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10 Best Quarterbacks of All Time: 2023 Edition

Who are the best quarterbacks of all time? It’s a position that’s the heart and soul of a team and requires a dedication for preparation, skill and smarts.

Best Quarterbacks of All Time?

The leader of the offense, a quarterback has a more direct impact on a game than any other player and is the difference between winning and losing a Super Bowl. So, who are the best quarterbacks of all time?

10. Roger Staubach

Roger Staubach was selected in the 10th round of the 1964 draft by the Dallas Cowboys out of Navy. He didn’t begin his NFL career until 1969 after completing his military service at the age of 27. He made the most of his 11 seasons in the NFL, all with Dallas. 

Staubach led the Cowboys to four Super Bowl appearances and won two championships. “Captain America” led the league in quarterback rating three times, including in his last two seasons when he also threw for over 3000 yards for the only times in his career. 

The only quarterback to win the Heisman Trophy and Super Bowl MVP, Staubach was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985 and is the best Dallas Cowboys player of all time.

9. Otto Graham

Graham was selected fourth overall by the Detroit Lions in 1944 out of Northwestern. He won three NFL championships, three NFL MVP awards, five Pro Bowl appearances, and was named seven times to the First-Team All-Pro.  

During an era when running the ball and defense dominated play, Graham became the most prolific passer of his era. He led the league in yards passing five times and three times led in touchdown passes. Graham had the highest career quarterback passer rating of 86.6 until it was broken by Joe Montana upon his retirement in 1994. 

8. John Elway

John Elway was selected first overall out of Stanford by the Denver Broncos. He struggled as a rookie, completing under 50 percent of his passes and with twice as many interceptions than touchdowns. Blessed with a strong arm, Elway threw for over 3,000 yards in a season 11 times, and at least 20 touchdowns six times.

Elway was a nine-time Pro Bowler and won two Super Bowl titles in a career spent entirely at the Broncos. He retired with 51,475 yards passing and 300 touchdowns. Elway has a net worth of around $150 million and ended his executive position with the Broncos in 2023. 

7. Aaron Rodgers

Aaron Rodgers was selected by the Packers 24th overall out of California in the 2005 draft. He became the starter in 2008 and made his first Pro Bowl appearance in 2009. Rodgers earned his second Pro Bowl and First-Team All-Pro in 2010, while earning league MVP after throwing for 4,643 yards and 45 touchdowns.

He has thrown for over 4000 yards ten times, and has also earned back-to-back league MVP honors. Rodgers was MVP of Super Bowl XLV and left the Packers at the end of the 2022 season with 59,055 career passing yards and 475 touchdowns. Rodgers is also one of the highest paid NFL players and will be a first ballot Hall of Famer.

6. Dan Marino

Dan Marino was selected 27th overall out of Pittsburgh in 1983. The sixth best quarterback of all time he was league MVP in 1984 after leading the league in passing yards (5,084), and touchdowns (48). 

Marino led the league in passing yards in three of the next four seasons, and led the league in touchdown passes two more times – in 1985 and 1986. Marino made nine Pro Bowl teams and First-Team All-Pro three times. 

Despite never winning a Super Bowl title he threw for 61,361 yards and 420 touchdowns. Marino has a net worth of around $50 million after playing his entire 17-year NFL career in Miami and he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2005.

5. Johnny Unitas

Johnny Unitas was selected in the 9th round by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1955 but never played for the team. He started seven games in 1956 for the Baltimore Colts before becoming full-time starter in 1957, going on to lead the league in yards passing and touchdowns.

Unitas was named to his first of 10 Pro Bowls and First-Team All-Pro in that year and led the league in touchdown passes in each of the next three seasons, and three more times led in passing yards.  

He won league MVP twice and was a three-time NFL champion. Unitas was regarded as the best quarterback of all time upon his retirement, finishing with 40,239 yards passing and 253 touchdowns. 

4. Drew Brees

Drew Brees was 6 foot tall during his playing career, slightly below the average height of a quarterback. He was taken in the second round by the San Diego Chargers in 2001 and is one of the best quarterbacks of all time. 

In five seasons with the Chargers he made one Pro Bowl and teamed up with one of the best running backs of all time, LaDainian Tomlinson, who ranked Brees as his second best teammate ever.

Brees’ career however took off following a move to the New Orleans Saints earning 11 Pro Bowl honors in 14 seasons. Brees led the league in passing yards seven times, including recording over 5,000 yards four times. 

He was MVP of Super Bowl XLIV, his lone championship of his career and is the fastest quarterback to reach 60,000 and 70,000 yards passing. He retired with 80,358 yards passing and 571 touchdowns.

3. Peyton Manning

Manning was selected first overall in 1998 out of Tennessee. He led the league in interceptions as a rookie with 28, but still threw 25 touchdown passes. Manning made the first of 14 Pro Bowls in 1999, and led the league in passing yards. 

He led the league in touchdown passes four times, including throwing for 55 in 2013 during his time with the Denver Broncos. Manning won league MVP five times, was named First-Team All-Pro seven times and won two Super Bowls. 

Manning retired with 71,940 yards passing and 539 touchdowns following 14 seasons in Indianapolis and four with the Broncos. Manning was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2021.

2. Joe Montana

Joe Montana is the second best quarterback of all time. He was selected by the 49ers in the third round out of Notre Dame in 1979. He became a full-time starter two years later where he would make his first of eight Pro Bowl appearances. 

Montana led the league in completion percentage five times and in touchdowns scored, and quarterback rating twice. Before Tom Brady, he was widely regarded as the best quarterback in league history. 

To his name are four Super Bowl titles and three first-team All-Pro selections. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2000 and spent all but two of his 16 seasons in San Francisco.

1. Tom Brady

Tom Brady was selected in the 6th round, 199th overall, out of Michigan in 2000. He became a starter and earned his first of 15 Pro Bowl appearances the following season. 

Brady led the league in touchdown passes in 2002 for the first of five times in his career. He won his first of three MVP awards in 2007 when he led the league in yards passing (4,806) and touchdowns (50). 

In 2021 he threw for an astonishing 5,316 yards and 43 touchdowns at the age of 43. Brady led the Patriots to 17 division titles in 18 seasons and six Super Bowl victories. 

Brady holds the league records in career passing yards and touchdowns, and he won a seventh Super Bowl with the Buccaneers in Super Bowl LV to cement his position as the undisputed best quarterback of all time.

Matt Ieriko

Matt Ieriko is a freelance writer who’s evolved his lifelong passion for sport into the creation of WolfgangSport.com in 2020 – an American sports blog covering the NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL, MLS and more. As an Australian, he’s always been fascinated with the cultural differences and global significance of sports in America.

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