Best Quarterbacks of All-Time Tier List

Tom Brady is the greatest quarterback of all-time in the SOG Sports tier list, and he stands alone in Tier 1. No other quarterback matches his full combination of regular-season production, playoff performance, championships, longevity, and late-game command.

This is a subjective tier list of 36 quarterbacks, not a strict 1-through-36 ranking. The tier is the ranking. Players within the same tier are not ordered from best to worst, and their placement follows the supplied graphic.

The list leans most heavily on talent and production, but it does not ignore winning. Peak performance, longevity, efficiency, era, postseason play, awards, durability, supporting cast, coaching context, and how much each quarterback elevated his offense all matter. That balance puts Brady alone at the top, Patrick Mahomes in the inner circle, Drew Brees above several quarterbacks with more traditional legacy cases, and active stars Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson in a tier that still leaves room for them to climb.

How We Ranked the Best Quarterbacks of All-Time

This ranking evaluates quarterback play rather than treating championships as an individual statistic. Super Bowls matter because quarterbacks control more of a football game than any other position, but rings cannot explain everything. Dan Marino never won one. Drew Brees won one. Bart Starr won five NFL championships. Those facts matter, but they do not settle the comparison by themselves.

The most important factors are peak play, sustained production, efficiency relative to era, decision-making, accuracy, creation ability, durability, postseason performance, and the degree to which the quarterback drove the offense. Supporting cast and coaching also matter. Troy Aikman was not asked to carry the same weekly burden as Marino, while John Elway often had to create answers that were not built into the original play.

The list also rewards different ways of solving the position. Peyton Manning dominated before the snap. Mahomes creates after structure breaks. Aaron Rodgers paired aggressive throws with rare ball security. Lamar Jackson changes the numbers in the run game. For the same all-time format at other positions, see the SOG Sports lists of the best running backs ever, best wide receivers ever, best offensive linemen ever, and best defensive players in NFL history.

Eligibility and Scope

Quarterbacks from the NFL, AFL, and AAFC are eligible. Regular-season and postseason performance both count, and pre-Super Bowl championships are considered in historical context. Active quarterbacks are evaluated only on what they completed through the 2025 season. Future potential can explain why a player may climb later, but it does not replace production already earned.

There is no rigid minimum career length because that would unfairly flatten short, extraordinary peaks such as Kurt Warner’s and Steve Young’s. This is a curated 36-player field rather than an exhaustive ranking of every notable quarterback. The closest omissions are addressed after the seven tiers.

For franchise-by-franchise historical rankings, use the NFL team all-time player rankings hub.

Tier 1: The Standard

Tier 1 features Tom Brady as the greatest quarterback of all time.

Tier 1 is the one-of-one tier. It requires an unmatched total career rather than one spectacular trait or stretch. Brady separates from Tier 2 because nobody else combines his production, longevity, postseason volume, championship contribution, and late-game consistency at the same level.

Tom Brady

Tom Brady is alone in Tier 1 because no quarterback has matched his full body of work. He retired with 89,214 regular-season passing yards, 649 touchdown passes, seven Super Bowl championships, five Super Bowl MVP awards, and three AP MVP awards.

Brady was not always the most physically gifted thrower in the league. His advantage was how quickly he found the correct answer and how rarely pressure changed his process. Accuracy, pocket movement, situational awareness, and protection control allowed him to win through several versions of the New England offense and then immediately win again in Tampa Bay.

The 28-3 comeback against Atlanta is the signature example, but Brady’s case is not built on one game. It is built on two decades of elite decisions, unprecedented playoff production, and a career that remained championship-calibre into his forties. Other quarterbacks can challenge him in talent, peak efficiency, or regular-season awards. Nobody matches the entire résumé. Brady also leads the best Patriots quarterbacks of all-time by an enormous distance.

Tier 2: Inner-Circle All-Time Greats

Tier 2 includes Joe Montana, Peyton Manning, Patrick Mahomes, and Drew Brees.

Tier 2 contains quarterbacks with a credible argument for being the best ever in at least one major area. They fall short of Brady’s total package, but their combination of peak, production, efficiency, or postseason success is more complete than the cases in Tier 3.

