Well now. It may have snuck up on us thanks to a global pandemic and the subsequent lack of a preseason, not to mention a million other distractions in the seventh layer of hell that is the year 2020... but the NFL season is about to start. And when a new NFL season begins, it’s only right to coronate that moment with yet another edition of the annual Wildcard’s NFL Quarterback Rankings. It’s a sentimental endeavour at this point... the first thing I ever wrote for The Niche Cache was an NFL weekly prediction thing and I’ll be at those suckers once again this season too. It’s just too much fun not to. But first it’s QB Ranking time, comrades.

The usual regulations apply. The list is based on the dudes you’d most want leading your team for the 2020 season. Generally legacies count for a lot though, if you’ve put up years of experience then that counts for plenty whereas the rookies are always ranked lowest since we ain’t engaging in speculation here. Points on the board, mate. The rest... eh, who cares? Lists are silly so don’t take them too seriously.

The History

2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019

The Freshly Unranked

• Nathan Peterman (38) – Woah dude there’s a blast from the past

• Josh Rosen (35) – On to his third team in three years, sitting on the bench behind Tom Brady which all things considered is a decent place to be

• Nick Mullens (34) – There are those out there who still wanna see him start ahead of Jimmy G... those people are dumb though

• Blake Bortles (29) – Doesn’t even have a team right now, poor Bort

• Case Keenum (28) – Now the backup for the Browns on a three year deal, which is about right

• Jacoby Brissett (27) – Back to being backup at the Colts, but easily the best of the unranked dudes here

• Joe Flacco (24) – Working his way back to fitness with the NY Jets

• Eli Manning (23) – The worst player to ever win multiple Super Bowl MVP awards is now retired (hell of a thing to be the worst at, right?)

The Rankings

38. Alex Smith – Washington Football Team (2019 = No Rank)

The crazy thing is that Alex Smith could yet end up being the starting quarterback for the Washington FT again. It’s not even out of the question. Whether he does or not is inconsequential. After coming back from what he’s had to endure, almost losing his leg, he at the very least deserves an honorary posting on this list. Smith’s comeback story is incredible.

(Also let’s not overlook the fact that Smith was a huge mentor in Patrick Mahomes’ development too as the Chiefs’ starting quarterback in Mahomes’ rookie year)

37. Marcus Mariota – Las Vegas Raiders (21)

& Jameis Winston – New Orleans Saints (25)

These two fellas have been linked together at the hip since entering the league picks one and two overall four years ago and they entered the 2019 season each coming into the final year of their contracts. Lots on the line and what happened? They’re both backups for different teams entering the 2020 season. Yeah, not really how they would’ve planned it. Winston did put up a legendary 33 TD & 30 INT season last time though (with 5109 passing yards) so at least he went out with a bang and not a whimper like Mariota (who currently finds himself on injured reserve, poor bugger).

36. Justin Herbert – Los Angeles Chargers (NR)

The first of our new rookie class and one of three debutants to be ranked this year. Herbert went sixth overall and his arrival saw the Chargers clear the deck with Philip Rivers all of a sudden an Indianapolis Colt. That’s gonna be weird for sure. Tyrod Taylor is the starter for LAC as it stands but you get the feeling that it’s one of those holding down the fort until the rookie’s a bit more ready situations. I’m betting Herbert starts at least five games this year. I don’t know much about him since I couldn’t care less about college football but at 6’6 Herbert has some genuine size and the word is he’s got great accuracy, even on the move. We’ll wait and see.

35. Andy Dalton – Dallas Cowboys (16)

I’m a Cowboys fan and even I forgot that Andy Dalton had signed there. Pretty great backup option to be fair, although stink ones for Dalton who after 133 career starts across nine seasons now finds himself on the bench behind one of the most durable QBs in the sport. But there’s a good reason for that. His last three seasons he’s averaging only 3752 passing yards per 16 games with 25 TDs and 15 INTs and he’s got a 14-26 losing record in that time. Being tame in defeat will get you absolutely nowhere in this sport.

