Welcome to the first installation of NFL best ball tiers with the quarterback position. Including a look at Anthony Richardson, hopefully our Best Ball quarterback rankings help with any decisions you have to make.
Tiers help contextualize the gaps in player profiles and provide useful insights when selecting players. For example, a running back tier may only have one player remaining, while receiver or tight end have multiple. In this situation, it may be prudent to select the final running back from this tier.
Unlike other positions, receivers also need to be considered carefully when selecting quarterbacks. For example, if a team spends an early round pick on Ja’Marr Chase, it is okay to reach slightly for Joe Burrow. This piece will break down the quarterback position into tiers, providing explanation to each.
Ready to up your Best Ball game to the expert tier? Matt Gajewski has a guide on how to do just that; he breaks down everything, from stacking strategy to specific draft times to general roster construction.
Best Ball Quarterback Rankings
Best Ball Quarterback Rankings – Tier 1
The difference making tier, these quarterbacks have proved solid passers with elite rushing upside.
Jalen Hurts – Philadelphia Eagles
Hurts handled 47% of the Eagles red zone rushing attempts last year. The Eagles lost all-pro center Jason Kelce and changed offensive coordinators this offseason. This may change the frequency of the “tush push”, but Hurts has proved valuable in other areas. He has at least 605 rushing yards and double digit rushing scores in three straight years. Hurts also still throws to an elite receiving corps and the Eagles boast a 10.5 win total.
Lamar Jackson – Baltimore Ravens
In an MVP winning 2023 season, Jackson ranked third in adjusted yards per attempt through the air. He also rushed for 821 yards on 148 attempts. Little changes with the Ravens this offseason, except stud tight end Mark Andrews returns to full health.
Josh Allen – Buffalo Bills
A slight cut below Hurts and Jackson from a rushing perspective, Allen notched 524 yards and 15 scores on the ground last year. The two prior years, he eclipsed 750 rushing yards, but the touchdowns sat at six and seven. As a passer, Allen ranked 16th in yards per attempt and now will play without Stefon Diggs. Buffalo embraced the run with a midseason offensive coordinator change last year, presenting another potential obstacle for Allen.
Best Ball Quarterback Rankings – Tier 2
Tier two provides a combination of the elite passers without mobility and dual threats who haven’t proven it over a whole season. Any of these players could finish in the top three.
Patrick Mahomes – Kansas City Chiefs
While elite as a passer, Mahomes trails the top three signal callers from a rushing perspective. He has fallen between 300-400 rushing yards in each of the last four seasons. However, he boasts an absurd 7.9 career adjusted yards per attempt through the aid and received upgrades throughout the receiver room this offseason.
Anthony Richardson – Indianapolis Colts
A true dual threat weapon, Richardson brings legit upside to finish as the top overall quarterback. Richardson only appeared in four games last year, finishing just two due to injury. He managed 136 yards and four scores on the ground in that time. With Michael Pittman Jr., AD Mitchell, and Josh Downs, he possesses a sneaky receiver room.
C..J Stroud – Houston Texans
Stroud finished second in adjusted yards per attempt in his rookie season. The Texans added Stefon Diggs and Joe Mixon to the offense, along with Tank Dell’s return from a broken leg. The Texans are going all in and that is reflected in their 9.5 win total.
Best Ball Quarterback Rankings – Tier 3
The players in tier three provide efficiency in the pass game or solid mobility. There is an outside chance for any of them to jump a tier.
Joe Burrow – Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals changed offensive coordinators this offseason, which should be noted. Former offensive coordinator Brian Callahan pushed Jake Browning to a surprise 7.7 adjusted yards per attempt. Burrow isn’t mobile, but he boasts a career 7.6 yards per attempt with elite receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.
Kyler Murray – Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals offense received a major upgrade at receiver with the drafting of Marvin Harrison Jr.. Murray has struggled through a horrific situation through most of his career, but he posted a 7.9 adjusted yards per attempt in 2021 with DeAndre Hopkins and Christian Kirk at wide out. Between Trey McBride and Harrison, the pass catchers bring legit juice for the first time in a while. Murray also showed little hesitance to run off his ACL tear, notching 244 yards in eight games last year.
Dak Prescott – Dallas Cowboys
Dallas played a notoriously easy schedule last year, but bookmakers project them for 10.5 wins again. The receiving corps looks woefully thin behind CeeDee Lamb, but this group still propelled Prescott to the fifth best adjusted yards per attempt in the league last year. Importantly, he totaled 242 rushing yards, which was his highest mark since 2019. While not a dual threat, any rushing helps.
Jayden Daniels – Washington Commanders
With elite dual threat ability, Daniels has the chance to finish much higher based on rushing alone. Once Daniels transferred away from the moron Herm Edwards at Arizona State, his career blossomed at LSU. In his final season, he completed 72.2% of his passes for 11.7 yards per attempt, 40 scores, and four interceptions. He also averaged 8.4 yards per attempt on the ground for 1,134 yards and another ten scores. His receiving corp at LSU was better than what he will throw to in Washington, but he still provides elite upside.
Jordan Love – Green Bay Packers
Love finished with a top ten 7.4 adjusted yards per attempt, but excelled beyond that in the latter half of 2023. He now has a fully healthy group of receivers, highlighted by Christian Watson and Jayden Reed. There may even be untapped potential on the ground. Love only rushed 50 times for 247 yards last year, but came out of college with strong athletic measurables.
Caleb Williams – Chicago Bears
The number one overall pick out of USC, Williams will perhaps have the best receiver core of any rookie all time. D.J. Moore, Keenan Allen, Rome Odunze, Cole Kmet, and D’Andre Swift make up this group. Williams registered a career 9.2 yards per pass attempt in college and ran for double digit scores in his final two years.