Joe Montana

Joe Montana remains the cleanest pre-Brady big-game quarterback case. He threw for 40,551 yards and 273 touchdowns in a less forgiving passing era, went 4-0 in Super Bowls, won three Super Bowl MVP awards, and earned two AP MVPs.

Montana did not overpower defenses with arm strength. He beat them with timing, touch, anticipation, movement, and total command of Bill Walsh’s offense. His throw to Dwight Clark in the 1981 NFC Championship Game became the iconic snapshot, but his defining quality was how often the entire operation looked settled when the stakes rose.

Brady owns the stronger longevity and volume case. Montana still has one of the most polished postseason résumés the position has produced, which keeps him above Tier 3. His place beside Steve Young is explored further in the best 49ers quarterbacks of all-time.

Peyton Manning

Peyton Manning has a strong claim to the best regular-season quarterback résumé ever. He finished with 71,940 passing yards, 539 touchdown passes, five AP MVP awards, two Super Bowl championships, and one of the most sophisticated pre-snap command profiles the sport has seen.

Manning turned the line of scrimmage into his office. The audibles, protection changes, tempo, and coverage identification were not decoration. They were the offense. His 2013 Denver season produced 5,477 yards and 55 touchdown passes, both records at the time, while showing how completely he could control a game before the ball moved.

The postseason résumé was more uneven than Brady’s or Montana’s, which blocks Tier 1. His record five MVPs, extreme durability before his neck injury, and two decades of quarterback-driven offense make Tier 2 an easy call.

Patrick Mahomes

Patrick Mahomes is already in Tier 2 because his first eight seasons as Kansas City’s starter produced a historical résumé. Through 2025, he had 35,939 passing yards, 267 touchdown passes, two AP MVP awards, three Super Bowl championships, and three Super Bowl MVP awards.

Mahomes has the widest problem-solving menu of any quarterback on the list. He can win from structure, extend until coverage breaks, change his arm angle without losing velocity, or attack across his body when the defense thinks the play is over. The improvisation gets the highlights, but his ability to adjust after defenses took away Kansas City’s vertical game is just as important.

Time is the only reason Mahomes is not beside Brady in Tier 1. His peak and postseason production already clear Tier 3, but Brady still owns the decisive advantage in longevity and accumulated playoff work. Mahomes and Len Dawson also define the top of the best Chiefs quarterbacks of all-time discussion.

Drew Brees

Drew Brees belongs in Tier 2 because a talent-and-production ranking has to reward his unmatched passing volume. He retired with 80,358 yards and 571 touchdown passes, both second in NFL history, and became the only quarterback to record five 5,000-yard seasons. He was selected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2026.

Brees did not have the frame or raw arm strength of several quarterbacks below him. He compensated with anticipation, accuracy, footwork, pocket movement, and a fast understanding of where each route would open. New Orleans built its offense around precision, and Brees sustained that precision for well over a decade.

One Super Bowl and no AP MVP award make this placement more aggressive than a conventional résumé list. The answer is that this board weighs weekly quarterback play and total output more heavily. Brees’ sustained production gives him the Tier 2 edge over the more efficient Rodgers and the era-bending but shorter Marino résumé.

Tier 3: MVP-Level Legends

Tier 3 features Aaron Rodgers, Dan Marino, Brett Favre, John Elway, and Steve Young.

Tier 3 is filled with quarterbacks who reached an all-time peak but have one meaningful gap compared with Tier 2, whether it is longevity, postseason results, efficiency, or total volume. Their individual dominance is still clearer and more sustained than the mixed cases in Tier 4.

Aaron Rodgers

Aaron Rodgers has one of the strongest combinations of arm talent, accuracy, mobility, and ball security ever assembled. Through the 2025 season, he had 66,274 passing yards, 527 touchdown passes, and four AP MVP awards.

At his best, Rodgers made aggression look safe. He attacked deep without feeding the defense extra possessions, extended plays without losing control, and could hit small windows from a stable base or on the move. The Hail Marys were memorable, but the week-to-week touchdown-to-interception efficiency was the real separator.