34. Tai Tagovailoa – Miami Dolphins (NR)

Rookie number two and just like Herbert he’ll be starting on the bench, in TT’s case watching Ryan Fitzpatrick from the sideline and wondering whether he uses any specific product in that grizzly beard of his. Tai Tagovailoa adds some much needed Polynesian flair to the quarterback position just as Marcus Mariota has been relegated to being a backup and he should get his chances in year one. Can’t wait to hear the commentators go full Aussie rugby league callers on the microphones trying to pronounce his last name.

33. Nick Foles – Chicago Bears (17)

Was gonna be higher up but then he lost his starter’s duel to Mitch Trubisky and I had to reassess a few things. Foles is being a nice dude about it, embracing a role that he’s had for most of his career, so good on him for that... but hasn’t this guy just had the weirdest career? When he’s stepped up in times of need like his two Philly stints he’s been superb but then every time he goes somewhere else he’s a complete mess. And injuries haven’t helped, sure... but these are his regular season splits...

Nick Foles for the Eagles: 40 GM | 62.9% COMP | 58 TD | 23 INT

Nick Foles for Anyone Else: 18 GM | 59.5% COMP | 13 TD | 12 INT

His quarterback rating drops from 93.2 with Philly to somewhere in the mid-80s (not gonna do the math just to prove a point that’s already obvious). His non-Eagles record as a starter is 5-11. Yet he’s won 21 of 32 starts for the Eagles. Strange, that one. He should get a few chances to change that narrative over the course of this season because let’s be honest that Bears QB role is gonna be like hot potatoes.

32. Joe Burrow – Cincinnati Bengals (NR)

Violating my own rules a bit here to have Burrow ranked ahead of a few vets but he’s coming straight in to be a starter for the Bengals and there are only 32 starting quarterback positions to go around in the NFL... hence #32 feels more than fair. The top overall pick in the last draft and the one of all of them who seems to be the most ready-made for the NFL too. Very tall with a great arm. Big success in college. He’ll go straight in as the leader for a Bengals team which was *abysmal* last year so keep that in mind when he’s being sacked eight times a game.

Also if you need someone to give you those good recommendations for 50s jazz records, how to sort your be-bop from your free jazz, or which Miles albums really groove and why Charlie Parker is the greatest American who ever lived then Joe Burrow looks like the guy.

31. Drew Lock – Denver Broncos (NR)

Considering Joe Burrow is below him by the Rookie Rule of this article, that makes Drew Lock the worst starting quarterback in the NFL going into week one. Which... sounds about right. Lock actually did quite well last season, winning four of his five starts with a 64.1% completion rate and 7 TDs to only 3 INTs. Two game-winning drives in there as well so you can see how he won this gig. But many a quarterback has shown glimpses in small roles and then crumbled under the pressure of having to do so with expectation on his back. We’ll see, there’s something to work with as far as Drew Lock is concerned. And Denver has done alright in putting decent speed and skill around him in other offensive positions.

30. Dwayne Haskins – Washington Football Team (NR)

Very interesting case here. Dwayne Haskins, on the basis of his rookie season, isn’t up to much. He threw as many picks as he did scores and looked generally out of his depth. As far as the raw numbers go there’s no way he should be ranked ahead of Drew Lock but Haskins also has all the hallmarks of a player who could make a huge leap this second season. For one thing he’s in a much better situation with Ron Rivera in town, a guy who coached Cam Newton to an MVP title, and Rivera arrives with a more realistic vision of where this team is at. The rebranding and everything. It buys Haskins time to develop that he never really got in 2019. But also look closer at his from last season and he’s already showing growth - his last three games saw him complete at 67.1% with 5 touchdown passes and only 1 interception with a quarterback rating of 109.5. He’s still only ranked 30 so it’s not like I’m sipping the slurpee here, fella’s gotta avoid getting sacked so often first of all, but I’m just saying I can see some potential.

29. Ryan Fitzpatrick – Miami Dolphins (31)

Miami’s leading rushers in 2019:

1. Ryan Fitzpatrick – 243 yards (4.5 Y/A)

2. Mark Walton – 201 yards (3.8 Y/A)

3. Kenyan Drake – 174 yards (3.7 Y/A)

4. Patrick Laird – 168 yards (2.7 Y/A)

5. Kalen Ballage – 135 yards (1.8 Y/A)

That’s hilarious.

