I ranked QBs entering the 2020 season

[ChiefBlueCFC]

My boss went home at 1:30 but we apparently gotta stay here and browse the interwebz until 4:30 so I have been creating a ranking of NFL QBs and I'm sure I'll be called an idiot and that my rankings are ****ing stupid but whatever

I didn't bother with rookies and/or guys that the jury is still out on (: Burrow, Murray, Haskins, Darnold, Jones, Tua, Minshew, Lock, Stidham)

1. Mahomes













2. Wilson




3. Jackson 4. Brees 5. Rodgers 6. Watson 7. Brady


8. Wentz 9. Prescott 10. Ryan 11. Roethlisberger

12. Cousins 13. Stafford 14. Rivers 15. Garoppolo 16. Goff 17. Tannehill 18. Carr 19. Mayfield 20. Allen 21. Bridgewater



22. Trubisky 23. Taylor


I feel like Bridgewater could be anywhere from 12 - 21 but given the injury and the lack of playing time I threw him ahead of Trubisky/Taylor and Stidham.

What say you all? Hope you all have a good weekend

[ThaVirus]

Originally Posted by Chiefspants

This forum severely overrates Watson. The dude has no business being above Ryan, pre-shoulder injury Rapeburger, or even Dak.

If we’re talking Top 10 QB’s, there’s just of good of an argument to place him in the 10 spot as there is putting him at 11.

Outside of that, solid list.

I disagree. You've said yourself, Watson is basically Alex Smith who isn't afraid to sling it down field. Alex himself, with that limiting factor, was probably anywhere from a top 8-16 QB in his time here. Take away his inhibitions and add even more dangerous running ability and you get a really, really good QB in Watson.

[RealSNR]

I like this ranking better.

[jaa1025]

My top 10+1

1)Mahomes


2)Wilson (Very underrated in a boring system)


3)Rodgers (May be too high at this point. Leadership concerns and injury concerns obviously)
4)Ryan (Really underrated IMO)
5)Brees (Arm is protected by play designs)
6)Roethlisberger (injury concerns. He may be too high)
7)Watson (Too many killer bad plays to be higher IMO)
8)Stafford (Better version of Cousins. I would have loved to see him with a good offensive coaching staff during his career)
9)Dak (Maybe too low but I don't think he's elite)
10)Wentz (Would be higher if wasn't made of glass)

11)Jackson (lack of ability to throw to his WR's is holding him down which leads to my primary concern with him all along: Accuracy)

Notables left off list:
Brady-Arm is shot and he's in a horrible system for a weak arm. Has amazing talent around him though. Arians needs to protect him like Sean Payton protects Brees.

Rivers-Never an elite QB IMO. Got a ton of stats in garbage time. Older, new system with worse weapons. Has a better line though so we'll see.

[Chiefspants]

Originally Posted by ThaVirus

I disagree. You've said yourself, Watson is basically Alex Smith who isn't afraid to sling it down field. Alex himself, with that limiting factor, was probably anywhere from a top 8-16 QB in his time here. Take away his inhibitions and add even more dangerous running ability and you get a really, really good QB in Watson.

If you said 10-16 I’d agree with you.

I just think there’s a wide gap between Top 5 and a Top 10 QB. I think one can make an argument Watson is on the outside part of the Top 10, but I think there’s a sizable space between him and Top 5 QB’s.

[MAHOMO 4 LIFE!]

Matt Moore is #2 best QB in the league

[Why Not?]

I would take most of the guys you didn’t list over Trubisky and Tyrod Taylor. Also, why is everyone so high on Carson Wentz? He’s pretty good when he’s healthy which is.....not often or certainly not often in the biggest games for his team. I like the old saying “the best ability is availability”. Give me most on that list over Wentz except for the true garbage quarterbacks.

[ThaVirus]

Originally Posted by Chiefspants

If you said 10-16 I’d agree with you.

I just think there’s a wide gap between Top 5 and a Top 10 QB. I think one can make an argument Watson is on the outside part of the Top 10, but I think there’s a sizable space between him and Top 5 QB’s.

Bro, come on now. There are not 15 QBs in the NFL who are better than Deshaun Watson.

[BWillie]

Brady at 7 is hilarious. He might put up top 15 numbers wirh all the weapons he has but he's a shell of himself. They would have been better off to get Cam Newton. But if Brady and Gronk are a package deal I guess. Bucs are a QB away from being one 2nd or 3rd best team in NFC. And Brady aint it.