Rodgers sits below Tier 2 because his postseason résumé and total passing volume do not quite match the group above. His peak is high enough to keep him above Tier 4, and his long comparison with Favre and Starr continues in the best Packers quarterbacks of all-time ranking.

Dan Marino

Dan Marino bent the timeline. His 1984 season produced 5,084 yards and 48 touchdowns at a time when no other quarterback had reached 40 touchdown passes. He eventually retired with 61,361 yards and 420 touchdowns.

The quick release, velocity, anticipation, and willingness to attack every level made Marino look like a modern passer dropped into the 1980s. He did not need movement or a long runway to create explosive throws. The ball was out before many defenses could reveal the pressure.

The absence of a Super Bowl championship matters, but it does not erase his individual influence. Marino’s era-adjusted peak is strong enough for Tier 3. The missing title and lower career volume than Brees keep him outside Tier 2 on this particular scoring system.

Brett Favre

Brett Favre retired with 71,838 passing yards and 508 touchdown passes, won three consecutive AP MVP awards from 1995 through 1997, and started 297 straight regular-season games.

Favre played with a level of physical confidence that produced both impossible completions and avoidable interceptions. His arm strength, toughness, and willingness to attack gave Green Bay an identity, but the volatility was not a side note. It was part of the evaluation.

The three-year MVP peak and career volume keep Favre safely above Tier 4. The turnovers and less efficient decision profile separate him from the cleaner Tier 2 passers.

John Elway

John Elway brought a huge arm, mobility, toughness, and late-game nerve to a Denver franchise that often needed him to create outside the original design. He reached five Super Bowls, won the final two, and retired with 51,475 passing yards and 300 touchdown passes.

The three early Super Bowl losses make his résumé look worse than the work required to reach them. Denver was frequently there because Elway kept flawed offenses alive. “The Drive” is the signature moment, but it also captures the broader case: survive long enough for Elway to manufacture the decisive play.

His era-adjusted efficiency is not as clean as the other passers in this tier. His physical tools, five conference titles, late-career championships, and offensive burden still make Tier 3 the right range.

Steve Young

Steve Young may have the best efficiency peak in this tier. He won two AP MVP awards, threw 232 touchdown passes, ran for 43 more, and paired elite accuracy with legitimate dual-threat value.

Young was not merely mobile for the 1990s. He could punish man coverage as a runner and then operate one of football’s most precise passing offenses. His six-touchdown performance in Super Bowl XXIX remains one of the cleanest championship games ever played by a quarterback.

Volume is the limitation. Young spent important seasons behind Montana, leaving him with a shorter run as a full-time NFL starter than most names around him. His peak clears Tier 4; the shorter starting résumé keeps him below Tier 2.

Tier 4: Historic Stars and Peak Monsters

Tier 4 includes Stafford, Bradshaw, Graham, Staubach, Unitas, and Starr.

Tier 4 combines modern volume, early-era dominance, and championship-level peaks. Each quarterback has a major all-time strength, but the full case is less balanced than Tier 3. This group remains above Tier 5 because its best trait, peak, or historical dominance carries greater weight.

Matthew Stafford

Matthew Stafford’s Tier 4 case became much stronger in 2025. He won his first AP MVP and first first-team All-Pro selection after leading the NFL with 4,707 passing yards and 46 touchdown passes. He finished the season with 64,516 career passing yards and 423 touchdown passes.

Stafford spent years in Detroit making high-difficulty throws from bad down-and-distance situations, then proved in Los Angeles that the arm talent could anchor a championship run. The Rams’ Super Bowl title removed the easiest criticism of his career without changing what had always been visible on film: he could reach areas of the field most quarterbacks could not.

Before 2025, placing Stafford this high required a heavy talent-and-volume argument. The MVP season added the missing individual peak. He remains below Tier 3 because his career efficiency and sustained top-of-the-league dominance are not as strong as that group, but he now owns far more than a projection-based case. His 2025 season also belongs beside the leaders on the most passing yards in a single season list.

