kerouac9
Klowned by Keim
I'm saddened that Mao's QB Draft troll thread was taken over by a discussion of whether I consider Ben Rothlisberger one of the 3 or 5 best quarterbacks in the NFL. It's kind of a dumb conversation to begin with, because clearly a really good passer.
To continue the conversation and let people who are more interested in talking about QB prospects than current players have some space, I wanted to move the convo over here, and just give my ranking of the Top 32 starters in the NFL with a little bit of annotation. It's by no means meant to be a perfect list (none of them are), but it'll give you an idea what guys I prefer over others.
Clear Franchise Quarterbacks
1. Aaron Rodgers - There's no one I'd rather have under center for my favorite team. If you really want to bang your head against the wall, compare his contract to Kevin Kolb's.
2. Eli Manning - The proof is in the pudding. 2 Super Bowl titles in 5 years, and he hasn't really done it with elite offensive players around him. He's a goof ball, but he's a great quarterback.
3. Peyton Manning - Eli's brother is pretty good, too. He's averaging 8.0 YPA this season with a noodle arm and a top receiver who was in an option offense running nothing but vertical routes three years ago.
4. Ben Roethlisberger - I hate how he sexually assaults co-eds, but I love the way this guy plays football. Does a lot of backyard quarterback stuff that likely drives his coaches crazy, but really gets the most out of his surrounding cast. Might be the most irreplaceable player in the NFL right now.
5. Tom Brady - Giselle's husband is really good at wearing Uggs. I'm not sure that he's always getting the most of his supporting cast, and needs more help from the running game as he ages than someone like Peyton Manning does. He's still really, really good though.
6. Matt Ryan - I may or may not be overvaluing him because he's my fantasy quarterback, but he's really taken control of the Atlanta offense and it gritting out some tough wins. He's the case study on how NFL teams should handle a young quarterback. Can't rise much higher without proving it in the playoffs.
7. Joe Flacco - Love this former Blue Hen's game. He gets a lot of support from a defense and supporting cast, but finds a way to get wins and keep his team competitive. Tough and physical.
8. Drew Brees - Maybe more of a system quarterback than even I thought. Needs to find passing windows, but gets the most of his supporting cast and everyone in the organization believes in him.
9. Phillip Rivers - Screw you. Phillip Rivers is awesome. Shut up.
Guys I Have to Start Splitting Hairs On:
10. Alex Smith - No one is going to pay him money, but he's in a great situation in San Francisco with a good offensive line and supporting cast. Must be managed.
11. Jay Cutler - Speaking of guys who have to be managed, huh? Jay Cutler makes me want to cut myself every time he takes off his helmet or says anything. But he's also really good at playing football and has immense physical talents.
12. Matt Schaub - Has been incredibly statistically productive while not always converting that production into wins. Has always had a lot of support from the running game. Can't get over that the Texans continued to win once he went on IR.
13. Matt Stafford - Another guy with immense physical talent, but needs a lot of moving parts around him to be successful. Had a great statistical season the last two years, but has struggled to maintain consistency as the book's gotten out on him.
14. Tony Romo - Tony Romo's now won in the playoffs, and he'll go as far as his defense and running game will carry him. He's kind of the master of a three-ring circus, but between him, Jerry Jones, and Jason Garrett, it's difficult to take his offense seriously sometimes.
15. Josh Freeman - Just keep reading. Josh Freeman is good. Don't worry about it.
16. Michael Vick - I don't know what's going on with Vick right now. His offensive line is clearly still a mess, and his coaching staff doesn't have any answers. He probably needs to be managed as much or more than any quarterback in the NFL, and it seems like the Philly staff just lost him.
Pretty Sure You're Not Winning Your Division With These Guys:
17. Mark Sanchez - Bill Barnwell wrote a couple of weeks ago that Sanchez isn't good enough yet to be the best player on his team. Maybe Sanchez is an embryonic Eli Manning, but he had a better defense from his early time in the league and so his expectations were higher. I don't know; I just know that he's been to 2 AFC Championship games the last three years and is 3-3 right now. So he's better than the clowns below him.
18. Carson Palmer - Did you know that Carson Palmer is still playing football?
19. Matt Hasselback - I hope that Matt Hasselback hangs around the NFL long enough to be featured in a season of Hard Knocks.
20. Kevin Kolb - Yup. Kevin Kolb is back to being worse than Mark Sanchez.
21. Sam Bradford - But not worse than Sam Bradford. What is it that Sam Bradford does well? I understand that he's been through some major coaching turnover, but I'm struggling to identify one outstanding skill that Sam Bradford possesses.
