Discover the gridiron legends and settle the debate on the best quarterbacks of all time in our latest article. Don’t miss your football heroes with Fubo.
Legends of the Gridiron: Ranking the Best Quarterbacks of All Time
There’s no position in football more important than quarterback. Aside from the occasional trick play, the QB touches the ball every offensive snap. Great quarterbacks can change the trajectory of a team in a way that no other players can, and while “wins” aren’t a QB stat, there’s no denying that quarterbacks play an outsized role in wins and losses.
So, who are the best quarterbacks ever? It’s a hotly debated topic. Read on to find out who we think are the 15 best players to ever play the position in the NFL.
The 15 Best Quarterbacks of All Time
Below are the 15 best quarterbacks in NFL history. Remember, lists like this are subjective, so if your favorite didn’t make the list, you can pretend he’s ranked 16th.
Watch the NFL with Fubo: Start your free trial now!
15. Patrick Mahomes
This one might be pretty divisive. Some might say that Mahomes simply hasn’t been in the NFL long enough to make a list like this, as he’s only in his sixth season as a starter. But those first six seasons have been masterful.
Mahomes has made the Pro Bowl in all of his seasons and is a two-time All-Pro, two-time MVP, and two-time Super Bowl MVP. He threw 50 touchdown passes in his first season as a starter and is the NFL’s career leader in passer rating. If Mahomes woke up tomorrow and retired, he’d be in Hall of Fame.
14. Roger Staubach
Hall of Fame quarterback Roger Staubach was a two-time Super Bowl champion as well as a Heisman Trophy winner in 1963. He played 11 NFL seasons, all with the Dallas Cowboys and is one of four players to win both the Heisman and the Super Bowl MVP award. Only one other quarterback, Jim Plunkett, has done that.
Staubach was one of the faces of the 1970s in the NFL, making six Pro Bowls in the decade and leading the league in passing touchdowns in 1973. He might have had a longer career had he not had a four-year military commitment following his time at Navy. Drafted by the Cowboys in 1964, he didn’t join the NFL until 1969.
13. Terry Bradshaw
These days, most people know Terry Bradshaw from his work as an analyst for FOX Sports, but before that he was one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks, playing 14 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He led the team to four Super Bowl titles from 1974-1979.
The 1978 NFL MVP, Bradshaw was a Pro Bowler three times and led the league in passing touchdowns twice. The No. 1 pick in the 1970 NFL Draft, Bradshaw threw for 212 touchdowns in his NFL career and ran for 32 more.
12. Bart Starr
One of the greatest players from the early days of the NFL, Bart Starr led the Packers to victories in Super Bowl I and Super Bowl II, winning MVP in both games. He won five NFL championships with the team.
Starr was a four-time Pro Bowl selection and led the NFL in completion percentage four times. Following his retirement, Starr became a coach for the Packers. He led the team as head coach for nine years.
11. Fran Tarkenton
Fran Tarkenton had a long NFL career, playing 18 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings and New York Giants, winning NFL MVP in 1975 during his second stint with the Vikings. That was the only time Tarkenton was named First-team All-Pro, but he made nine Pro Bowl appearances during his career.
One thing Tarkenton never did, though? Win a Super Bowl, as he led the Vikings to the precipice of the title three times, but could never get the team that final victory, losing to Miami, Pittsburgh and Oakland.
10. Brett Favre
When you think about NFL gunslingers, Brett Favre is likely the first name that comes to mind. The three-time MVP holds the record for most career interceptions with 336, but he also threw 508 touchdown passes over the course of his career, spent mostly with the Green Bay Packers.
Favre led the Packers to the Super Bowl XXXI title and made 11 Pro Bowl appearances. He led the league in passing touchdowns four times while leading in passing yards twice. And despite his gunslinger reputation, he was actually the 1998 leader in completion percentage.
9. Aaron Rodgers
Aaron Rodgers made a late-career burst up this list, as he won the NFL MVP award in 2020 and 2021, bringing him up to four titles during his career. He’s also made 10 Pro Bowl teams and has led the NFL in passing touchdowns twice.
The only big mark against Rodgers is that despite all his success, he’s only won one Super Bowl, leading the Packers to the Super Bowl XLV title. He was rewarded with the Super Bowl MVP award for his efforts.
8. Steve Young
The 49ers had the great luck of replacing Joe Montana, who appears later on this list, with another elite quarterback, Steve Young. Young led the team to three Super Bowl victories and was named Super Bowl MVP in Super Bowl XXIX.
Beyond the Super Bowl success, Young won two NFL MVP awards and made seven Pro Bowls. He was the NFL passing touchdown leader four times during his career, the passer rating leader six times and the completion percentage leader five times.
7. Dan Marino
Largely regarded as the best NFL quarterback to never win a championship, Marino quarterbacked the Dolphins for 17 seasons, winning the 1984 MVP award and 1994 Comeback Player of the Year award.
Marino was a three-time First-team All-Pro and nine-time Pro Bowl selection. He led the NFL in passing yards five times and in passing touchdowns three times. He holds the NFL record for lowest sack percentage, as Marino was able to get the ball out quickly to avoid sacks.