28. Tyrod Taylor – Los Angeles Chargers (33)

I’ve often felt Tyrod’s been a bit hard done by. He’s a decent starter who you can build a team around with the right kind of players, for a while there he was onto something good with the Bills but nah then he got lost in the shuffle. And nothing’s changed ahead of the 2020 season either. This is what his head coach had to say about him...

Anthony Lynn: “Tyrod Taylor is our starter right now. Until someone steps up and shows that they can run this team, that's [how] we're going into it.”

Glowing bloody reference there, aye? Patrick Herbert is the future of the franchise, Tyrod’s just keeping his seat warm. My guy here deserves better but at least he’s got a little window to audition here. More than he’s had the last couple years.

27. Mitch Trubisky – Chicago Bears (22)

Back in 2017, the Chicago Bears traded up to draft Trubisky with the second overall pick. They saw a dude they wanted and they went after him, that’s ordinarily a respectable course of action, right? The draft is always such a lottery for so many factors so if you’ve been able to hone the spotlight onto a particular target, then do what you’ve gotta do. But in this case if they hadn’t been able to strike a deal to move up then they’d have been in so much of a better situation. The next two quarterbacks taken in that same draft: Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson. Chicago sports aren’t exactly immune to the odd decades long curse and safe to say Bears fans are feeling that psychic pressure these days.

In fairness to Mitchy Boy he wasn’t as bad last season as the narrative suggests. His arm is dangerously average, I know he had injuries last season but still 6.1 yards per attempt and an average of 209.2 yards per game is not winning you many games in the modern NFL. But he doesn’t turn the ball over and he’s good on his feet. Surely gotta get him running the ball more often though? The only quarterbacks who can get away with low yardage are the ones who can convert on third down with a running play. Troobs won the starting gig over Nick Foles. Let’s see how long he can hold it for.

26. Sam Darnold – New York Jets (32)

There was a game last season against the Cowboys which sticks in my mind as the best that Darnold can offer. He was immense that day, throwing 338 yards at a completion over 70% in an upset victory. His first game back after his bout with mono, as it happens. A week later he threw 11/32 for 86 yards with four interceptions as the Jets were shutout by the Patriots. That’s what this fella’s career has been like, glimpses of great and then a whole lot of average. He’s coming into his third season now and unfortunately for him quarterbacks don’t often get much longer than that to find consistency at this level before the opportunities run down.

25. Daniel Jones – New York Giants (39)

One New Yorker and then another New Yorker. Jonesy burst onto the scene with an incredible performance against Tampa Bay, throwing 336 yards in his debut NFL start as well as a couple scores and leading them to a dramatic late win. Hero ball stuff, the kind of play that makes you an instant celebrity in New York City. He then beat a very mud Washington team a week later and suddenly here was Eli Manning 2.0 for the G-Men. Aaaaand then he proceeded to lose his next eight games in a row. DJ led the league in fumbles, was top ten in sacks, and just outside the top ten in interceptions. That kind of carelessness with the ball... maybe he truly is the new Eli Manning.

24. Gardner Minshew – Jacksonville Jaguars (NR)

I mean, just look at this guy! How can you not love him? He looks like he just walked off the set of Dazed and Confused. Or maybe Almost Famous. Or... yes, Uncle Rico from Napoleon Dynamite maybe. Either way for a sixth round pick he’s done alright and the Jags don’t have anything to lose with him as starter this year. Path A is that he’s good and they can persist with him, Path B is that he’s bad and they lose lots and get a high draft pick to replace him.

23. Josh Allen – Buffalo Bills (36)

I don’t really rate him, to be honest. I understand he made big improvements from year one to year two... his completion percentage rose from 52.8% to 58.8%, he added 1000 passing yards and doubled his touchdown number while lessening his picks. I get all that and I also get that he’s a genuinely dangerous runner of the football too. But I don’t see how someone with such an inaccurate arm is ever going to win you regular playoff games these days... the dude can’t throw the ball straight. Look at Cam Newton’s MVP season or Lamar Jackson’s MVP season. The secret with them is that they’re not just running quarterbacks, they’re dual-threats. Really good passers over the top and especially down the field – Newton woulda been even more so if he didn’t have such butterfinger WRs all those years in Carolina. Josh Allen, as it happens, is one of the worst deep-throwers in the league and for him to be an effective guy in this role he has to figure that out. Getting Steffon Diggs in town helps him. We’ll see how it goes... the one thing about Allen that I have to admit is that he finds a way to win even if it means winning ugly (and usually it does). There are QBs with much more raw technique than him who don’t do that.

