From top to bottom
Ranking the NFL’s starting quarterbacks
By Joel Buchsbaum
Oct. 2, 2002
Packers QB
Brett Favre
With the help of a number of NFL scouts, personnel directors, coaches and other insiders, we set out to rate the starting quarterbacks in the NFL. The rankings are based on a player’s career, last season’s performance, this year’s early showing and potential for the rest of the season. The brief comments after each player come from the experts we polled and best fit the consensus opinion. While most of the picks at the very top and bottom of the list were pretty clear-cut, there was wide disagreement in the middle.
1. Brett Favre / Packers — Still a great thrower, and his leadership and toughness are superior. Favre can make a .500 team a Super Bowl contender.
2. Peyton Manning / Colts — Mature well beyond his years and an excellent passer with great field awareness. Makes the players around him better. The only negatives are his interceptions, and he has yet to step up big in the playoffs.
3. Donovan McNabb / Eagles — Has emerged as the best of the great 1999 QB crop. Seems to improve by leaps and bounds every year. Great intangibles and leadership for a young one, with a big-time arm and tremendous athleticism and toughness. Throwing consistency is the only negative.
4. Rich Gannon / Raiders — Has lost a step but still is more mobile and aware than others. Found himself in his 30s after joining the Raiders.
5. Steve McNair / Titans — Is starting to look like the "Air McNair" the Titans believed they were drafting. A lot like McNabb. Looks and runs like a fullback and now is starting to throw like a quarterback. Sold me in the opener vs. the Eagles.
6. Mark Brunell / Jaguars — He keeps them competitive despite all their salary-cap losses and makes you fear them. While his stats may be down a bit, look at the people he has blocking for him now.
7. Tom Brady / Patriots — He won a Super Bowl without a lot of great weapons and this year he got off to a great start. No, he is not a great physical talent, and he is not nearly as good a passer as he was in the Patriots’ first three games of 2002, when he was in the zone. But he is mature beyond his years and has won without letting it get to his head, and I really like his makeup. Look at the way he handled his contract situation compared to how Aaron Brooks handled his.
8. Drew Bledsoe / Bills — The Patriots were begging teams outside their division to trade for him. They told people they believed Bledsoe still could be an exceptional quarterback if he went to a new, positive situation, but he would never regain the passion and effectiveness he showed under Bill Parcells if he stayed in New England. Unfortunately for them and the other teams in the AFC East, the only team that believed them was the Bills, and now the Pats have another tough team to face. Just think of how the Skins would be with Bledsoe in Steve Spurrier’s offense.
9. Aaron Brooks / Saints — He is still very immature, judging from the selfish way he handled his contract situation. But he has such great tools, plenty of weapons and a great offensive coordinator who always keeps things positive.
10. Jeff Garcia / 49ers — The toughest guy on the board to rate. Going off the past two years, you probably would put him anywhere from No. 4 to 8, but he just does not look nearly as sharp this year, and he is a little guy with a very average arm that looks weaker.
11. Daunte Culpepper / Vikings — With his size, speed and throwing ability, he can be the quarterback of the decade if the mental catches up with the physical and he learns how to handle adversity better.
12. Tim Couch / Browns — He is starting to come into his own and show why he was the first pick in the 1999 draft. Do I believe he will eventually be as good as McNabb or Culpepper? No, but he still should be very good in this offense.
13. Mike Vick / Falcons — Right now he is playing just on raw talent, but if and when he grows up and learns the nuances of the position, he may unstoppable. He is the best pure athlete in the NFL, has a great arm, tremendous God-given throwing ability and is one of the 10 fastest players in the league. If they moved him to running back he would be a Pro Bowl back. He makes the John Elway-type throws and Steve Young-type runs, but he must learn to read coverages and improve his passing from the pocket.
14. Kerry Collins / Giants — Right now he is throwing the ball as well as anyone in football when he gets time, but if you get him moving, he could not hit the broad side of a barn unless it had the other team’s jersey on it.