6. Johnny Unitas
One of the best players of the pre-merger era, Unitas led the Colts to three NFL Championships, plus one Super Bowl win. Defining how many titles he won is a little tricky, since his third NFL Championship win came before the merger, but also came after the Super Bowl was introduced.
Unitas played college football at Louisville and was a ninth round pick of the Steelers in 1955, but he was released before the start of the season. He signed with the Colts the next season and went on to lead the lead in passing yards four times and touchdowns four times as well. He finished his career with 290 touchdown passes and led 27 fourth-quarter comebacks.
5. Drew Brees
Drew Brees was one of the NFL’s most productive quarterbacks, throwing for 80,358 yards and 571 touchdowns during his career. After a mediocre start to his career with the Chargers, Brees blossomed once the team drafted his successor, Philip Rivers. In 2006, he signed with the New Orleans Saints, where he and Sean Payton became one of the greatest QB-coach combinations in league history.
Brees won the Super Bowl and Super Bowl MVP award in Super Bowl XLIV. While he never won a regular season MVP award, he was a two-time NFL Offensive Player of the Year and a 13-time Pro Bowl selection. Brees led the NFL in passing yards seven times and completion percentage six times.
4. John Elway
Denver Broncos legend John Elway won two Super Bowl titles with the team and was named Super Bowl MVP in Super Bowl XXXIII. He was the 1987 NFL MVP and a nine-time Pro Bowl selection.
Elway was also a major dual threat at quarterback, running for 3,407 yards and 33 touchdowns over the course of his career. Add that to his 300 touchdown passes and you get a stellar resume for Elway. If there’s a knock here, it’s that he did lose three Super Bowls, but just to make five appearances in the big game is a huge accomplishment.
3. Peyton Manning
For years, there was a debate about who was better between Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, and while Brady ultimately pulled away, that shouldn’t take away from how good Manning was. The No. 1 overall pick in the 1998 NFL Draft led two different teams to Super Bowl victories and won MVP five times during his career.
Manning set a number of records in his career, including most consecutive seasons with at least 25 touchdown passes with 15. He’s the only player to throw at least six touchdowns in a game three times, and has won more MVP awards than anyone else. Manning threw 539 touchdown passes during his career.
2. Joe Montana
Montana might not have had the most sustained success of other quarterbacks, as he only made eight Pro Bowls, but at his peak, he was one of the best passers the league had ever seen, including leading the 49ers to four Super Bowl titles.
He led the NFL in passing touchdowns twice and completion percentage five times. In 1990, Montana threw for a career-high 3,944 yards, but missed 1991 and most of 1992 with an elbow injury. He eventually wound up traded to the Chiefs, where he played two final seasons, taking the Chiefs to the playoffs both years, including an AFC Championship Game appearance.
1. Tom Brady
You knew this was coming, right?
Tom Brady might have only made six All-Pro teams during his career, but his overall resume gives him the best GOAT quarterback resume. He’s led his teams to seven Super Bowl victories, more than any other player, and he holds multiple NFL records: most career passing yards, most career passing touchdowns and most career wins for a quarterback, among others.
Brady was able to win titles with multiple teams and remained an elite player into his 40s, showcasing unheard-of longevity. He did all this despite being a sixth-round pick by the Patriots in the 2000 NFL Draft.
Don’t Miss Your Favorite Quarterbacks in Action With Fubo
Want to watch the NFL’s best teams in 2023 from the comfort of your own home? The best way to watch the 2023-24 NFL season is with a subscription to Fubo, which will allow you to watch regional Sunday coverage on CBS and FOX as well as nationally broadcast games on ABC, ESPN, NBC and NFL Network.
Watch the NFL with Fubo: Start your free trial now!
Fubo is the leading sports-first live TV streaming platform, offering 100+ live TV channels and regional sports networks. The service includes a DVR as well as on-demand content and focuses on sports programming. Fubo is the only live TV streaming platform with every Nielsen-rated sports channel. Leveraging Fubo’s proprietary data and technology platform optimized for live TV and sports viewership, subscribers can engage with the content they are watching through interactive product features like FanView, an in-video experience showcasing live game, team and player stats and scores in real-time. Fubo was also the first virtual MVPD to enable simultaneous viewing on up to four screens (Multiview on Apple TV) and the first to stream in 4K HDR.
FAQs
Here are the answers to some common questions about the best quarterbacks.
Who’s Considered the Greatest Quarterback of All Time?
Tom Brady is most often viewed as the best NFL quarterback of all time.
What Quarterback Has Won The Most Super Bowls?
Tom Brady has led his teams to seven Super Bowl victories, more than any other player. He led the Patriots and Buccaneers to titles.
Who Is The Most Accurate Passer in NFL History?
Active QB Joe Burrow’s 68% completion percentage in tops in NFL history, but that could change as he is still in the league. Among retired players, Drew Brees is first at 67.7%.
Watch the NFL with Fubo: Start your free trial now!
Regional restrictions may apply.
