Tom Brady: Is He Back To Being Best QB In the NFL?
With last Sunday's performance, Tom Brady, quarterback of the New England Patriots, vaulted himself back into the discussion of the NFL's best quarterback.
While there were those who felt Brady never left the conversation, others saw the 2009 season as indicating that perhaps the Patriots' gunslinger had slipped a bit.
Regardless, Brady begs the question: Who is the NFL's best quarterback? Who's the worst quarterback in the league? We're ranking quarterbacks who are suiting up to start in Week 2, so Kolb, Stafford, and Roethlisberger are nowhere to be found.
How are we grading them? There are three big criteria:
Potential: Will they be good by the end of the year?
Production: How did they do last season and in week 1?
Intangibles: Are they a leader or a winner?
The Bottom Of the Barrel: 32-25
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32. Shaun Hill, Detroit Lions—If this were Stafford, he'd be in the next slide. But he's hurt, and Hill and his terrible arm are on the list.
31. Trent Edwards, Buffalo Bills—Edwards had potential a couple of years ago, but too many hits and a terrible offensive strategy year after year have doomed him to the bottom of the barrel.
30. Jake Delhomme, Cleveland Browns—That sound you heard was Delhomme throwing another interception. Have fun with that one, Browns fans!
29. Matt Moore, Carolina Panthers—Apparently, those last four games of last season were just a facade. How long till Jimmy Clausen takes his place?
28. Sam Bradford, St. Louis Rams—In three years, Bradford could crack the top 10 of this list. But for now, he's just a rookie on a bad, bad team.
27. Matt Cassel, Kansas City Chiefs—This is a big year for Cassel. He needs to produce to prove he doesn't belong here. After last week? He's lucky he's this high.
26. Dennis Dixon, Pittsburgh Steelers—Should see this ranking rise as the season progresses, but for now, he's at the bottom of the heap.
25. Mark Sanchez, New York JetsAll I have to say to you if you disagree with this is Monday Night Football. Maybe he'll be good in a year or two. But for now, he's the benchmark for the bottom of the barrel.
Juuuust a Bit Outside: 24-16
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24. Josh Freeman, Tampa Bay Buccaneers—He's tough, he's got an arm, he mobile, and he's getting better every week. But right now, he's still not great.
23. Jason Campbell, Oakland Raiders—Week 1 of the Jason Campbell Project was a failure in Oakland. Maybe things will get better next time.
22. Chad Henne, Miami Dolphins—For everyone who picked Henne as a fantasy quarterback this year, I laugh at you. Still got potential, but he didn't look so good in Week 1.
21. Derek Anderson, Arizona Cardinals—So he's not the most accurate quarterback in the NFL. His arm and his wideouts make up for that, to an extent.
20. Matt Hasselbeck, Seattle Seahawks—The anti-Derek Anderson. No arm, but fantastic accuracy and efficiency. Now if only he would stay healthy.
19. David Garrard, Jacksonville Jaguars—Decent arm, doesn't make many mistakes, good mobility. But where are the stats and the results? Solid, but unremarkable.
18. Alex Smith, San Francisco 49ers—I like Alex Smith. I think he's going to have a good year. But after last week's howler, I couldn't justify putting him higher than this.
17. Jay Cutler, Chicago Bears—Would be an elite quarterback if he'd just stop throwing the ball to the wrong team.
16. Michael Vick, Philadelphia, EaglesKevin Kolb would be three spots lower than Vick right now. I don't trust him, or his scattershot arm.
15. Brett Favre, Minnesota Vikings
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Why He Should Be Higher: Favre is one of the best quarterbacks of all time. He's still got a fantastic arm, and he can make plays despite his advanced age.
Why He's Not: Favre still gets bored on occasion and throws into triple coverage. His decision making skills have never been all that good, evidenced by his high interception totals. He looked shaky against the Saints last week, and in the playoffs last year. He occasionally changes run plays to passes, which only works every once in a while.
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14. Kyle Orton, Denver Broncos
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Why He Could Be Higher: Orton is a winner. Plain and simple. It's not always pretty, but he gets results.
Why He's Not: Denver only won eight games last year, and Orton faded down the stretch. While he gets the job done, it's never pretty, and he doesn't have the arm to take deep chances downfield.
13. Carson Palmer, Cincinnati Bengals
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Why He Could Be Higher: On Paper, Palmer should be a Pro Bowl-level quarterback. Good arm, good accuracy, pocket poise, good touch on throws. He was at one point considered a top-10 quarterback, and has the talent to get there again.
Why He's Not: Palmer looked flustered all day by the New England defense, at least until they took their foot off the gas. Maybe he's a little gun-shy after all the injuries. But if he plays like he did Sunday for the rest of the season, the Bengals, and Palmer, are in trouble.
12. Vince Young, Tennessee Titans
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Why He Could Be Higher: In terms of raw physical tools, Young might be one of the NFL's best quarterbacks. His arm is excellent, he's mobile, and he's one of the most physically imposing quarterbacks in the NFL. He's also a winner, having compiled a 26-13 record in his short career thus far.
Why He's Not: Young is not a great decision maker throwing the ball. His throwing motion causes the ball to come out at an odd angle, and his touch isn't all that great. He struggles with short passes on occasion, and has been known to have the occasional howler.