22. Derek Carr – Las Vegas Raiders (20)

Derek Carr threw more than 4000 yards last season at a completion of better than 70% and a quarterback rating in the triple figures and yet the consensus is that it was a bad season from him. Which is was. Coming off 51 sacks in 2018, Carr was strangely cautious in how he played. Only 21 touchdowns from more than 500 pass attempts is not really what I expected under the so-called quarterback whisperer coach Jon Gruden. Carr needs to loosen up and air the ball out some more even if his arm is not the most trustworthy. That should be more possible this year with a much better offensive group around him to go with that supreme O-Line. I don’t really care about yardage for someone like Carr but he needs to toss 30+ touchdown passes this year. Make it count where it matters.

21. Baker Mayfield – Cleveland Browns (18)

I’m just gonna say I don’t think his skill level is the issue with Baker Mayfield. A few maturity issues, sure, but also terrible, terrible coaching. I’m picking he’ll bounce back strong in year three.

20. Teddy Bridgewater – Carolina Panthers (NR)

A beautiful comeback story, as Teddy Bridgewater came back from a horrible run of injuries and just one start in three years to sub in for Drew Brees while he was out for five games last season and prove himself as probably the best backup QB in the competition that year... winning all five of those games while completing at 67.9% with a quarterback rating of 99.1. Not a lot of volume to those numbers and he could get in trouble playing too cautiously as a regular starter but he controlled games so well and has truly earned another go as a starting quarterback – gifted the inimitable opportunity to follow Cam Newton for the Panthers. He’ll go alright.

19. Kyler Murray – Arizona Cardinals (38)

Loved what this fella offered as a rookie. That first season is so often about just trying to get comfortable at this level and with 3722 passing yards and 20 touchdown passes he ticked that box. The issues with sacks and what not (he was sacked FORTY EIGHT times in his rookie season!), those are things that even out as you begin to make better decisions under pressure. And you know what? Those decisions are a lot easier to make when you’ve got DeAndre Hopkins to throw to all of a sudden. Kyler Murray is already good. Now all the ingredients are there for him to make another leap up these rankings for 2021.

18. Cam Newton – New England Patriots (8)

Injury on top of injury on top of injury has prevented Cam Newton from playing anywhere near his capacity these last couple years and arguably not since his MVP season in 2015. It’s been tough to watch at times... but it’s worked out strangely well for Super Cam as he now finds himself in Tom Brady’s old shoes as the bossman of the Patriots’ offence. It’s just a fascinating fit, honestly. Cannot wait to see how this goes with New England Newton, fingers crossed he’s physically capable of recapturing a bit of that old glory because the sport is better with a healthy Cam Newton. And speaking of fascinating fits... also can’t wait to see if a little of this flair rubs off on notorious cut-off-sweatshirt-sleeve-aficionado Bill Belichick...

17. Ryan Tannehill – Tennesee Titans (26)

The redemption story of 2019 as far as quarterbackery goes... I’ve long been a Tannehill defender and while Miami didn’t really have a choice but to move on from him when they did, it was all down to injuries and not a lack of ability. Bloke then finds himself in Tennessee, playing in the country music capital of the world, and it was yee-haw boy-howdy from the moment he took over that starter’s gig – winning seven of his ten starts to take the Titans not only to the playoffs but all the way to the Conference Championship game. They knocked out New England, knocked out Baltimore... then fell 35-24 to eventual champs Kansas City. A brilliant season. Tannehill completed at 70.3% with the highest touchdown percentage of his career and an NFL best 9.6 yards per attempt. Plus a passer rating of 117.5 which is utterly immense. It took a long time for Tannehill to get to this place in his career and there’s an undeniable regression coming now, there simply has to be, but he should still settle into something decent.