22. John Skelton - John Skelton is running out of excuses. He makes the same stupid decisions over and over again. I love watching him play, and think that he could maybe fight his way to the top of this list. But I just don't think his ceiling is very high.
23. Ryan Fitzpatrick - Ryan Fitzpatrick does a really good job of racking up stats before the winds come to Buffalo. One of those stats was his 2011 contract extension.
24. Matt Cassel - Yeah. Matt Cassel is capable of being the 8th or 9th best player on a playoff offense.
Jury's Still Very Much Out: I just can't really put these guys on the above list, because I don't feel like I know enough about them. I'm ranking them separately. Deal with it.
1. Robert Griffin III - Looking good in the offense that the Shanaclan built for him. It'll be interesting to see what happens as the NFL gets more film on him.
2. Andrew Luck - I expect him to vault to the top of this list by the end of the season and comfortable ensconce himself among the Top 15 QBs by next year. He's not very good-looking, though, which I think could hold him back in the long run.
3. Christian Ponder - It's just hard not to cheer for this kid once you hear a little bit about him. Good game manager when protected and handing the ball off to Adrian Peterson. He's sort of the ceiling for Kevin Kolb.
4. Ryan Tannehill - Hard to leave him off this list at this point. Just getting the job done and making plays when there aren't a lot of good options at the skill positions after Bush.
5. Cam Newton - I'd like to see him work himself higher by the end of the year, but that's as much up to him as anyone. I fear that his coaching staff might have dropped the ball on moving him along after a Rookie of the Year campaign.
6. Colin Kaepernick - Don't sleep on Kaepernick. He's been involved in 25% of San Francisco's offensive snaps the last two weeks, and not just in junk time. Really interesting case of integrating a gimmick college QB.
7. Russell Wilson - Don't count me a believer.
8. Andy Dalton - The Red Rifle's nickname is bigger than his game. Can do some things with really nice weapons and backed up by a good defense, but is kind of a rich man's John Skelton.
9. Jake Locker - I'd like to see more of this kid, because I'm not sure I've really seen him play. I think he'll kill a couple of coaches before his career is done, though.
10. Brandon Weeden - The old man has some game, just not enough to be really good. He can manage a team, though.
11. Blaine Gabbert - If one team is going to take advantage of dumping a cheap first-round QB contract, it's going to be the Jags, right?
To continue the conversation and let people who are more interested in talking about QB prospects than current players have some space, I wanted to move the convo over here, and just give my ranking of the Top 32 starters in the NFL with a little bit of annotation. It's by no means meant to be a perfect list (none of them are), but it'll give you an idea what guys I prefer over others.
Clear Franchise Quarterbacks
1. Aaron Rodgers - There's no one I'd rather have under center for my favorite team. If you really want to bang your head against the wall, compare his contract to Kevin Kolb's.
2. Eli Manning - The proof is in the pudding. 2 Super Bowl titles in 5 years, and he hasn't really done it with elite offensive players around him. He's a goof ball, but he's a great quarterback.
3. Peyton Manning - Eli's brother is pretty good, too. He's averaging 8.0 YPA this season with a noodle arm and a top receiver who was in an option offense running nothing but vertical routes three years ago.
4. Ben Roethlisberger - I hate how he sexually assaults co-eds, but I love the way this guy plays football. Does a lot of backyard quarterback stuff that likely drives his coaches crazy, but really gets the most out of his surrounding cast. Might be the most irreplaceable player in the NFL right now.
5. Tom Brady - Giselle's husband is really good at wearing Uggs. I'm not sure that he's always getting the most of his supporting cast, and needs more help from the running game as he ages than someone like Peyton Manning does. He's still really, really good though.
6. Matt Ryan - I may or may not be overvaluing him because he's my fantasy quarterback, but he's really taken control of the Atlanta offense and it gritting out some tough wins. He's the case study on how NFL teams should handle a young quarterback. Can't rise much higher without proving it in the playoffs.
7. Joe Flacco - Love this former Blue Hen's game. He gets a lot of support from a defense and supporting cast, but finds a way to get wins and keep his team competitive. Tough and physical.
8. Drew Brees - Maybe more of a system quarterback than even I thought. Needs to find passing windows, but gets the most of his supporting cast and everyone in the organization believes in him.
9. Phillip Rivers - Screw you. Phillip Rivers is awesome. Shut up.
Guys I Have to Start Splitting Hairs On:
10. Alex Smith - No one is going to pay him money, but he's in a great situation in San Francisco with a good offensive line and supporting cast. Must be managed.
