Football Friday: NFL Quarterback Ratings

My friend Jonathan and I were going back and forth over texts last week about where we'd place the starting quarterbacks in the NFL. I really enjoyed the conversation and it seemed like a good idea for an article. I'm not going to go one by one here. I'm going to divide the QBs into groups and then review why I put those guys where I did.

THE ELITE:

1. Drew Brees
2. Peyton Manning
3. Tom Brady
4. Aaron Rogers

Don't put too much into where I placed these guys. I think you could list any of them from 1-4 in any order and it would be justified. I went with Drew Brees as #1 for his performance last season. The Saints were headed towards a 3-13 season and Drew Brees drug that team to a 7-9 record on pure will alone. If they had a competent defense, they might have been playoff bound. Manning, Brady and Rogers, what can you say about them that hasn't been said already? Just the best of the best when it comes to the QB position in the modern NFL. I think there's a good sized drop off from this group to the next...

GOOD BUT NOT GREAT:
     5. Matt Ryan
     6. Ben Rothlisberger
     7. Eli Manning
     8. Joe Flacco
     9. Matt Schaub
   10. Matthew Stafford
   11. Tony Romo
   12. Phillip Rivers

I actually didn't mean for this division to be as large as it is but it didn't make sense to put these guys in the next group. Rivers has had the biggest freefall in my opinion as I would've considered him elite level a few seasons ago. But he's been a fairly bad QB and has slid down the charts. I think Eli's performance the last calendar year is starting to erode his place on my chart as well. On a brighter note, I think Matt Ryan is close to making a jump into the elite level. Last season he took a big step forward when he threw for 4,719 yards and 32 TDs. Another season or two of that and I think he will be there.

Joe Flacco is #8 you say? But he just won the Super Bowl! That's very true, he did just win the Super Bowl but that still doesn't change what he is. Flacco is going to have bad games a few times a season. He needs good receivers because he doesn't necessarily make them better. I would be happy to have him on my team any day but he's not an elite level QB by any means.

NEEDS MORE COWBELL:
    13. Andy Dalton
    14. Russell Wilson
    15. Colin Kaepernick
    16. Andrew Luck
    17. Robert Griffith III

This is like the Elite section in that I think you can move most of the pieces around in any order and I'd be okay with it. I put Andy Dalton at the top of this list because I think he has the least to prove. He's 19-13 as a starter in his first 2 seasons and has 2 playoff appearances. That's a level of success that few QBs have ever pulled off. Kaepernick and Wilson look like franchise QBs for their teams but they need more time to do it.

Luck and RGIII bring up the rear on this list. I think there are some real questions about RGIII's long term health in the league. He hasn't looked good to start this season and I think the ACL is an obvious cause. Luck got a lot of hype last season but his stats were the least impressive of the newer QBs. I think he's also not with the right franchise for long term success.

DO OR DIE TIME:
    18. Cam Newton
    
Newton is the ultimate empty calorie guy. Great stats in a vacuum but then you realize, he isn't getting his team any wins. He isn't leading any big comeback drives and he doesn't really make the players around him better. Sources like ESPN will hype him because of those stats but all of the guys in the group above him have had more of an impact for their respective teams. I think another losing season for the Panthers and it's time to start questioning if Cam Newton is the right fit.

YOU CAN DO WORSE:
    19. Alex Smith
    20. EJ Manuel
    21. Jay Cutler
    22. Sam Bradford
    23. Jay Cutler
    24. Ryan Tannehill

This group is just what it sounds like. You can win with these guys and make a playoff run but you're also going to always be looking for an upgrade. Manuel and Tannehill don't fit that description. This is just where I decided to throw them in this article.

EH, IT'S A LIVING...:
    25. Christian Ponder
    26. Michael Vick

Vick and Ponder have their moments of being okay. I think the jury is still out on Ponder and how viable he is as an NFL QB. Vick is at the end of his playing career and had an awful season last year. I think this season will tell us where Vick is at.

WHO'S OUR QUARTERBACK AGAIN?!?!:
    27. Brandon Weeden
    28. Josh Freeman
    29. Jake Locker
    30. Terrell Pryor
    31. Blaine Gabbert
    32. Mark Sanchez

I feel bad for putting Weeden and Freeman in this category. There's still a slight chance that Freeman can have a bounce back season and regain his form from a few years ago. Likewise, there's a slight chance that Weeden could have a good season or two before he starts to decline as a QB.

The rest of that group though, yeah... it's bad. I think the tough question here is who is worse? Gabbert or Sanchez. I decided that Gabbert gets to be #31 because he doesn't cost as much money and he didn't fumble the ball by running into an offensive lineman's ass. What more can be said about Sanchez, he's just a colossally incompetent QB on the pro level. He has no arm strength, he plays scared and he makes bad decisions with his throws. Congratulations Mark Sanchez, YOU SUCK!