16. Kirk Cousins – Minnesota Vikings (15)

This guy makes throws that very few other players in the world can make. At his best, Kirk Cousins is absolutely sublime. But that best is pretty rarely glimpsed and we all know the reputation that he has. Ol’ KC finally won a playoff game last season when he led the Vikes past the New Orleans Saints in overtime (yet another hard luck playoff defeat for the Saints, lol) and perhaps that could be a bit of a breakthrough for a lad who generally torches weaker teams and then reliably loses in the big occasions. Case and point...

• Playoffs: 1-2

• Away: 17-27-2

• MNF: 0-9

• Late Kickoffs: 7-15

Basically, the simpler the situation the better he plays. Same goes for him on individual plays where if he’s got good protection and a bit of time to set himself and throw then he’s as good as anyone but get some pressure in his face, complicate his reads a bit, and that changes quickly. Which is awkward when all the best QBs in the league right now absolutely excel in broken play. But KC is great at what he’s great at, fair play for that much.

15. Jared Goff – Los Angeles Rams (10)

Jared Goff lost all seven of his starts in 2016. Then he has two superb years of solid numbers in which the Rams won 11 and then 13 games, the latter culminating in a run to the Super Bowl (where they lost to the Patriots). Then he gets an enormous contract, briefly putting him in possession of that pass-the-parcel that is the highest paid quarterback of all time tag. Then he was pretty mud in 2019. Touchdowns were down, interceptions were up. Pass attempts were away up but his yardage stayed pretty much the same. The Rams didn’t make the playoffs.

It’s been a funky time for Goffo yet at 25 years old it’s not like he’s even hit his peak yet, there’s no reason he can’t bounce back from his regression season. He’s in a good situation here with a quality coach so I’d be surprised if he didn’t. Also... there’s no more Todd Gurley and that’s a factor you can’t ignore in Goff’s rubbish 2019. Gurley went from 4.9 yards per attempt to 3.8 y/a, shaving 32 rush yards per game off his average with most of those missed yards coming after contact. He didn’t have a 100 yard rush game in all of 2019. That’s gonna have ramifications across the offence and with him gone that clarifies Goff’s role nicely.

14. Philip Rivers – Indianapolis Colts (9)

Philip Rivers in 2019: 66.0% COMP | 4615 YDS | 23 TD | 20 INT | 7.1 AY/A | 88.5 RATE

Philip Rivers 2016-18*: 63.6% COMP | 4403 YDS | 31 TD | 14 INT | 7.9 AY/A | 96.1 RATE

*16 game average

It wasn’t completely disastrous but the Chargers were 5-11 last season for a reason and Philip Rivers was a big part of that. Just really bad mistakes throughout, always able to move the ball but unable to make it count for points anywhere near what he should have. Rivers has come back from seasons like that in the past but he’s 39 years old now and even in the age of the Quarterback Elder that’s tough to picture. Then again, it’s not like it was a physical decline... just more of the same kind of errors he’s always had in his game and when he’s throwing a decent number of scores that’s not such a drama (23 TD passes in 2019 is his fewest since 2007). Obviously someone believes in him still because the Colts gave him a $25m contract for this year, where he’ll get to play behind a much better offensive line than he did back in LA. And let’s be honest, Philip Rivers is way more of an Indianapolis guy than a Los Angeles guy, aye? Having nine kids in LA, pretty sure that makes you a registered talent agency. In Indy it just makes you old fashioned.

13. Jimmy Garoppolo – San Francisco 49ers (19)

Jimmy G coming in fresh off a Super Bowl appearance. Which makes it slightly odd that so many people seem to be so down on him. Like, last I checked he had a 21-5 winning record as an NFL starter. He just completed at 69.1% for a shade under 4000 yards with twice as many TDs as picks last season for a 13-3 team whom he took to the conference championship. Knocked out Kirk Cousins and Aaron Rodgers on his way there (granted he hardly had to do anything in either game). I dunno, he’s not Lamar Jackson or Patrick Mahomes for damn sure, Jimmy G certainly has his limitations, but I’m failing to see what the issue is with him. Is it purely because he didn’t deliver late on in the Super Bowl? Is it because the Niners have that battering ram run game that they rely on? Is it because he was undermined by offseason rumours that Tom Brady might wanna play in San Francisco? Harsh, dude. Very harsh. The quarterback talent in the NFL at the moment is through the damn roof and Garoppolo is hanging out towards the right end of things.

