Over 80 Ranker voters have come together to rank this list of The Best Running Quarterbacks Of All Time
Voting Rules
Vote up the best running QBs who made an impact on the ground.
Who is the best running quarterback of all time? When it comes to the best quarterbacks in the league, most fans think about long, deep spiral passes shot out of rocket arms from the best quarterbacks of all time. However, as the league constantly evolves, quarterbacks who can run and pick up extra first downs with their legs add so much value to their teams. NFL Running QBs become more common each year. Who are the best running quarterbacks of all time? Which of the best rushing quarterbacks do you love?
When it comes to the NFL best rushing QBs of all time, former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Mike Vick has a resume up there with anyone. He leads all QBs with the most rush yards in NFL history. The best rushing quarterbacks of all time could also be Steve Young, Randall Cunningham, or Cam Newton, who all added so much to the rushing game with their legs. Then there's still Lamar Jackson to contend with, as one of the best rushing quarterbacks of 2022.
Vote up the best running quarterback in NFL history, and help decide which rushing quarterback was best!
One of the greatest rushing quarterbacks to ever play the game, Michael Vick helped re-invent the quarterback position throughout his illustrious career by proving that quarterbacks don't just need to throw the football, they can more than use their legs to help their team win! One of two quarterbacks to accumulate over 1,000 rushing yards in a single season, throughout his 15-year career Vick ran for 6,109 yards, averaging out to 42.7 yards per game with a career-high of 64.9 during the 2006 season. Vick redefined the game, and will always be remembered as one of the, if not the greatest quarterback runner of the football of all time.
Birthplace: Newport News, Virginia
Team: Atlanta Falcons, Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Steelers
In short order, Lamar Jackson showed the world exactly why he is a legendary rushing quarterback. Only the second quarterback to ever tally over 1000 yards in a single season, and the only quarterback to ever do it twice with a career-high of 1206 total rushing yards, Jackson is unlike any rushing QB the NFL has ever seen. If Jackson stays healthy on this trajectory, the former MVP will be not only one of the greatest rushers of all time, but one of the best players the league has ever seen.
Throughout his 15-year career, Randall Cunningham set the blueprint for what a running quarterback could become. Cunningham showed the world that QBs can run with the absolute best of them, even accumulating an astonishing 942 total rushing yards in the 1990 season! Cunningham had a massive drop off after the 1992 season due to injuries, but the 4x-Pro Bowler was averaging 49.3 rushing yards per game throughout the first 7 seasons of his career, and he would inevitably end up with 4928 rushing yards for his career, with an impressive 35 touchdowns to boot!
Birthplace: Santa Barbara, California
Team: Minnesota Vikings, Baltimore Ravens, Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys
The 3x Super Bowl champ, 2x NFL MVP, and winner of Offensive Player of the year Steve Young got off to a slow start in his career, but after the 1990 season, Young exploded to become one of the best to ever play the game. Throughout an 8-year frame of his career from 91 to 98, Young ran for an incredible 358.1 yards and 4.1 rushing touchdowns per season, and for his career, he would garner 4239 total rushing yards. Young is one of the best to ever play in the NFL, and even with an incredibly rocky first 6 seasons, he still managed to put up some of the best stats of all time.
The first half of Cam Newton's career was absolutely legendary. A young, cocky quarterback who could more than back up everything he said, Newton looked like he was going to take over the league, in no small part due to his incredible skill rushing the football. While he fell off in the latter half of his career, Newton still managed to accumulate 5628 yards in 11 seasons, for an average of 38 yards per game with a career-high of 47.1. The former MVP will always be remembered for the legendary first half of his career.
One of the greatest quarterbacks of the 60s and 70s, Fran Tarkenton was a phenomenal thrower of the football, but what a lot of people don't realize was that he was also one heck of a runner as well! Throughout his illustrious 18-year career, Tarkenton would rush for over 300 yards 7 times and even had a career-high 5 rushing touchdowns in his rookie season. Tarkenton may have only accumulated 3674 rushing yards in 18 years, and while that may not be too tremendous an accomplishment by today's standards, in the 60s and 70s, Tarkenton was in a class all his own.
