Written by Garin Turner
The 2018 NFL Preseason is less than a month away so before things get underway I’m going to rate the top five quarterbacks in the league today. These are my personal picks and in no way reflects the thoughts of The SkyBoat. When making these choices I combined stats/body of work along with accomplishments with a small dose of what have they done lately.
- Tom Brady- New England Patriots
Not only is Tom Brady the best QB in the league today, he’s up for discussion for greatest of all-time. Say what you want about cheating the numbers and accomplishments don’t lie. You still have to go onto the field and produce and that’s exactly what Brady has done. The man is 40 years old and threw for 505 yards in the Super Bowl. Yes, it still wasn’t enough to secure a win, but he also won the MVP this past season. He’s 5-3 in the Super Bowl and quite frankly is a few plays away from being 9-0. Out of those five Super Bowls he won the MVP four times. He’s also won the league MVP on three separate occasions. He does more with less on his team as far as receivers go. He wants to play into his mid 40’s and with the way his offensive line protects him, he may very well accomplish it. He’s racked up multiple first team All-Pro honors, multiple Offensive Player of the Year awards, Comeback Player of the Year (2009), a three time passing yards leader and a four-time touchdown leader. He has 488 touchdowns to just 160 interceptions and 66,159 yards passing in his career. He needs just 21 touchdown passes to become second on the all-time list.
- Aaron Rodgers- Green Bay Packers
Perhaps nobody means more to their team than Rodgers. When he goes down the Packers struggle at best. If he’s on the field they’re a legit Super Bowl threat every year. Both years that Rodgers went down with an injury he was in early talks for MVP. An award he’s won twice already. He’s also a Super Bowl champion and Super Bowl MVP. He’s been to the Pro Bowl six times and named to the first team All-Pro twice. He’s done all of this without having a consistent offensive line a good portion of his career. If he had the protection that Brady has, he might already have some records and maybe the Patriots are undefeated in the Super Bowl. Rodgers also sat behind longtime Packer QB Brett Farve for three years. Granted Matt Cassel went 11-5 and the Patriots still missed the playoffs but Rodgers is head and shoulders above Cassel and most of the QB’s talent wise.
- Drew Brees- New Orleans Saints
Brees started his career with the San Diego (now LA Chargers) and played for them for five years before going to the Saints where he’s been ever since. He has the same amount of career touchdowns as Brady and has more passing yards (70,445) than Brady. His interceptions are a bit higher at 228. Brees has thrown over 5,000 yards in a season five times with the most recent in 2016. He lead the Saints to a Super Bowl victory and was named the MVP in 2009. He’s a 11-time Pro Bowler and a two-time NFL Offensive Player of the year. He’s also a recipient of the NFL Comeback Player of the Year award (2004). He’s lead the league in passing seven times and four times in touchdowns. At 39 years old, he’s shown no signs of slowing down and the Saints are a tough out every year.
- Russel Wilson- Seattle Seahawks
Wilson has been in the league six years and already has been in two Super Bowls and we all know should be 2-0. He puts it all on the line week in and week out despite people predicting and telling him he’s too small to play and sustain a career in the NFL as a QB. In his second season he won a Super Bowl. He was the NFL Rookie of the Year in 2012. He’s already a four-time Pro-Bowler. Last year he was their entire offense as the Seahawks had no running game outside of Wilson. He threw for 34 touchdowns versus 11 interceptions for 3,983 yards and added 586 yards and three touchdowns running. He did have a problem holding onto the ball last year with 14 fumbles but again with the offensive line he had, he did amazing things. More will be expected this year out of Wilson as his once strong defense is pretty much gone.
- Ben Roethlisberger- Pittsburgh Steelers
Big Ben has been in the league since 2004 and is a two-time Super Bowl Champion and a six-time Pro Bowler. He was the NFL passing yards co-leader in 2014. He’s proven durable throughout his career despite being sacked 477 times including 50 in 2009. In the 200 games he’s played in, Roethlisberger started 198. He’s always had pieces around him with a good running game and good wide outs along with good defense so it’s no surprise to see him here. In his rookie season Big Ben set the NFL record with five comeback wins in the fourth quarter as well as six game-winning drives in the fourth quarter/overtime. He also holds the record for most wins in a season by a rookie QB with 13. He’s passed for more yards than anybody in the history of the Steelers and has also thrown for more touchdowns.
I left Carson Wentz off the list due to the small sample size of his playing career. He could very well be a top five QB soon. Another name that got left off the list is Phillip Rivers. He has great stats, but it hasn’t amounted to much in his career. Andrew Luck has the potential, but he has to prove he can come back first and foremost and then stay healthy. Matt Ryan is another QB who’s on the outside looking in and could be in this spot in a couple of years.