Terry Bradshaw

Terry Bradshaw’s four Super Bowl championships and two Super Bowl MVP awards keep him in the upper half of this list. He also won the 1978 AP MVP and was one of the best vertical throwers of his generation.

The raw numbers require era and role context. Pittsburgh did not ask Bradshaw to throw 45 times every week, and the 1970s passing environment punished risk far more than the modern game. When the Steelers needed explosive throws against championship-level opponents, he repeatedly supplied them.

Bradshaw does not reach Tier 3 because the Steel Curtain, dominant run game, and uneven regular-season efficiency make it difficult to separate his value from an exceptional roster. Four titles and major championship-game production keep him above Tier 5.

Otto Graham

Otto Graham led Cleveland to 10 championship games in 10 professional seasons and won seven titles across the AAFC and NFL. No modern quarterback comparison can fully capture that level of sustained team dominance.

Graham was also an efficient passer and dangerous runner relative to his era. He did not simply stand behind a dynasty. He was the central decision-maker for an offense that remained at the top of two leagues.

The era distance prevents a clean translation into the top three tiers. Rules, roster construction, training, and passing volume were radically different. His dominance within that environment is too extreme to push any lower.

Roger Staubach

Roger Staubach combined winning, mobility, efficiency, and late-game control in a way that still looks modern. He won two Super Bowls, made six Pro Bowls, and led the NFL in passer rating four times.

Military service delayed his full-time NFL career, which limits his totals but strengthens the rate-based case. Once established as the starter, Staubach consistently produced at the top of the 1970s passing environment while adding creation value outside the pocket.

The shortened starting résumé keeps him below Tier 3. His peak efficiency and championship contribution give him a cleaner all-around case than most of Tier 5. Staubach and Aikman are compared directly in the best Cowboys quarterbacks of all-time ranking.

Johnny Unitas

Johnny Unitas won three AP MVP awards, threw for 40,239 yards and 290 touchdowns, and produced a 47-game touchdown-pass streak that stood for more than half a century.

Unitas helped establish the modern dropback quarterback as the center of an offense. He attacked downfield, controlled the huddle, absorbed contact, and gave Baltimore answers in late-game situations when passing was far more difficult than it is now.

A history-and-influence ranking could reasonably place him higher. This list’s heavier emphasis on total talent and production across eras puts him in Tier 4, but his peak and three MVPs separate him from the group below.

Bart Starr

Bart Starr quarterbacked Green Bay to five NFL championships, won the first two Super Bowl MVP awards, and led the NFL in passing three times.

Vince Lombardi’s offense did not demand modern passing volume. Starr’s value came from precision, timing, protection of the football, and flawless execution in the highest-leverage games. His 9-1 postseason record as a starter captures how rarely the operation broke down.

Lower volume and less individual creation keep Starr below Tier 3. His era-adjusted efficiency and championship performance give him the edge over the more role-dependent résumés in Tier 5.

Tier 5: Great Quarterbacks With Strong Cases

Tier 5 includes Aikman, Roethlisberger, Moon, Tarkenton, Warner, and Kelly.

Tier 5 contains quarterbacks with a championship résumé, major peak, or huge career production, but not the complete blend found above. Their cases are stronger than Tier 6 because each has a clearer defining advantage at the all-time level.

Troy Aikman

Troy Aikman led Dallas to three Super Bowl championships in four seasons, earned six Pro Bowl selections, and finished with 32,942 passing yards.

His modest volume reflects the assignment. The Cowboys had Emmitt Smith, Michael Irvin, an elite offensive line, and a structure that rarely required Aikman to chase numbers. His accuracy, toughness, and postseason execution were more valuable than his regular-season box scores suggest.

The supporting cast and lack of a major individual statistical peak keep Aikman below Tier 4. Three championship runs as the steady center of a dynasty separate him from the less accomplished careers in Tier 6.

Ben Roethlisberger

Ben Roethlisberger retired with 64,088 passing yards, 418 touchdown passes, and two Super Bowl championships. His combination of size, durability, arm talent, and play extension produced one of the largest statistical résumés on the board.

