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It’s one of the oldest barstool debates known to sports fans: who’s the greatest quarterback of all time? With all the different players and styles of play throughout NFL history, how exactly are you supposed to measure that? Do you give it to the guy with the best stats? The guy with the most wins? Or the guy with the most Super Bowl rings? Is it Elway? Is it Montana? Is it Brady? With so many all-time greats to choose from, making this list wasn’t easy. Without further delay, here’s our ranking of the 10 greatest quarterbacks in NFL history. Click the Next button below to get started!
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Rick Billotti says
I love the list, but the placement is out of whack a bit, and no “Automatic” Otto Graham?? The man played between 1946 and 1955 he led Cleveland to the championship game every season and won 7 championships in all and had an astounding .814 winning percentage.
Steve says
Brett Farve only Won 1 Super bowl with Green Bay – who wrote this article without fact checking 1st?
tbenton62 says
If you are putting down by rank, you would have Brady as number one, Montana as number two, no way would anyone who has a clue of how the players play put Manning over Joe.
Sean Torres Sr. says
No Bradshaw??? He called his own game, no technology & the game still allowed real hits to the QB. I’m a NY Giants fan so don’t think I’m tooting for the Steelers….
willowglen says
Bart Starr?
Lester Stkl says
why is Joe Kapp not in this list? and how can terry bradshaw and Tommy Kramer be off?
Rick Billotti says
I’m a die hard Vikings fan but surely you jest with Tommy Kramer, and Joe Kapp being on this distinguished list. Your a funny guy.
allan emery says
You got his right. One thing to keep in mind is that most of the QB’s winning Superbowls had all-star running backs. Brady never had one. He never had a Dickerson, Davis or a Craig. He is the only QB that can play ball control without a running game. That is what makes him the best. No other QB won Superbowls without a running game. Only Brady, and he has the most. Case closed.
Joe says
Brett Favre #4??? No way
Rick Billotti says
I know I caught that as well he went to two super bowls and was 1-1.
Roy Hobbs says
American Football is indeed the ultimate team game.
Quarterback A: 3-10 in the postseason when his team is out-rushed. Undefeated in the postseason when his team out-rushes the opponent.
Quarterback B: 2-7 in the postseason when his team is out-rushed. Undefeated in the postseason when his team out-rushes the opponent.
Yet they are remembered very differently.
Pancho Verdadero says
I have always felt like crediting QBs with “winning championships” was a terribly misguided metric. A baseball pitcher could throw a no-hitter and hit a solo home run to single-handedly win a baseball game, but American football is the most thoroughly team sport I can think of.
Pancho Verdadero says
I agree with several folks here that Favre is highly overrated, both in general, and most specially on this list. Who holds the NFL record for most interceptions thrown? How far back is the guy in 2nd place?
Rick Billotti says
Agreed he had as many interceptions as td passes, and lost as many big games as he won.
Pancho Verdadero says
No mention of Otto Graham shows the ignorance of the author(s). He’s not the greatest, but he deserves a place on this list.
Rick Billotti says
Agreed see my comment above.
SJ Bobkins says
No Steve Young? Worthless list, Young has never been listed lower that #8 on the Best QBs in NFL history lists, by SI, the league and others. Joe Montana had a better career than Peyton, more consistency. You have to consider Manning’s poor final 3 years as well as how his career ended at Indy. You can’t just pull out the best years lopping off his rookie and final three years.
Marino had the quickest release I have ever seen but no Super Bowl wins, nor passing championships.
Young took over for an injured Montana even elevating the position due to his running. I would rate Montana #1. No other running QB ever came close to Young’s QB Ratings and accuracy numbers, no way Tarkington can be placed higher than Young.
Steven Nottingham says
Maning best all time, Marino is who Manning and Brady look up to. Elway should be below Unitas and Tarkenton.
Pancho Verdadero says
Sorry, I love Peyton but he choked in two of his four Super Bowl appearances. He was pathetically, disgracefully ineffective in SB 48, and threw the interception that effectively ended SB 44.
allan emery says
You are kidding, right? The last ring Manning got was won by the defense. He had little to do with it. Just like Bradshaw would score 12 points and his defense would win the game. Manning had 7 ‘one and done’ years, losing the first playoff game 7 times. The object of the game is to win. Nobody has done that better than Brady. As shown by this last SB, he doesn’t rely on the defense to win it for him.