11. Jay Cutler - Speaking of guys who have to be managed, huh? Jay Cutler makes me want to cut myself every time he takes off his helmet or says anything. But he's also really good at playing football and has immense physical talents.
12. Matt Schaub - Has been incredibly statistically productive while not always converting that production into wins. Has always had a lot of support from the running game. Can't get over that the Texans continued to win once he went on IR.
13. Matt Stafford - Another guy with immense physical talent, but needs a lot of moving parts around him to be successful. Had a great statistical season the last two years, but has struggled to maintain consistency as the book's gotten out on him.
14. Tony Romo - Tony Romo's now won in the playoffs, and he'll go as far as his defense and running game will carry him. He's kind of the master of a three-ring circus, but between him, Jerry Jones, and Jason Garrett, it's difficult to take his offense seriously sometimes.
15. Josh Freeman - Just keep reading. Josh Freeman is good. Don't worry about it.
16. Michael Vick - I don't know what's going on with Vick right now. His offensive line is clearly still a mess, and his coaching staff doesn't have any answers. He probably needs to be managed as much or more than any quarterback in the NFL, and it seems like the Philly staff just lost him.
Pretty Sure You're Not Winning Your Division With These Guys:
17. Mark Sanchez - Bill Barnwell wrote a couple of weeks ago that Sanchez isn't good enough yet to be the best player on his team. Maybe Sanchez is an embryonic Eli Manning, but he had a better defense from his early time in the league and so his expectations were higher. I don't know; I just know that he's been to 2 AFC Championship games the last three years and is 3-3 right now. So he's better than the clowns below him.
18. Carson Palmer - Did you know that Carson Palmer is still playing football?
19. Matt Hasselback - I hope that Matt Hasselback hangs around the NFL long enough to be featured in a season of Hard Knocks.
20. Kevin Kolb - Yup. Kevin Kolb is back to being worse than Mark Sanchez.
21. Sam Bradford - But not worse than Sam Bradford. What is it that Sam Bradford does well? I understand that he's been through some major coaching turnover, but I'm struggling to identify one outstanding skill that Sam Bradford possesses.
22. John Skelton - John Skelton is running out of excuses. He makes the same stupid decisions over and over again. I love watching him play, and think that he could maybe fight his way to the top of this list. But I just don't think his ceiling is very high.
23. Ryan Fitzpatrick - Ryan Fitzpatrick does a really good job of racking up stats before the winds come to Buffalo. One of those stats was his 2011 contract extension.
24. Matt Cassel - Yeah. Matt Cassel is capable of being the 8th or 9th best player on a playoff offense.
Jury's Still Very Much Out: I just can't really put these guys on the above list, because I don't feel like I know enough about them. I'm ranking them separately. Deal with it.
1. Robert Griffin III - Looking good in the offense that the Shanaclan built for him. It'll be interesting to see what happens as the NFL gets more film on him.
2. Andrew Luck - I expect him to vault to the top of this list by the end of the season and comfortable ensconce himself among the Top 15 QBs by next year. He's not very good-looking, though, which I think could hold him back in the long run.
3. Christian Ponder - It's just hard not to cheer for this kid once you hear a little bit about him. Good game manager when protected and handing the ball off to Adrian Peterson. He's sort of the ceiling for Kevin Kolb.
4. Ryan Tannehill - Hard to leave him off this list at this point. Just getting the job done and making plays when there aren't a lot of good options at the skill positions after Bush.
5. Cam Newton - I'd like to see him work himself higher by the end of the year, but that's as much up to him as anyone. I fear that his coaching staff might have dropped the ball on moving him along after a Rookie of the Year campaign.
6. Colin Kaepernick - Don't sleep on Kaepernick. He's been involved in 25% of San Francisco's offensive snaps the last two weeks, and not just in junk time. Really interesting case of integrating a gimmick college QB.
7. Russell Wilson - Don't count me a believer.
8. Andy Dalton - The Red Rifle's nickname is bigger than his game. Can do some things with really nice weapons and backed up by a good defense, but is kind of a rich man's John Skelton.
9. Jake Locker - I'd like to see more of this kid, because I'm not sure I've really seen him play. I think he'll kill a couple of coaches before his career is done, though.
10. Brandon Weeden - The old man has some game, just not enough to be really good. He can manage a team, though.
11. Blaine Gabbert - If one team is going to take advantage of dumping a cheap first-round QB contract, it's going to be the Jags, right?
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