11. Donovan McNabb, Washington Redskins
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Why He Could Be Higher: At one point, McNabb was an elite quarterback in the NFL, and statistically, he's shown very little dropoff from those days. He's big and strong, has a live, accurate arm, and can move when he needs to.
Why He's Not: McNabb has a nasty habit of folding in big games (see Super Bowl XXXIX), and had so irritated the fan base in Philadelphia that he was traded to Washington, a division rival. Plus, he's got no receivers to throw to in Washington.
10. Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons
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Why He Could Be Higher: Ryan has been a successful NFL quarterback since the day he joined the league. He hasn't had a losing record in his first two seasons, has a strong arm and good touch.
Why He's Not: Ryan's only in year three. He struggled last year, and his decision making skills still have occasional lapses. He's not terribly mobile, and couldn't lead his team past a Pittsburgh side that was without quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.
9. Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens
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Why He Could Be Higher: Flacco's got all the tools and weapons needed to be a top five quarterback. He makes good decisions, has one of the best arms in football, has shown good touch on his throws, and he's just mobile enough to keep defenses honest.
Why He's Not: He hasn't done it yet. He improved in each of his first two seasons in the league, but he has yet to show that he can make the big time. This year will go a long way towards answering any questions about where Flacco falls.
8. Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers
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Why He Could Be Higher: Statistically, Rivers has been one of the NFL's best quarterbacks his whole career. Good receivers, bad receivers, it doesn't seem to matter; since he became San Diego's starter, Rivers hasn't thrown for fewer than 3,100 yards in a season. The man gets results.
Why He's Not: The postseason. While Rivers is a regular season (and therefore fantasy) ace, he seems to wilt ever so slightly in the postseason. He struggled early in this year's opener, but wound up with solid stats once again.
7. Eli Manning, New York Giants
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Why He Could Be Higher: Really, he couldn't. There's no way Eli goes any higher than this in terms of anything.
Why He's Not: Eli's a great quarterback who's been knocking on the door of becoming an elite one for some time now. Good arm, good poise, good touch, OK mobility. His decision making goes to crap on occasion (like last week's three interceptions against Carolina), but he's still one of the leagues better quarterbacks.
6. Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys
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Why He Could Be Higher: Statistically, Romo could be one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. He's come ever so close to breaking 4,500 yards passing, and has thrown 35 or more touchdown passes in a season. He's a great scrambler, and has the physical skills to be an elite quarterback.
Why He's Not: He cannot win a big game to save his life. Romo struggles with decision making on occasion, and while his stats are typically good, he usually has two or three "Romo Specials" each season. What's a "Romo Special"? A quarterback throws for 150 yards, has two interceptions, and a lost fumble. That, my friends, is a Romo Special.
5. Matt Schaub, Houston Texans
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Why He Could Be Higher: Last season, Schaub threw for 4,770 yards and 29 touchdowns. He's got the tools around him to make him one of the NFL's best quarterbacks, and he's got a decent arm.
Why He's Not: Matt Schaub is not a physically gifted quarterback. He doesn't have a laser-rocket arm, he doesn't always make the best decisions, and he's not mobile in the slightest. He's proven to be somewhat fragile, and while he puts up good stats, he's never led a team to the playoffs. There is some debate over whether Schaub is a great quarterback, or a good one in a beneficial system.
4. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers
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Why He Could Be Higher: Last year, Rodgers was one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. He's got a great arm, good decision making skills, decent mobility, and good touch. Plus, his offense could help him top 5,000 yards passing this season.
Why He's Not: He hasn't done it yet. Rodgers was excellent last year, but Green Bay lost in the Divisional Round of the playoffs. Not his fault, but still.
3. Tom Brady, New England Patriots
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Why He Could Be Higher: Brady is essentially 1c in terms of the elite quarterbacks in the NFL. He dragged a mediocre Patriots team to 10-6 last year, after a devastating knee injury forced him to miss all of 2008. He's got a good arm, good accuracy, and is the unquestioned leader of the Patriots. With everyone healthy, could eclipse 5,000 passing yards in 2010.
Why He's Not: Because someone from these three had to be third, and Brady lost the full-contact "Rock-paper-scissors" match.
2. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints
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Why He Could Be Higher: Brees is the face of the Saints' franchise. He's had some historic passing seasons in 2007, 2008, and 2009. Has a good arm, good accuracy and spreads the ball around more than anyone else in the NFL. Last year, nine Saints had at least 10 receptions. He's at least 1b.
Why He's Not: He's short for a modern quarterback, standing just 6'0" tall. Other than that, he's equal to quarterbacks one and three on this list.
1. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts
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Why He Could Be Higher: He can't go any higher than this.
Why He's Not: You want proof that Manning is the best quarterback in football? Look at last week. His offensive line was playing extremely poorly, his receivers were dropping passes, and he had no running game behind him. But he still threw for 433 yards and three touchdowns. If that's not the mark of one of the all time greats, I don't know what is. Can he be passed this year? Undoubtedly. Like I said, Brees and Brady are essentially equivalent to Manning, so if he struggles, one of them could pass him.
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