15. Brian Griese / Broncos — This may be his make-or-break year. Right now he looks like he is going to make it. Average tools and leadership but really smart and tough.
16. Kordell Stewart / Steelers — Great running speed and a strong arm. Has top-five ability but does not handle adversity well and may lack some mental toughness. Could be in the middle of a QB controversy after his benching in Week Four.
17. Brad Johnson / Buccaneers — Is very smart and a great worker with excellent intangibles, but arm strength is ordinary, and he does not move well.
18. Jim Miller / Bears — Similar to Tampa Bay’s Brad Johnson, but Miller has a little more physical ability and is not as accurate and does not time his throws as well.
19. Jay Fiedler / Dolphins — Decent, and at times looks good, but he still tends to throw interceptions in bunches.
20. Vinny Testaverde / Jets — He is starting to look very old and slow. Still can throw a nice pass when given time. He injured his shoulder in Week Four, and the extent of the injury was unknown at presstime. But with the Jets 1-3, it may be time to put in Chad Pennington to see if he can get the job done.
21. Trent Green / Chiefs — Has always been a hot-and-cold guy who holds on to the ball too long and throws too many picks.
22. Jake Plummer / Cardinals — This rating is either too low or just right. I just can’t figure the guy out. He is at his best at the end of close games, but he screws up too much earlier in the game. An improviser who is better when the situation is desperate instead of when everything is right and he can play by the numbers.
23. Trent Dilfer / Seahawks — Just not quite good enough, unless you have a terrific defense and great runner and just ask him to manage the team.
24. Drew Brees / Chargers — He is going to be good with experience, but he is learning on the job.
Not ranked
The following quarterbacks were not ranked because of special circumstances. They are either sidelined with an injury, aren’t good enough or have limited experience and exposure, or a combination of the two.
Kurt Warner / Rams — For three years, Warner played at as high a level of any quarterback in the NFL. However, this season, with an unemotional team around him, a much weaker offensive line, a go-to receiver in Isaac Bruce who seems to have lost a step, and defenses seemingly having caught up to the Rams’ offense, Warner was really struggling in all areas, including velocity, accuracy, reading defenses and decision-making. It also looked like Warner, one of the all-time tough guys who was totally unafraid in the past, was peeking for the rush at times. Before he had a chance to right himself, he broke the pinkie on his throwing hand. There’s also the possibility — although he won’t admit it — that he was playing with a thumb injury or a sore arm.
Quincy Carter / Cowboys — Hot-and-cold type who is very athletic and has a strong arm. Has a strong supporting cast that he will bring down on his off days. However, he has potential and will look like the answer when he is on. Must improve accuracy and ability to read coverages.
Rodney Peete / Panthers — Heady veteran who may be exposed when they play better teams.
David Carr / Texans — He will be a star if he gets some talented players and blockers around him before he gets killed.
Joey Harrington / Lions — Not as gifted as Carr, but has better (not good) people around him. Carr is more of a carry-the-team type with a better arm, but Harrington is supersmart and can be very accurate.
Shane Matthews, Danny Wuerffel and Patrick Ramsey / Redskins — Now Steve Spurrier knows what everyone else knew. His two Florida quarterbacks are not good enough to get you where you want to go, and Ramsey’s holdout set him back. However, in time, Ramsey could be their guy.
Akili Smith / Bengals — This may be Smith’s last chance in Cincinnati. He has all the physical tools, however, he is still really immature. But it would not surprise me if he does OK since they have a real horse in the backfield (Corey Dillon), a respectable offensive line and the type of talented and underachieving young receivers who may play harder for him than they played for the other guys. Gus Frerotte looked terrible and is looking for the rush and not at the receiver. Jon Kitna is just not good enough.
Chris Redman / Ravens — He is in the wrong offense for what he can and cannot do and does not have enough around him.
This content is featured from our Pro Football Weekly print edition — Issue 13. |
