NFL Power Rankings Week 17: Who Are the Top 10 Quarterbacks in the NFL?

Can you believe it? It's almost playoff time in the NFL as just one more week is remaining in the 2011 regular season. 

The 2011 season has been without a question the "Year of the Quarterback," which was dubbed by ESPN prior to the start of the season. 

There's no doubt that the quarterback is the position that influences the outcome of the game in the greatest ways and is the sport's most critical position. 

Enough of the chit-chat, let's dive right into my weekly power rankings of the top 10 quarterbacks entering Week 17: 

10. Tony Romo

Good news for the Dallas Cowboys: Tony Romo will play this Sunday against the New York Giants with a chance at a playoff berth. 

Romo has had a very impressive 2011 season as he's posted a stellar 102.2 quarterback rating while completing 65.4 percent of his passes for 29 touchdowns and only nine interceptions.

9. Eli Manning

Eli Manning may have had one of the worst performances of his career last weekend against the New York Jets, but he still got a win.

The 2012 Pro Bowler has posted a 90.3 quarterback rating this season while throwing for 26 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. 

8. Michael Vick 

It's too bad that the Philadelphia Eagles will be playing for nothing this Sunday as they have no shot at making the 2011 playoffs. However, Michael Vick is playing very well for the Eagles.

In last week's 20-7 victory over the Dallas Cowboys, Vick completed 18 of his 32 passes for 293 yards and two touchdowns. 

7. Andy Dalton

The rookie out of TCU Andy Dalton has been playing extremely well for the Cincinnati Bengals in 2011. 

Dalton enters the final week of the season with an 8-7 record as the team's starter this season while throwing for 3,166 yards, 20 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. 

6. Ben Roethlisberger

After sitting out a week ago against the St. Louis Rams, Ben Roethlisberger should be able to play this Sunday against the Cleveland Browns as he was a full-participant in practice Wednesday. 

In 14 games this season for the Pittsburgh Steelers, Big Ben has thrown for 21 touchdowns while completing 63.6 percent of his passes and recording a 91.5 quarterback rating. 

5. Cam Newton

Cam Newton is playing as well as has all during his stellar rookie season with the Carolina Panthers.

Newton has accumulated a combined 34 touchdowns on the season while posting a solid 85.0 quarterback rating. 

4. Matthew Stafford

Matthew Stafford has really turned it on as of late and is on a hot-streak as he's entering the final week of the season with the Detroit Lions. 

A week ago against the San Diego Chargers, Stafford completed 29 of his 36 passes for a whopping 373 yards and three touchdowns to seal the victory and clinch a playoff berth for the first time in 1999. 

3. Aaron Rodgers

Aaron Rodgers has been kind of "cold" as of late but really turned it on against the Chicago Bears a week ago when he threw for 283 yards and five touchdowns.

With one game to go, Rodgers is five touchdowns away from tying Tom Brady with the most touchdowns thrown in a single season which was set back in 2007. 

2. Tom Brady

The Week 16 AFC Player of the Week is simply white-hot entering the season finale. 

Tom Brady has led his New England Patriots to an impressive 12-3 record while throwing for 4,897 yards, 36 touchdowns and only 11 interceptions and posting a stellar 105.1 quarterback rating. 

1. Drew Brees

No one is playing the quarterback position as good as Drew Brees is right now.

Brees is having a phenomenal season with the New Orleans Saints as he is now the NFL's all-time record-holder with most passing yards in a season standing at 5,087 yards and counting—a record which was previously held by Dan Marino dating all the way back to 1984. 

To go along with his astronomical amount of yardage, Brees is completing an incredible 70.7 percent of his passes while throwing for 41 touchdowns and only 13 interceptions. 

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