Rick Billotti says
No QB in the history of the game did so much with so little physical abilities than Sir Francis Tarkenton, the guy was famous for scrambling around for 50 yards than completing a clutch first down pass, I remember Deacon Jones of the Rams saying he hated playing against him because he was exhausted from chasing him all game and never catching him.
Travis Heinicke says
Brett Favre is the most overrated QB all time. He had the most athletic, talented football teams you could hope for and barely brought back ONE SB championship (not 2). The media absolutely loved the guy, and he played forever. Sports casters basically forced him into the spotlight, and made us think he was one of the greats.
You know who he won his ONE ring against? Drew Bledsoe and a rebuilt Patriots (pre-dynasty)
You know who won the MVP for the Superbowl that year?
Desmond Howard.
Seriously. The guy was mediocre at best.
And a lot of your information is incorrect.
JimmyBgood says
The “Gunslinger” himself, Brett Favre brought two Super Bowl titles back to the NFL’s “title town” in Green Bay. Uh, Brett Favre has 1 Super Bowl ring, not 2.
dogg1 says
“Only Joe Montana has as many Super Bowl rings as Tom Brady (four)”
Umm, somebody forgot about a guy named Bradshaw?
Rick Billotti says
Brady has five, and you are correct about Bradshaw he should be on this list and Brett Favre not.
Jasoturner says
Favre at 4 is WAY too high. With his abilities and teams, he should have won multiple SBs, but his penchant for stupid plays (and general lack of smarts) kept him from the mountaintop. And no Starr?
In the modern era, Montana and Brady stand alone. I appreciate that the Mannings and Roethlisburgers and Breeses and Rodgers are good, but Montana and Brady made winning into an art.
Roy Hobbs says
I think it’s fair to argue for Montana and Brady in their respective Eras—-I just would never consider the leagues/ Eras they played in to be the same. The NFL today is very dissimilar to Montana’s day. Joe Montana used to get buried. You can’t do that to a QB today. I remember Peyton Manning coming back late in his career after neck surgery. He would never have been able to do that 35 years ago. Too dangerous. I would no longer call Montana’s day the Modern Era. Totally different game now.
SJ Bobkins says
You can’t boost Farve without considering his record INTs, many carelessly tossed at key points in the game, he was a tough competitor, not 1 of the 10 best. As well you can’t give Peyton credit for the last Super Bowl win, the Broncos won in spite of Manning aided by a dismal performance on the part of Cam Newton. His previous 2 SB opportunities, losses vs Seattle and then with Indy vs New Orleans were no better than fair outings. I would bump him down to #5. Montana #1, Brady #2. Remember the guys in the 90’s played in a smaller less diluted league with much better QB play than the average starter today. You can also argue that the league’s coaches were better overall in the 80’s through the 90’s. As far as Terry Bradshaw, I have no idea where to place the guy, he played on some incredible teams that were loaded. Guys like Jim Kelly, Bradshaw, Bart Starr, Starbach and Tarkington might be in your #11-#15 with Otto Graham, Unitas, Joe Namath, Len Dawson, in the #16-#20 spots.
Roy Hobbs says
Wow. John Unitas 16th to 20th All-Time? I just look at his passing statistics when he retired relative to the league to that point and it’s clear to me he was on a different level relative to his contemporaries.
Pancho Verdadero says
It’s hard to compare across eras, but you are so right about that. Johny U also CALLED THE PLAYS for his offense, which is something no modern QB does.
Roy Hobbs says
Yep. No head sets. No wrist bands with plays on them. No faxes on the sidelines of pictures of the opponents’ defensive formations. The QB called the plays. Unitas was the Gold Standard then. Still is. To me, there’s no point in taking a guy like Brady and trying to prove he’s better than Unitas. I have no idea if Brady could stand up to the physicality of the game. The only time Brady got hurt on the field—-they immediately outlawed that type of hit. Everybody else played with that danger for 70 years. Brady gets hurt? Voila! The Brady Rule is written. Tom is as rattled as any great QB—-perhaps more so than many—-when he’s getting roughed up. I don’t know how effective he is under the conditions they played in 30 years ago, let alone 50 or more. We also don’t know how great Unitas would be in this Era. It’s just different. Brady is perhaps as good as you could be under these conditions. His strengths, though, perhaps don’t translate as well in other Eras.
