Top 10 Quarterbacks of All Time Football Players (American)
home > Sports > Football Players (American)

Tags: sports, football players (american), people in sports, athletes, NFL, Quarterbacks, football

Top 10 Quarterbacks of All Time

mathayus mathayus 64,503 views 10 items
It's the most glamorous position in all of American sports, and possibly the most debated. Here are my choices for 10 best quarterbacks to ever grace the gridiron.
rerank this list your way Compare All 193 NEXT RERANK
< >
Show:   5   25 View:
More Options
  1. 6

    Steve Young

    It's chic to leave Young off these lists, essentially dismissing him as a system quarterback. I don't know how you do that and not dismiss Montana as well, and of course if you dismiss Montana, then we devolve into chaos. I go along with the Montana > Young wisdom, but I can't go much further. Bottom line is that the Niners didn't miss a beat when they went from Montana to Young, and it's rather crazy to knock Young's longevity in comparisons with anyone below Montana's level because it was clear to all years before Young finally was handed to the reins that he was a Pro Bowl caliber QB.
  2. 7

    John Elway

    Elway's a tough one. It's pretty common to see him listed as someone's "surprise" pick for GOAT. He was arguably the greatest prospect in history because he had all the tools, and he ended up living up to the hype reaching the ultimate at the end of his career.

    Still, I can't overlook that he tended to look pretty bad in Super Bowls, and that when he did break through it was with running support that blows away anything these other quarterbacks ever had the luxury to play with.
  3. 8

    Dan Marino

    I always feel a bit uncomfortable rating Marino so low. His numbers are stellar, and everyone agrees that there's never been a superior pure passer. But much of what makes a greater QB is his leadership, and I've heard enough negative tidbits about Marino in that realm that I can't disagree with the wisdom of the experts.
  4. 9

    Tom Brady

    Brady's status is really a work in flux. I was set to move him significantly higher after his amazing 2007 seasons, but then the Pats lost the Super Bowl, and he got hurt, and the team did pretty well without him. All is not lost though. He has come back in impressive fashion. In terms of quantity of accomplishment, it won't take much for him to take major leaps on this list.
  5. 10

    Sid Luckman

    Old-timers bookend my list. There's controversy whenever picking a pre-Super Bowl player, and my Graham choice ought to act as lightning rod there. More subtly, Luckman's contemporary Sammy Baugh normally rates above Luckman on most lists. But here's the thing, while Baugh was a good quarterback, such rankings typically factor in Baugh's other work, since he was a star on defense and special teams as well. Simply in terms of QB performance, Luckman's accolades hold up to Baugh's, he had more team success, and he played a style of QB more like what we know quarterbacks to be today.

items 6 - 10 of 10

rerank this list your way embed list
what's a rerank?

  • LOADING HISTORY

leave a comment

comments powered by Disqus
  1. Rochel Hnat
    Top 10 Quarterbacks of All Time at 10/07/2012 5:30 AM
    this page is a good info place for top ten quarterbacks of all time (yes, info place)
  2. Francene Thoen
    Top 10 Quarterbacks of All Time at 9/04/2012 8:30 AM
    this is an alright resource for top 10 qbs of all time
  3. Carey Dimaria
    Top 10 Quarterbacks of All Time at 8/06/2012 6:30 AM
    yeah, this is a good place if you're looking for top 10 quarterbacks of all time
  4. Bryon Metelus
    Top 10 Quarterbacks of All Time at 8/05/2012 3:30 PM
    ah, i guess i'll refer people to this best quarterbacks of all time page
  5. allen
    Top 10 Quarterbacks of All Time at 5/09/2012 7:48 PM
    Are you kidding me? Dan marino is at least 3 and brady mich better than manning or farve!
  6. Pallknowing1
    Top 10 Quarterbacks of All Time at 12/09/2011 10:45 PM
    Yes Elway was the best QB to ever step onto the field followed by Manning, Marino, Young, Moon. All of which had more talent knowledge, and execution than the "Winner" qb's such as Montana, Brady, Aikman, Unitas, Bradshaw, Namath, etc.
  7. hillen22
    Brett Favre at 6/19/2011 11:04 PM
    I completely agree......I wish he would have gone out like Elway and the whole text bull would not have happened because he would arguably be 2-3 all time. #4 for #4 is appropriate as I never watched Graham, however Montana was awesome same with Johnny U.
  8. KoloradoKaos
    John Elway at 3/31/2011 8:52 AM
    No QB did more with less than John Elway did. He carried three mediocre teams to the Superbowl, something that Peyton Manning, Bret Favre, Steve Young, Dan Marino and countless other couldn't do once. If he would have had TD, Sharpe, Smith, Eddie Mac and Shannahan for his entire career like Montana had Craig, Rice, JT and Walsh, there would be no comparison and no need for this tired discussion. John Elway succeeded and won games despite the ball and chain that was Dan Reeves and a poor supporting cast of team mates. Dan Reeves was so against John Elway that he had the nerve to draft Tommy Maddox in the first round instead of an OL, WR or RB even though the offensive line was so bad that John Elway is to this day the most sacked QB of all time. Unlike Jim Kelley, Bret Favre, and Dan Marion, none of Elway's skill position players from the Reeves era will ever be in the HoF. John Elway is Joe Montana, Steve Young, Dan Marino and Bret Favre all rolled into the greatest QB that ever was or ever will be. John Elway had it all and did it all.
    1. paymon
      Top 10 Quarterbacks of All Time at 2/07/2012 3:57 AM
      Joe Montana did not have Jerry Rice for his first two Superbowl wins. Rice had his rookie season in 1985, the year after Montana won his second Superbowl MVP with the 49ers against the Dolphins. His first was in 1982 against the Bengals. He would go on to win two more Superbowls and one more MVP, this time with Rice, against the 1989 & 90 against the Bengals (again) and Broncos.

today on Ranker