Tennessee Titans
2010 Stats: 59.9 Comp%, 3,001 yards, 12 TD, 17 INT, 73.2 Rat 7-9 Record as Starter
21 Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions
2010 Stats: 59.4 Comp%, 535 yards, 6 TD, 1 INT, 91.3 Rat 1-2 Record as Starter
The thing with this group is that every one of them is capable of going off on any particular day. Kevin Kolb is explosive, Jason Campbell every now and then shows that he is a full time starter, Ryan Fitzpatrick can throw for four touchdowns against an average team and Matthew Stafford has as much of a high ceiling as anyone when healthy. Even Matt Hasselbeck can slash playoff teams like he did against the Saints last year.
Top 20
The Steady
20 David Garrard, Jacksonville Jaguars 2010 Stats: 64.5 Comp%, 2,734 yards, 23 TD, 15 INT, 90.8 Rat 8-6 Record as Starter
19 Kyle Orton, Denver Broncos
2010 Stats: 58.8 Comp%, 3,653 yards, 20 TD, 9 INT, 87.5 Rat 3-10 Record as Starter
18 Carson Palmer, Cincinnati Bengals
2010 Stats: 61.8 Comp%, 3,970 yards, 26 TD, 20 INT, 82.4 Rat 4-12 Record as Starter
We know what to expect from these guys. What I don't know is whether Carson Palmer is officially "retired" or not. We'll see with Garrard and Orton whether they're even the starters by the start of end of this year.
The Good but Not Great (At least for now)
17 Sam Bradford, St. Louis Rams
2010 Stats: 60 Comp%, 3,512 yards, 18 TD, 15 INT, 76.5 Rat 7-9 Record as Starter
16 Matt Cassel, Kansas City Chiefs
2010 Stats: 58.2 Comp%, 3,116 yards, 27 TD, 7 INT, 93.0 Rat 10-6 Record as Starter
15 Jay Cutler, Chicago Bears
2010 Stats: 60.4 Comp%, 3,274 yards, 23 TD, 16 INT, 86.3 Rat 11-6 Record as Starter
14 Mark Sanchez, New York Jets
2010 Stats: 54.8 Comp%, 3,291 yards, 17 TD, 13 INT, 75.3 Rat 13-6 Record as Starter
13 Matt Schaub, Houston Texans
2010 Stats: 63.6 Comp%, 4,370 yards, 24 TD, 12 INT, 92.0 Rat 6-10 Record as Starter
All these guys are good. Sam Bradford is going to be great and Mark Sanchez might be too. The rest of the guys probably won't be getting any better than they are now, but they are capable of leading their teams to the playoffs and being a key difference maker.
The Two Guys I Can't Get a Read On
12 Eli Manning, New York Giants
2010 Stats: 62.9 Comp%, 4,002 yards, 31 TD, 25 INT, 85.3 Rat 10-6 Record as Starter
11 Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys
2010 Stats: 69.5 Comp%, 1,605 yards, 11 TD, 7 INT, 94.9 Rat 1-4 Record as Starter
Eli Manning has won a Super Bowl and Tony Romo has put up some outstanding seasons along with great regular seasons. But these guys are too inconsistent to crack the top 10 of the leagues best quarterbacks. Eli Manning has the ring but he has underperformed way too many times before in the regular season and playoffs while Tony Romo is strictly a choker in the playoffs. Both need to become more consistent in order to leap over the young guns in the bottom half of the top 10.
Top 10
The Young Guns
10 Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens
2010 Stats: 62.6 Comp%, 3,622 yards, 25 TD, 10 INT, 93.6 Rat 13-5 Record as Starter 9 Josh Freeman, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
2010 Stats: 61.4 Comp%, 3,451 yards, 25 TD, 6 INT, 95.9 Rat 10-6 Record as Starter
8 Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons
2010 Stats: 62.5 Comp%, 3,705 yards, 28 TD, 9 INT, 91.0 Rat 13-4 Record as Starter
7 Phillip Rivers, San Diego Chargers
2010 Stats: 66 Comp%, 4,710 yards, 30 TD, 13 INT, 101.8 Rat 9-7 Record as Starter
These guys are all young and getting better by the season. None however, besides Flacco, have done much in the playoffs. Rivers has been familiar with the playoffs including the AFC Championship but has never seem to perform really well in those situations.
Matt Ryan has done nothing in the playoffs and even in big games in the regular season like last seasons Monday Night matchup against New Orleans, Ryan did little to take the game over.
With Josh Freeman, he definitely was the surprise quarterback of last year and his efficiency was remarkable for someone with that little pro experience. Let's see how he does this year with more pressure and more weight on his shoulders.
Joe Flacco has been to an AFC Championship game and is an expert at winning road playoff games. He just hasn't had that offensive firepower that other guys like Phillip Rivers has. I remember when his Ravens beat the Patriots in Foxboro in the wild card round in 2010, Flacco was 5-11 passing in the entire game. It's those kind of performances that hold Flacco back from the upper echelon of quarterbacks.
The Proven Winners
6 Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles
2010 Stats: 62.6 Comp%, 3,018 yards, 21 TD, 6 INT, 100.2 Rat 8-4 Record as Starter
5 Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers
2010 Stats: 61.7 Comp%, 3,200 yards, 17 TD, 5 INT, 97.0 Rat 11-4 Record as Starter
Michael Vick has reestablished himself amongst the best players in this league and Ben Roethlisberger has been to three Super Bowls. So these guys get it done, but with Vick, his style of play will get you wins, but I don't think it gets you Super Bowls and Roethlisberger simply is not as explosive as a Brady or a Rodgers. These things hold these two guys back from cracking "The Core Four."
Top 4
The Core Four
4 Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints
2010 Stats: 68.1 Comp%, 4,620 yards, 33 TD, 22 INT, 90.9 Rat 11-6 Record as Starter
3 Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers
2010 Stats: 65.7 Comp%, 3,922 yards, 28 TD, 11 INT, 101.2 Rat 14-5 Record as Starter
2 Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts
2010 Stats: 66.3 Comp%, 4,700 yards, 33 TD, 17 INT, 91.9 Rat 10-7 Record as Starter
1 Tom Brady, New England Patriots
2010 Stats: 65.9 Comp%, 3,900 yards, 36 TD, 4 INT, 111.0 Rat 14-3 Record as Starter
These four guys are the best in the business. All four have won at least won Super Bowl and all four can light up the scoreboard.
Drew Brees is at four because of his lack of efficiency last year. Yes, he passed for over 4,500 yards with 33 touchdowns but the 22 interceptions is just way too many for someone as good as Brees.
After winning the Super Bowl, Aaron Rodgers showed that he may be the best quarterback. And I think with one more great year, I will say that Aaron Rodgers is the best quarterback in the NFL. He can do everything Brady and Manning can do and then some; he can run to keep the defense honest and he has as good of an arm and accuracy that is as good if not better than both Brady and Manning. But we'll give it another year.
Peyton Manning is slightly behind Tom Brady simply because he has not been quite the postseason performer that Brady has been. He is only slightly behind though.
Tom Brady is the number one quarterback in the NFL. Look at his past season, 36 TD and only 4 INT. That is insane, which is why his along with the rest of the Patriots post season collapse against the Jets is so aggravating. Brady might be playing the best football of his career right now, which is why, for now, he is the best quarterback in the NFL.
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