Roethlisberger was rarely a clean stylistic quarterback. Plays broke, defenders bounced off him, and Pittsburgh found an explosive gain that did not exist in the original design. That improvisational strength helped him survive behind uneven protection later in his career.

He falls short of Tier 4 because he never won an MVP and was not as consistently efficient as the best passers of his generation. The career volume, two titles, and long starting run make Tier 5 secure.

Warren Moon

Warren Moon threw for 49,325 NFL yards, made nine Pro Bowls, and became one of the defining vertical passers of the late 1980s and 1990s. His full professional story is larger because he also dominated in the Canadian Football League before receiving a fair NFL opportunity.

Even inside the NFL-only frame, Moon’s arm talent, poise, and ability to carry a high-volume passing game stand out. He pushed the ball outside the numbers and downfield at a time when offenses were not built to generate today’s easy completions.

The lack of a Super Bowl appearance and a shorter NFL runway keep him out of Tier 4. His total professional burden and NFL production still give him a stronger case than the careers in Tier 6.

Fran Tarkenton

Fran Tarkenton retired as the NFL’s career leader with 47,003 passing yards and 342 touchdown passes. He also scored 32 rushing touchdowns and reached three Super Bowls with Minnesota.

Modern fans would recognize his game immediately. Tarkenton escaped structure, extended plays, redirected receivers, and forced defenders to cover far longer than the design intended. He was doing it before improvisational quarterbacking became a standard offensive weapon.

The Super Bowl win never came, and his postseason efficiency was uneven. Career records, creativity, and longevity keep him in Tier 5, while the missing championship finish and lower peak efficiency block Tier 4.

Kurt Warner

Kurt Warner won two AP MVP awards, reached three Super Bowls with two franchises, and won one championship. His peak with the Greatest Show on Turf was one of the most explosive stretches of quarterback play ever.

Warner processed quickly and attacked tight windows without turning an aggressive offense into reckless football. His later revival in Arizona matters too. It proved the Rams peak was not simply the product of one roster or one short-lived scheme.

The career includes long stretches without stable starting work, so the total résumé is shorter and less consistent than Tier 4. Two MVPs and two separate Super Bowl runs keep his peak above Tier 6.

Jim Kelly

Jim Kelly threw for 35,467 yards and 237 touchdowns, made five Pro Bowls, and led Buffalo to four consecutive Super Bowl appearances.

The K-Gun offense used tempo as a weapon before hurry-up football became normal. Kelly’s command at the line, arm strength, and willingness to attack let Buffalo dictate personnel and pace for an entire conference.

The missing championship is the obvious weakness, but reducing four straight AFC titles to four losses misses the scale of the accomplishment. Kelly lacks the individual statistical peak of Tier 4, while his sustained postseason relevance keeps him above Tier 6.

Tier 6: Excellent Careers Outside the Upper Tiers

Tier 6 includes Eli Manning, Philip Rivers, Russell Wilson, Matt Ryan, Sammy Baugh, Dan Fouts, and Sid Luckman.

Tier 6 rewards excellent careers with one major missing piece, such as peak dominance, postseason success, volume, or sustained consistency. The group lacks the defining all-time advantage of Tier 5 but owns more completed work than the active and borderline cases in Tier 7.

Eli Manning

Eli Manning finished with 57,023 passing yards, 366 touchdown passes, two Super Bowl championships, and two Super Bowl MVP awards.

His two wins over Brady’s Patriots created a postseason résumé far stronger than his regular-season profile. The final drive in Super Bowl XLII and the throw to Mario Manningham in Super Bowl XLVI are defining quarterback moments, not lucky footnotes.

Tier 6 reflects both sides. Manning never produced an MVP-calibre regular season, led the league in interceptions three times, and finished with a career passer rating below the other modern volume passers around him. The two championship runs keep him on the list; the weekly efficiency keeps him out of Tier 5.

Philip Rivers

Philip Rivers retired with 63,440 passing yards and 421 touchdown passes, giving him one of the largest statistical résumés among quarterbacks without a Super Bowl appearance.