Roy Hobbs says
Pretty much impossible to compare QBs of this Era to those in the past. I am trying to imagine what Tom Brady’s career would look like if you could rough him up and beat up his little receivers he lives off of
Jasoturner says
True. On the other hand, if you look at how FEW guys are able to play QB competently in the modern era (what are there, maybe six guys you can count on right now?), it’s clear that Brady is something special. Those old timers might not do so well themselves in the modern game, with free agency. Marino is an interesting case – he’s not very bright. Rather than light it up, I think modern defenses would confuse and harass him. Kind of like a Drew Bledsoe. But of course, we’ll never know.
Roy Hobbs says
I don’t know how many times Marino made the Dean’s List at Pitt…. Lol. But he was football smart. The 1985 Bears Defense was better than anything out there today. He did okay against the Bears. As for the limited number of QBs “you can count on”—–I’m not so sure that hasn’t been the case in every Era. It’s relative, I think. I look at the passing numbers that many of today’s QBs (who fall outside of that Top 6 that you might say you “can count on”) have—-and a lot of them are posting numbers that might make you All Pro 30 years ago. Throwing the ball today is so EASY relative to 30 years ago—-there’s just no comparison. Take Joe Montana’s career, season by season and plug it into the past 16 years and tell me how many Pro Bowls he makes. A couple? The numbers are ridiculous today—–and it’s a direct result of the rule changes the last 12+ years. Little receivers rarely went over the middle/ between the hashes back then, because it was too dangerous. Today, receivers live there. That’s another 3rd of the field to throw to every play. Back then, you’d send some stiff clod into the danger zone a couple times a game to sit down, catch a ball, get drilled and get no YAC. Now all your little quick gnats can run routes all day long through there. There’s no fear, relatively speaking. To be clear—there’s no taking away from Tom Brady. He has been as good as anyone in his time in this league under the current rules. I just wouldn’t then up the ante and say he’s better than anyone all-time. He played essentially his whole career under increasingly slanted (in the QBs’ favor) rules.
Nothing Brady can do about it. All he can do is play within the rules that exist. I think it’s best to leave guys in their own Eras. I agree that I don’t know if Otto Graham would be great in today’s NFL. I do think Dan Marino would tear this league to pieces. That’s not to say he’s the best all time. I just think he’d eat this league alive.
Taz says
Your list is b#%^[email protected] Terry Bradshaw won four Super Bowls, was Super Bowl MVP twice and NFL MVP once. Otto Graham won three championships and was first team All Pro seven times. Bart Starr won five NFL championships, including the first two Super Bowls, and was an MVP. There are others that had better careers than many on your list. Next time do a lot more research.
Jasoturner says
Bradshaw was on a loaded team in the pre-free-agency era. Put him on a modern team today and it’s doubtful he’d get a sniff at a championship. He wouldn’t be able to handle the complex reads that are required. Having said that, those old Steeler teams were awesome.
Roy Hobbs says
Bradshaw gets credit for doing little by way of passing the football in 1974 & 1975. Most people understand this and identify the running game and defense as the backbone of those title teams. When the Steelers won in 1978 & 1979, Bradshaw threw the ball more. Bradshaw was more productive in those championship seasons and gets a lot more credit. However, it’s not like Terry played cleanly and efficiently. He attacked more with his arm, yes—–but with that came a lot more mistakes on offense, partly by way of his INTs. Frankly, I think the Steeler defense gets too little credit in 1978 & 1979. They went from winning titles with little productivity from Bradshaw in 1974 & 1975 to winning titles in 1978 & 1979 despite his mistakes/ turnovers. Bradshaw was once a SB MVP despite throwing 3 INTs, illustrating this point.
Pancho Verdadero says
I also once heard Bradshaw in an interview say that Staubach was a way better QB than him.
Roy Hobbs says
Staubach is severely underrated by younger fans. He was probably the top QB of the 80s and had he not (a) started late because of his Naval obligation or (b) retired earlier than he needed to, his stats would be really impressive for his Era. Look at his numbers the final season of his career. Few have gone out better.
Tom says
‘Roger the dodger’ was one of the best QB’s ever. I’m a Giants fan and got to see him twice a year, (TV… sometimes in person)
He was totally the real deal.
AktionT4 says
I miss those Landry coached teams — classic football at its best.
Rick Billotti says
You short changed Otto there a bit, he won 7 championships in 10 years with an overall career winning percentage of .814 simply awesome stats.