[Chiefspants]

Originally Posted by ThaVirus

Bro, come on now. There are not 15 QBs in the NFL who are better than Deshaun Watson.

You're gonna make me make my list, aren't you? I have no disrespect for Watson, honestly. Had the Chiefs picked him you better believe he'd be my main man for life and my dream QB - because the Chiefs would have finally drafted a QB in the first. But still. He's not Top 5. You're completely right, btw, there aren't 15 QB's better than Watson. I didn't put a lot of thought into that 10-16 number (I misread your post and didn't realize you were referring to Alex). But the difference between Watson and a Top 5 is the exact same difference between him and the middle of the pack. Let's look at Watson's 2019 numbers.

Passing Yards: 3,852 (13th)
YPA: 7.8 (12th)
AYPA: 7.7 (11th)
YPG: 256.8 (11th)
Rating: 98.0 (11th)
TD% 5.3 (9th)
INT% 2.4 (20th)
Touchdowns: 26 (10th)

Watson is Top 5 in completion percentage (coming in at 5th) but he was also ranked #1 in sacks for the second straight year, coming in with 55 this year. He took 62 in 2018. This is where I feel the Smith comparison shines the brightest. The Texans invested heavily to improve their OL after 2018 and it didn't end up mattering all that much. Houston's (@ BattleRedBlog) own fans analyzed his sacks from 2018 and found that around 35% of them were due to Watson holding onto the ball too long. I believe Watson, like Smith, makes his line look far worse than it actually is and I feel that is a major concern to his game. Honestly, the criticism this forum is so quick to tag onto Lamar Jackson as an argument for why Lamar isn't elite should be tagged to Watson. I also am curious to see how Watson adapts to losing Hopkins this year.

If I had to rank my Top 10, I'd go..

1. Mahomes
2. Wilson

(There is a big gap here)

3. Rodgers
4. Lamar (hard to place him at the moment)
5. Brees
6. Ryan
7. Dak
8. Stafford
9. Rapesburger
10. Watson
11. Wentz (Wentz would be #10 for me if it weren't for his durability concerns).

[Why Not?]

Originally Posted by Chiefspants

You're gonna make me make my list, aren't you? I have no disrespect for Watson, honestly. Had the Chiefs picked him you better believe he'd be my main man for life and my dream QB - because the Chiefs would have finally drafted a QB in the first. But still. He's not Top 5. You're completely right, btw, there aren't 15 QB's better than Watson. I didn't put a lot of thought into that 10-16 number (I misread your post and didn't realize you were referring to Alex). But the difference between Watson and a Top 5 is the exact same difference between him and the middle of the pack. Let's look at Watson's 2019 numbers.

Passing Yards: 3,852 (13th)
YPA: 7.8 (12th)
AYPA: 7.7 (11th)
YPG: 256.8 (11th)
Rating: 98.0 (11th)
TD% 5.3 (9th)
INT% 2.4 (20th)
Touchdowns: 26 (10th)

Watson is Top 5 in completion percentage (coming in at 5th) but he was also ranked #1 in sacks for the second straight year, coming in with 55 this year. He took 62 in 2018. This is where I feel the Smith comparison shines the brightest. The Texans invested heavily to improve their OL after 2018 and it didn't end up mattering all that much. Houston's (@ BattleRedBlog) own fans analyzed his sacks from 2018 and found that around 35% of them were due to Watson holding onto the ball too long. I believe Watson, like Smith, makes his line look far worse than it actually is and I feel that is a major concern to his game. Honestly, the criticism this forum is so quick to tag onto Lamar Jackson as an argument for why Lamar isn't elite should be tagged to Watson. I also am curious to see how Watson adapts to losing Hopkins this year.

If I had to rank my Top 10, I'd go..

1. Mahomes
2. Wilson

(There is a big gap here)

3. Rodgers
4. Lamar (hard to place him at the moment)
5. Brees
6. Ryan
7. Dak
8. Stafford
9. Rapesburger
10. Watson
11. Wentz (Wentz would be #10 for me if it weren't for his durability concerns).

Wow. You really have fat, one foot out the door Ben over Watson?

[Chiefspants]

Originally Posted by Why Not?

Wow. You really have fat, one foot out the door Ben over Watson?

People really tend to forget just how good fat, one foot out the door Ben was in 2018. I put him just one spot over Watson simply from looking at Big Ben's last three seasons as a starter. Here are his 2018 stats.