The throwing motion was unconventional, but the anticipation and aggression were real. Rivers remained productive across changing supporting casts and played through injuries that would have removed most quarterbacks from the lineup.

The lack of a conference championship and absence of an MVP season keep him below Tier 5. His volume and long run of high-level passing make him too accomplished for Tier 7.

Russell Wilson

Russell Wilson was one of the NFL’s most dangerous off-structure playmakers during his Seattle prime. Deep-ball touch, mobility, red-zone efficiency, and late-game creation helped produce one Super Bowl title and another conference championship.

Seattle’s run-heavy structure limited the raw passing volume, but Wilson was more than a passenger. He repeatedly converted broken protections into explosive plays and added meaningful rushing production without needing a designed quarterback-run offense.

The uneven second half of his career and lack of an MVP-level passing season keep him in Tier 6. His sustained Seattle peak and championship contribution still give him more completed work than the players in Tier 7.

Matt Ryan

Matt Ryan retired with 62,792 passing yards, 381 touchdown passes, and the 2016 AP MVP. That season remains one of the most efficient quarterback campaigns of the modern era.

The 28-3 Super Bowl collapse will always follow the résumé, but treating it as Ryan’s individual failure is lazy. He played well enough to win that game, and the 2016 Atlanta offense reached its level because he consistently found the correct matchup within Kyle Shanahan’s design.

Ryan did not sustain the MVP peak long enough to reach Tier 5, and the career lacks a championship finish. His volume and best season give him a clear Tier 6 case.

Sammy Baugh

Sammy Baugh won six NFL passing titles and helped Washington win two championships while also contributing as a punter and defensive back.

The two-way work adds historical value, but this ranking focuses primarily on quarterback play. Baugh still qualifies because he was a passing innovator, not because he accumulated value at unrelated positions.

The distance between his era and modern football makes direct comparison difficult. His dominance relative to his peers keeps him above Tier 7, while the limited passing volume and radically different role prevent a higher placement.

Dan Fouts

Dan Fouts threw for 43,040 yards and 254 touchdowns and led the NFL in passing yards in four consecutive seasons from 1979 through 1982.

Air Coryell stretched the field vertically and forced defenses to cover every level. Fouts had the arm, anticipation, and aggression to make that system work before high-volume passing became the league’s default setting.

The missing Super Bowl appearance and modest postseason résumé keep him out of Tier 5. His peak production and influence on vertical passing make him stronger than the borderline cases in Tier 7.

Sid Luckman

Sid Luckman won four NFL championships, earned NFL MVP honors in 1943, and threw 137 touchdown passes in an era with minimal passing volume.

Luckman helped Chicago weaponize the T-formation and showed how a quarterback could attack space created by backfield deception. His raw totals cannot be compared directly with modern passers because the position and the sport demanded something different.

His era dominance keeps him above Tier 7. The difficulty of translating that role across generations and the limited career passing volume hold him in Tier 6.

Tier 7: Iconic Names and Active Climbers

Tier 7 includes Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Joe Namath, Len Dawson, Donovan McNabb, Ken Stabler, and Steve McNair.

Tier 7 contains active players with unfinished careers and retired quarterbacks whose historical importance exceeds the completeness of their statistical case. These players still belong on an all-time board, but each needs more longevity, postseason weight, or sustained peak value to reach Tier 6.

Josh Allen

Josh Allen won the 2024 AP MVP and finished the 2025 season with 30,102 passing yards, 220 touchdown passes, 4,721 rushing yards, and an NFL quarterback record 79 rushing touchdowns.

The physical combination is nearly unmatched. Allen can attack any part of the field, escape pressure, and function as Buffalo’s short-yardage power runner. By the end of 2025, he had also become the fastest and youngest player to account for 300 career touchdowns.

Tier 7 is a completed-résumé judgment, not a talent judgment. Allen has not reached a Super Bowl, and eight seasons do not yet match the longevity above him. Another MVP-level stretch or a championship run could move him several tiers because the underlying ability is already there.

