Quarterback is arguably the most prestigious, the most complicated, the most critical and the most critiqued position to play in the four major North American sports. The bad ones are lambasted and made into laughing stocks, while the great ones are deified and idolized.
Competition at the very top echelon of the NFL QB totem pole is so fierce, even the dude who led his team to the freaking Super Bowl last season can’t crack into the top five of this season’s list. It is also indicative of the greatness of these five field generals, who are set to unleash their incredible abilities again this upcoming season.
Don’t forget to visit our NFL page throughout the season to see how these elite QBs and their teams perform on a week-to-week basis.
[sc:Football ]The Top 5 Best NFL Quarterbacks in 2014-2015
5. Tom Brady
[sc:NFL240banner ]Admittedly, Tom Brady didn’t have the greatest season in 2013. The 37-year old quarterback posted his lowest completion percentage since 2003 and the fewest yards per attempt since 2006. But in his defense, no one would confuse receivers Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola with Randy Moss and Wes Welker.
And ever the pro, Brady made do with what he had. He still finished sixth in passing yards and led the Patriots to another stellar 13-3 record.
Brady also proved he’s still capable of leading these dramatic late-game drives. He had not one, not two but three such comebacks last season – against the Saints, Browns and most famously against the Broncos. Brady may not be what he was when he broke the single-season touchdown mark in 2007, but the Pats are a good bet to go over 10.5 wins this season, mainly because Brady’s still under center.
4. Drew Brees
A quarterback has reached 5,000 yards passing in a single season just eight times in the NFL’s illustrious history. Drew Brees owns half of those seasons all by himself, and three have come in the last three seasons.
At age 35, Brees is showing no signs of slowing down. Only Philip Rivers had a better completion percentage than Brees’ 68.6% last season, and his 5,162 passing yards and 39 touchdowns were bettered only by Manning, who broke the single-season record for most passing yards previously held by Brees.
Now that Jimmy Graham has his contract situation sorted out, Brees will have his favorite target ready to go for another potentially prolific season.
3. Andrew Luck
There’s nothing lucky about Andrew Luck’s incredibly successful football career. Everywhere he’s gone, he’s won. He was a winner in all three years at Stanford (31-8 overall), and he’s been a winner in the NFL. The Colts, who aren’t exactly the most complete team, have gone 11-5 in the two seasons with Luck under center.
Half of those wins have required Luck to lead a game-winning drive in the fourth quarter. He led four more game-winning drives last season, including one during their massive comeback against the Chiefs in the playoffs. Luck’s fumble recovery and touchdown dive during that game illustrates his innate ability to be great at football.
And the scary part in all this? Luck’s getting even better. He improved his completion percentage to 60% last year, and halved his interception rate. Now in year three, Luck is primed and ready to have a breakout year in 2014.
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2. Peyton Manning
Most normal, human quarterbacks would’ve been physically diminished (or even retired) by age 37. All 37-year old Peyton Manning did last season was have the greatest season ever by a quarterback. He broke multiple passing records (including most single-season passing yards and single-season touchdown passes) and won his fifth MVP while leading his team to the Super Bowl.
Granted, Manning didn’t look so hot during the big game itself, but there was very little he could’ve done to save the Broncos from that onslaught. Manning’s Broncos are +600 favorites to win it all this year.
Even if Manning experiences a massive drop-off of over 1,000 less yards and 20 less touchdowns compared to last season, he would still be right around his career averages of around 4,500 yards and 30 touchdowns. Three neck surgeries prove Manning’s mortal, but he’s still got years of elite football left in him.
1. Aaron Rodgers
As the Green Bay Packers found out last season, it’s a steep drop from Aaron Rodgers to Seneca Wallace/Scott Tolzein/Matt Flynn. With Rodgers starting the first seven weeks, the Packers were 5-2; when the star QB went down with injury, they dropped to 2-5-1 and barely scraped into the playoffs.
Rodgers has never had too many tools to work with in Green Bay. His receivers have always been good but never great. Until last season, he had a non-existent running game. His defense has been below average most of the time and his offensive line has allowed him to get sacked 50 times twice in his career.
And yet the Packers have consistently churned out double-digit win seasons (four in a row until his injury-shortened 2013). So what’s the common denominator? That would be Rodgers, who’s a lock to complete around 65% of his passes, with over 4,000 yards and 30 touchdowns every year to lift what would be a pretty ordinary team without him.
At age 30 this season, the 2011 MVP is still in the prime of his career and still fully capable of carrying the Packers on his shoulders.
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