12. Carson Wentz – Philadelphia Eagles (12)

Here’s a fella who I have a bit of a grudge against because he came into the league the same year as Dak Prescott, two divisional rivals inextricably linked like that, and they both started off with long streaks of completions before throwing their first interceptions (then again, so did Kyle Allen) and for some reason they keep being linked when I’m pretty confident in saying that Dak is way better. Like, miles ahead. Which isn’t to say that Wentz is not a very good quarterback but Dak Prescott was amazing last year and could be in the MVP convo this year. I just felt I had to point this out because it annoys me to no end seeing other rankings where these jokers somehow have Wentz ahead of Prescott.

You know what happened in 2019? Carson Wentz played his first ever playoff game... and Jadeveon Clowney knocked him out after only four pass attempts, casuing him to miss the rest of the game after failing his concussion test – with the Seahawks winning that match. That was a rough hit though unfortunately it slips into this recurring theme with Wentz where he doesn’t seem to finish seasons. In 2017 they won the Super Bowl with Nick Foles after Wentz did his ACL in week 14. In 2018 a back injury caused him to be shut down after week 15 with Foles again starting in the playoffs. Then he finally starts a playoff game in 2019 only to fail to make it out of the first quarter. Three very different injuries too... hopefully it’s only a terrible coincidence. Aside from that he was very decent last year despite dealing with some mad inconsistencies amongst his wide receivers. Luckily Nelson Agholor’s gone now, he left in free agency so he’s dropped his last Eagles pass... and Philly in return drafted Jaeln Reagor in the first round. With healthy/decent WRs now he should see a nice boost.

11. Matthew Stafford – Detroit Lions (14)

We’ve seen so many different versions of Matt Stafford as the Detroit Lions try to find a way to win with him, from the big bomber of his early days to the careful mid-range passer of a few years ago to the hybrid version we got last year before he was injured, that I dunno guys I’m starting to think maybe Matthew Stafford is not the problem?

Two things are amazing with Staff coming into this season. One is that he’s 0-3 in the playffs for his career, never won a postseason game in his life. The other is that he’s actually only 32 years old. That’s about the same age that Matt Ryan peaked and won MVP. The Lions are getting some sneaky buzz about them in 2020, it’s the second year under OC Darrell Bevell and it really does feel like this offence has the potential to do something impressive. Remember before he hurt his back Stafford was an outside chance at 5000 yards and 40 touchdowns (he had 2499 yds & 19 TDs in half a season). The problem for Detroit is more on the defensive side of the ball, so if Staff’s gonna win a cheeky playoff game he might need to see a little more from the blokes beyond his control. As I already hinted, it’s not him who’s the problem.

10. Matt Ryan – Atlanta Falcons (7)

There’s a strange pattern to Matty Ryan’s career where every second season he seems to be amazing and then in between he drops down, alternating like a see-saw. Well, last year was the down year so you know what that means.

• 2019 – 92.1 RATE | 7.1 AY/A | 4.2 TD%

• 2018 – 108.1 RATE | 8.7 AY/A | 5.8 TD%

• 2017 – 91.4 RATE | 7.5 AY/A | 3.8 TD%

• 2016 – 117.1 RATE | 10.1 AY/A | 7.1 TD%

• 2015 – 89.0 RATE | 7.0 AY/A | 3.4 TD%

• 2014 – 93.9 RATE | 7.4 AY/A | 4.5 TD%

• 2013 – 89.6 RATE | 6.6 AY/A | 4.0 TD%

9. Ben Roethlisberger – Pittsburgh Steelers (6)

Absolutely an underrated guy on this list but when you’re 38 years old coming back from a season ending injury, only a couple weeks shy of a full year between NFL games... I’m gonna have to play it cautious, sorry. But what I will say is that the Steelers don’t need Big Ben to be the top five QB of old. They almost made the playoffs without him last year despite some horrific quarterback play from the likes of Mason Rudolph and Duck Hodges and they did that because of an emerging defensive identity. Cameron Heyward, Minkah Fitzpatrick, TJ Watt... that’s rather frightening.