Lamar Jackson

Lamar Jackson owns two AP MVP awards and finished 2025 as the NFL’s career quarterback rushing leader with 6,522 yards. He also had 22,608 passing yards and 187 touchdown passes.

Jackson changes the geometry of the sport. Edge defenders cannot rush normally, linebackers hesitate before fitting the run, and safeties must account for angles that do not exist against traditional quarterbacks. His passing development matters just as much. The 2024 season proved he could pair 4,000-yard passing production with record-level rushing value.

Like Allen, Jackson is held in Tier 7 by completed work rather than peak talent. He has not reached a Super Bowl, and his career remains shorter than the names above. He is already the first choice on the best running quarterbacks in NFL history list, but a deeper postseason résumé is still needed to climb this broader ranking.

Joe Namath

Joe Namath became the first 4,000-yard passer in pro football history, won the 1968 AFL MVP, and delivered on his guarantee in Super Bowl III.

The upset of Baltimore helped validate the AFL and gave Namath a historical importance that cannot be captured by career passer rating. He also had the arm talent and willingness to attack downfield in a punishing passing era.

The statistical résumé is the limitation. Namath threw more interceptions than touchdowns and did not sustain top-tier efficiency. The peak moment and influence earn Tier 7, while the full career keeps him below Tier 6.

Len Dawson

Len Dawson won four AFL individual passing crowns, took Kansas City to two Super Bowls, and won Super Bowl IV MVP.

Dawson played with accuracy, restraint, and command in an era when vertical risk was built into the sport. He gave Hank Stram’s offense the steady decision-making it needed while still producing at the top of the AFL.

His raw volume and cross-era physical projection are less imposing than the quarterbacks above. AFL dominance and a championship peak make him an easy inclusion, but the total case settles in Tier 7.

Donovan McNabb

Donovan McNabb finished with 37,276 passing yards, 234 touchdown passes, and 29 rushing touchdowns. He led Philadelphia to five NFC Championship Games and one Super Bowl appearance.

McNabb was the engine of the Eagles through changing supporting casts. His mobility, arm strength, and ability to protect the ball made Philadelphia a contender almost every season of his prime.

He never produced an MVP-level passing peak, and the career volume falls short of Tier 6’s modern passers. Sustained team success and dual-threat value make him one of the strongest inclusions in Tier 7.

Ken Stabler

Ken Stabler won the 1974 AP MVP, led the Raiders to a Super Bowl championship, and became one of the defining downfield passers of the 1970s.

Stabler played aggressive football and was comfortable in the kind of late, messy games that forced a quarterback to create. His peak efficiency relative to the era was much better than his career interception total might suggest.

The peak was short, and his total production does not match the deeper résumés above. One MVP and a championship run earn the inclusion; limited longevity at that level keeps him in Tier 7.

Steve McNair

Steve McNair shared the 2003 AP MVP, reached Super Bowl XXXIV, and produced 211 combined passing and rushing touchdowns.

McNair’s value was physical and structural. He could survive contact, extend downs, and turn Tennessee’s conservative offense into something far more dangerous than the original play suggested.

The career totals are lighter than most quarterbacks above him, and the MVP-level peak did not last long enough to create a Tier 6 résumé. At his best, however, McNair was a genuine franchise-carrying quarterback.

Honorable Mentions and Toughest Cuts

Y.A. Tittle was the hardest early-era omission. His 1963 MVP season and late-career run with the New York Giants gave him a real case, but the championship finish never arrived and the field already includes several pre-merger quarterbacks with stronger peaks or title résumés.

Ken Anderson paired the 1981 AP MVP with excellent era-adjusted efficiency and a Super Bowl appearance. He narrowly missed because his peak was concentrated and the completed postseason case was lighter than the strongest names in Tier 7.

Sonny Jurgensen was one of the most gifted passers of his generation, but limited postseason opportunity and a thinner team-success résumé hurt him in a framework that still gives meaningful weight to January football.

Norm Van Brocklin and Bob Griese also had strong arguments for different reasons. Van Brocklin brought peak passing and championship value across two franchises, while Griese quarterbacked two Super Bowl winners. Neither had a complete enough blend of volume, individual peak, and sustained quarterback-driven production to displace the final tier.