Passing Yards: 5,129 (1st - over Mahomes)
YPA: 7.6 (13th)
AYPA: 7.5 (14th)
YPG: 320.6 (1st)
Rating: 96.5 (15th)
QBR: 71.0 (3rd)
TD% 5.0 (17th)
Touchdowns: 34 (5th)
Sacks 24 (24th)

Compared to Watson's 2018..

Passing Yards: 4,165 (15th)
YPA: 8.2 (7th)
AYPA: 8.8 (8th)
YPG: 260.3 (18th)
Rating 103.1 (6th)
QBR: 60.7 (15th)
TD%: 5.1 (15th)
Touchdowns: 26 (12th)
Sacks 62 (1st)

I realize Big Rape's volume helps here, but the dude was still putting up prolific numbers and Watson has not come close to Big Ben's 2018 those total numbers or QBR in his career. At the end of the day I detest Ben the person, but I'm not ready to say he's done with the numbers he continued to put up through 2018. His duel against Patrick in 2018 is a particularly fun re-watch as well.

[ThaVirus]

Originally Posted by Chiefspants

People really tend to forget just how good fat, one foot out the door Ben was in 2018. I put him just one spot over Watson simply from looking at Big Ben's last three seasons as a starter. Here are his 2018 stats.

Passing Yards: 5,129 (1st - over Mahomes)
YPA: 7.6 (13th)
AYPA: 7.5 (14th)
YPG: 320.6 (1st)
Rating: 96.5 (15th)
QBR: 71.0 (3rd)
TD% 5.0 (17th)
Touchdowns: 34 (5th)
Sacks 24 (24th)

Compared to Watson's 2018..

Passing Yards: 4,165 (15th)
YPA: 8.2 (7th)
AYPA: 8.8 (8th)
YPG: 260.3 (18th)
Rating 103.1 (6th)
QBR: 60.7 (15th)
TD%: 5.1 (15th)
Touchdowns: 26 (12th)
Sacks 62 (1st)

I realize Big Rape's volume helps here, but the dude was still putting up prolific numbers and Watson has not come close to Big Ben's 2018 those total numbers or QBR in his career. At the end of the day I detest Ben the person, but I'm not ready to say he's done with the numbers he continued to put up through 2018. His duel against Patrick in 2018 is a particularly fun re-watch as well.

Do you, though? Nearly everything here says Watson is the more efficient passer.

Comparing solely their 2018 seasons, Watson had a higher completion percentage, YPA, and TD % while maintaining a significantly lower INT%.

He's a more productive passer and it's not even a debate who's more dangerous with their legs.

[Chiefspants]

Originally Posted by ThaVirus

Do you, though? Nearly everything here says Watson is the more efficient passer.

Comparing solely their 2018 seasons, Watson had a higher completion percentage, YPA, and TD % while maintaining a significantly lower INT%.

He's a more productive passer and it's not even a debate who's more dangerous with their legs.

I might be too bullish on QBR (I do like how it factors in a QB's overall efficiency) and too critical over Watson's sack totals (his negative plays are just a killer in my book and ultimately gives Watson fewer opportunities to throw it downfield). For instance, Watson was to blame for 23 sacks in 2018, which was almost as many as Big Ben's total sacks in 2018. That is a critical amount of negative plays which ultimately takes away opportunities for Watson to pass and gives many more opportunities to his opponent through stalled drives and punts. Those two factors ultimately had me put Ben a slot over Watson - but I get the argument for placing Watson over Ben.

[JakeF]

Originally Posted by ThaVirus

I disagree. You've said yourself, Watson is basically Alex Smith who isn't afraid to sling it down field. Alex himself, with that limiting factor, was probably anywhere from a top 8-16 QB in his time here. Take away his inhibitions and add even more dangerous running ability and you get a really, really good QB in Watson.

If Mike Singletary and the 49ers hadn't destroyed Alex Smith he would have turned out really similarly to Watson. They killed Smith just like the Texans destroyed Carr. Singletary never should have been an NFL Head Coach.

[Rain Man]

The OP list seems good overall, but I'd lower Jackson down to around 6, and I think Brady should be down around 15 at most, and maybe as low as 25. Brady clearly had a fork in him last year and this year will be worse. I'd also move Wentz down a few spots. I'd move Stafford up several spot, just above Ryan.