So even if we’re a long way removed from the Rothlisberger/Bell/Brown triple-threat offence that was as good as any QB/RB/WR trio I can ever recall... there should be a much better balance to Steelers football this time which makes it easier for Roethlisberger to just slide in and do his job without having to hit bomb after bomb in late-game shootouts or whatever. Around him he’s got a wide receiver group so young he’ll be feeling like Brett Favre when he was still in the league after becoming a grandfather but that means speed and speed and more speed around him which can only be a good thing – speed at the wideout position is a major trend of recent winning teams. All word out of the Steelers camp is that Ben is fine, he’s all good, no worries after that elbow surgery. But, yeah, gotta keep it gentle with him ‘til we see for sure.

8. Tom Brady – Tampa Bay Buccanneers (2)

He’s 43 years old. Nobody has ever played at an elite level at this age before, he’s already the fourth oldest quarterback to ever start an NFL game behind Steve DeBerg (44 years and 279 days), Vinny Testaverde (44 years and 47 days) and Warren Moon (44 years and 8 days) but each of them were only just clinging on at that point. George Blanda played until he was 48 but he transitioned into a kicker in his 40s. Absolutely no doubt about it that Brady is in better shape then the lot of them, what he does to maintain his fitness and health is incredible, but this is unprecedented... and to add to the confusion he’s also moved to a new team. That could be a shot in the arm for him yet I’ve got my reservations. His quick-release style doesn’t really gel with what Bruce Arians has been designing there. But, you know, it’s Tom Brady. He’s been proving people wrong ever since he was drafted in the sixth round way back when.

7. Dak Prescott – Dallas Cowboys (13)

Jason Garrett is gone. His supporting cast is as stacked as any offence in football. He plays behind one of the finest offensive lines in modern history. He’s coming off a magnificent 2019 season in which he completed at 65.1% for 4902 yards and 30 touchdowns. He hasn’t gotten the huge contract he deserves for all that which’ll mean franchise tag pay-cheques this year but that’s just more motivation for a guy who feels utterly primed for glory. I’m immensely biased in this argument but my dude’s gonna be in the MVP race this year, don’t doubt it. He already would’ve been on the edge of that chat last year if the Cowboys weren’t a criminally underperforming 8-8 team. Honestly can’t stress enough what an amazing situation Dak Prescott is in right now... get some decent coaching out of Mike McCarthy and some playmaking on the defensive side and we’re talking Super Bowl capabilities... but I won’t get ahead of myself.

6. Drew Brees – New Orleans Saints (4)

Just gonna point out what Drew Brees did late last season from weeks 13 to 17...

75.4% COMP | 1188 YDS | 15 TD | 0 INT | 137.0 RATE

He was sackless in three of four games and also ran in a touchdown. He’s older than Brett Favre was when he played his last NFL game but he’s not the oldest quarterback in the league at the moment thanks to number eight on this list. But Brees is on record as saying he’s playing with borrowed time at this stage. He’s already got his post-playing career lined up as a broadcaster so it’s only a matter of trying to win that second championship before he bows out. Will this be his last year? Quite possibly. But at the level he’s been playing at the last few years and with the Saints as good as they currently are he might as well have another crack.

5. Lamar Jackson – Baltimore Ravens (30)

A couple reasons why the reigning MVP is only at five. One is that I wanna see him consolidate that campaign without dropping off in the numbers. Two is that he’s tricky to compare to other quarterbacks because he’s such a unique player. He might already be the most dangerous running QB that we’ve ever seen... although there’s not a great history of running QBs having long NFL careers, you have to be able to get the ball out accurately too and that’s the thing with Lamar Jackson: he’s a pretty superb thrower too. Not a high volume thrower but he doesn’t have to be, what he does instead is he makes it impossible to adjust to him as he uses his arm to compliment his legs and his legs to compliment his arm, manipulating defences around the park to make this Baltimore offence such a steady-rolling machine. Plus Jackson ranks second only to Mahomes in his ability to make jaw-dropping plays, the kind of highlights that make watching sport so thrilling. Jacko took a huge stride forward as a passer in year two – including a showpiece performance in week one against the woeful Dolphins where he barely ran at all and threw five scores instead just to lay the gauntlet down for anyone who thought they could force him to stay in the pocket and contain him that way. There’s room for another huge stride as a passer this year too which is terrifying to think about from a bloke who already has an MVP trophy on the mantel.