Biggest Debates and Tier Boundaries

Why Drew Brees Reaches Tier 2

Brees gets the Tier 2 nod because this list leans harder into sustained quarterback play than traditional hardware. Rodgers owns more MVPs and a stronger efficiency case. Marino owns the more revolutionary peak. Brees counters with 80,358 yards, 571 touchdowns, five 5,000-yard seasons, exceptional accuracy, and more than a decade of an offense functioning through his precision. On this scoring system, that total production wins the boundary.

How the 2025 MVP Changed Matthew Stafford’s Case

Stafford no longer needs to be defended as a ring-and-arm-talent projection. His 2025 MVP, 4,707 yards, 46 touchdowns, and first first-team All-Pro selection supplied the individual season that his résumé had been missing. Tier 4 is still aggressive because the careers in Tier 3 were more consistently dominant, but Stafford’s placement is now supported by both peak and volume.

Why Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson Remain in Tier 7

Allen and Jackson already have more raw ability than several quarterbacks above them. The difference is career completion. Both have MVP awards and record-setting rushing value, but neither has reached a Super Bowl and both are still building their longevity cases. This is the boundary most likely to change in a future update.

How Early-Era Quarterbacks Were Treated

Graham, Unitas, Starr, Baugh, and Luckman were not judged by modern yardage totals. They were evaluated by dominance relative to their competition, control of their offenses, efficiency within the rules of the time, and championship contribution. Era adjustment keeps them relevant, but it does not automatically place every pioneer above more complete modern careers.

Full Best Quarterbacks of All-Time Tier List Recap

Table note: Quarterbacks are ranked by tier only. The name order inside each tier matches the supplied graphic and does not create an in-tier ranking. The Super Bowls column counts wins as the starting quarterback in the Super Bowl era. It does not count pre-Super Bowl NFL or AAFC championships or rings won as a backup.

FAQ: Best Quarterbacks of All-Time

Are quarterbacks ordered within each tier?

No. The tier determines the ranking, while the name order inside each tier only follows the graphic layout. For example, Joe Montana, Peyton Manning, Patrick Mahomes, and Drew Brees all share Tier 2 without a separate first-through-fourth order.

Do championships before the Super Bowl era count?

Yes. NFL and AAFC championships are part of the historical evaluation for quarterbacks such as Otto Graham, Bart Starr, Sammy Baugh, and Sid Luckman. They are not included in the recap table’s Super Bowls column because that column measures a different competition.

Which active quarterback is most likely to climb?

Patrick Mahomes has the clearest path to Tier 1 because he is already in Tier 2 with three Super Bowl championships and two AP MVPs. Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson could also make large jumps because both have MVP-level peaks and record-setting rushing value, but their postseason résumés remain less complete.

Why does the list include AFL and AAFC quarterbacks?

The best-quarterback debate spans all major leagues that became part of modern NFL history. Excluding AFL stars such as Len Dawson or discounting Otto Graham’s AAFC championships would remove important evidence rather than create a fair cross-era comparison.

Last reviewed: July 20, 2026.

Conclusion: Ranking the Greatest Quarterbacks Ever

Tom Brady remains the standard because his case does not depend on choosing between talent, production, longevity, and winning. He owns enough of each to stand alone. Montana, Manning, Mahomes, and Brees form Tier 2 because each has an inner-circle case, but none yet matches Brady’s complete career.

The hardest comparisons begin below that line, where peak must be balanced against longevity and modern production must be adjusted for era. Stafford’s 2025 MVP strengthened Tier 4, while Allen and Jackson remain the two most obvious candidates to force future changes. The tiers will move as active careers develop. Tier 1 will not move easily.

More Quarterback Rankings and Stat Leaders

Continue with these SOG Sports quarterback rankings and historical leaderboards:

• Best Quarterbacks in the NFL Today
• Best Running Quarterbacks in NFL History
• Most Passing Yards in a Single NFL Season
• Most Rushing Yards by a Quarterback in NFL History
• Most Rushing Touchdowns by a Quarterback in NFL History

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