4. Deshaun Watson – Houston Texans (11)

Consistency is the key for Deshaun Watson. He’s getting consistent money now after signing a four year mega-deal and at his peak he’s as good as any quarterback in the world shy of Patty Mahomes... he just needs to iron out the shocker performances where his mistakes seem to compound. Watson is a guy who takes a lot of sacks trying to extend plays. He’s brilliant on his toes but there’s only so long you can hold on like that, it’s a risk and it’s one that the Texans have made a big deal of trying to help him with by trading away other talent to improve their pass blocking. They’ve also gotten rid of DeAndre Hopkins rather than stumping up large quantities of cash on a wideout as well as a quarterback all at once but they’ve been able to craft a more evenly spread crew of targets for DW instead. I’m a huge fan of Deshaun Watson which is what he’s doing this high on the list, there are others who’d hold those errors against him but those people are pessimists. Five game-winning drives in each of the last two seasons. More often than not, Watto gets it done.

3. Aaron Rodgers – Green Bay Packers (1)

It’s a bit of a different Aaron Rodgers these days. He had about a six year run where he was as good as any QB who has ever played this storied sport but things have caught up with him the last three years or so. There became a disconnect between Rodgers and his coaches. His wide receivers just weren’t good enough, the Packers began to rely on Rodgers to save them rather than setting him up to thrive. The miniscule interception numbers are now coming with the result of dragging down his touchdown numbers as Rodgers plays like he feels he can’t afford to make a mistake.

Rodgers 2011-2016: 65.5% COMP | 4383 YDS | 38 TD | 7 INT | 8.7 AY/A | 107.2 RATE

Rodgers 2017-2019: 62.6% COMP | 4151 YDS | 27 TD | 5 INT | 7.8 AY/A | 96.6 RATE

(16 game averages again)

But, I mean... the Packers made the NFC Championship game last year. They also traded up to draft a quarterback in Jordan Love, with shades of a young Aaron Rodgers usurping Brett Favre about that one. Eventually that’ll be true but for this season the 36 year old former MVP should have a fire lit under his arse to give Green Bay at least one more legendary season.

2. Russell Wilson – Seattle Seahawks (3)

I don’t think people realise just how good Russell Wilson was last season. For two-thirds of the campaign he was neck and neck with Lamar Jackson for the MVP award, eventually running out of steam but anyone who doesn’t believe he belongs in this second spot is crazy, Wilson is absolutely incredible. Part of the reason his greatness slides under the radar a bit comes down to the way that Seattle plays, the last couple years in particular they’ve tried so hard to get that hard-rushing identity back but without a prime Marshawn Lynch to lean upon. It’s kinda undermining one of the great quarterbacks of his generation.

Let Russ Cook is the call in Seattle. In two seasons under OC Brian Schottenheimer the Seahawks average the fewest designed pass plays in the NFL during first quarters... it’s not a matter of making him throw 45 times a night but let Wilson’s arm be the focal point of the offence from which all else stems. He’s already arguably the finest fourth quarter guy out there. Rusty’s in the prime of his career right now and in Tyler Metcalf and DK Metcalf he’s now got top tier WRs to work with. Let Russ Cook!

1. Patrick Mahomes – Kansas City Chiefs (5)

The bestest of the bestest, he’s only been in the NFL for three years but the legend of Pat Mahomes is undeniable. An arm that can throw over mountains. The ability and confidence to make circus plays you’ve never seen before. Wisdom beyond his years to read the game in front of him and the accuracy to hit his targets from all angles. He’s quick on his feet and he’s strong. He’s already an MVP and he lead his team to a Super Bowl championship at the start of this year. Oh yeah and the small matter of a ten year contract that ranks among the most expensive ever signed in all sports. Of course he’s number one on the list, who the hell else was it gonna be?

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