Trevor Lawrence – Jacksonville Jaguars
A bit of a disappointment to this point in his career, Lawrence ranked 20th in adjusted yards per attempt last year. The receiving room may have gotten worse. They traded Zay Jones and Calvin Ridley for first round rookie Brian Thomas Jr. and Gabe Davis. Jacksonville throws often, so volume should prop up Lawrence.
Best Ball Quarterback Rankings – Tier 4
Tier four consists of pocket passers with at least one concern. These players should be prioritized if a receiver on the same team has already been selected.
Brock Purdy – San Francisco
Purdy plays on a run-first offense, but he led the NFL with an absurd 9.9 adjusted yards per attempt. His weapons may have improved with the addition of Ricky Pearsall.
Tua Tagovailoa – Miami Dolphins
Similar to Purdy, Tagovailoa ranked fourth in adjusted yards per attempt and led the NFL in raw passing yards. He doesn’t run whatsoever, but the stacks to Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle should prove profitable again this year.
Kirk Cousins – Atlanta Falcons
A pocket statue coming off a torn Achilles, Cousins now moved from Minnesota to Atlanta. Fortunately, the hirings of head coach Raheem Morris and offensive coordinator Zac Robinson should move the Falcons towards a pass heavy offense.
Justin Herbert – Los Angeles Chargers
One of the trickiest quarterbacks to evaluate, Herbert boasts an elite efficiency profile. However, the coaching change in Los Angeles should immediately move the Chargers to a run-heavy approach. He also throws to one of the worst receiving rooms in the league, highlighted by rookie Ladd McConkey.
Best Ball Quarterback Rankings – Tier 5
Players in tier five consist primarily of average pocket passers. Like the previous tier, they should be prioritized as quarterback two’s once a receiver on the same team has been selected.
Deshaun Watson – Cleveland Browns
Watson has a career 8.2 adjusted yards per attempt, but he has registered marks of 6.0 and 6.3 since his move to Cleveland. There’s really no excuse with Amari Cooper and David Njoku on the roster, but Cleveland added Jerry Jeudy for good measure. Watson did post three straight seasons of at least 495 rushing yards, so perhaps this ranking comes in too low on rushing alone.
Matthew Stafford – Los Angeles Rams
Another pocket statue with elite receivers, Stafford finished ninth in adjusted yards per attempt last year.
Jared Goff – Detroit Lions
Another pocket statue, Goff doesn’t benefit from the pass-heavy offenses of Atlanta, Seattle, and Los Angeles. Instead, Detroit will run first, making Goff reliant on his seventh best 7.7 adjusted yards per attempt last year.
Aaron Rodgers – New York Jets
Rodgers threw for 7.7 adjusted yards per attempt as recently as 2021, but he is now 40 years old. He already couldn’t run, but an Achilles tear at age 39 cemented that further. A year away at his age could prove catastrophic, but he is one of the best to ever play the position.
Baker Mayfield – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Mayfield tries to run more than the statues listed above, but his athleticism is so poor that it doesn’t really matter. Mayfield finished 11th in adjusted yards per attempt and still has Mike Evans and Chris Godwin as safety blankets. Tampa Bay did change offensive coordinators, but Mayfield has a surprisingly efficient passing profile.
Geno Smith – Seattle Seahawks
Another team undergoing a change at offensive coordinator, Seattle grabbed the pass-happy Ryan Grubb from the University of Washington. Smith throws to one of the better receiver trios in football behind DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
Best Ball Quarterback Rankings – Tier 6
Tier six is the cheap stacking tier. Players in this tier make nice pairings with the elite quarterbacks or if quarterbacks get sniped from other stacks. Most of them have cheap receivers who should be main contributors.
Sam Darnold – Minnesota Vikings
JJ McCarthy underwent season-ending knee surgery, giving Sam Darnold a full season under center in Minnesota.
Will Levis – Tennessee Titans
Levis finished 17th in adjusted yards per attempt, but seldom used his legs last year in Tennessee. The Titans have a new coaching staff under Brian Callahan, who worked wonders with players like Jake Browning. Levis also received significant upgrades at receiver with the additions of Calvin Ridley and Tyler Boyd to a room that already had DeAndre Hopkins.
Derek Carr – New Orleans Saints
The Saints hired Klint Kubiak as offensive coordinator to try and fix Carr. Carr did finish 14th in adjusted yards per attempt, but he has a long career of below average play.
Bryce Young – Carolina Panthers
Young had one of the worst rookie reasons in recent memory, throwing for 5.0 adjusted yards per attempt. However, Carolina cleaned house among their coaches and added Diontae Johnson and first round rookie Xavier Legette. He should play every game and cannot possibly be worse.
Bo Nix – Denver Broncos
Behind Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels, Nix is the quarterback most likely to start every game. Behind him, the Broncos only have Jarrett Stidham. Working against him, Denver prefers to run the ball. However, a 5.5 win total may force them to throw more than desired. Also, Nix rushed for 510 yards and 14 scores in 2022, showing legitimate upside on the ground.
Drake Maye – New England Patriots
Like McCarthy in Minnesota, New England has a serviceable quarterback in Jacoby Brissett on the roster. With a bottom three receiver room and overall roster, there is a good chance the Patriots decide to give Maye some time to learn, even if he is ready.
Daniel Jones – New York Giants
The Giants could be criminally charged for negligence after what they trotted out to block for Jones. To no one’s surprise, he tore his ACL. However, just two seasons ago head coach Brian Daboll coaxed a career best yards per attempt out of Jones with a career high 708 rushing yards. The Giants upgraded their offensive line and receiver room this offseason, but Jones has been left for dead. However, Jones has a similar contract to Russell Wilson last year. The Giants can get out of it, IF Jones does not get hurt. Poor play could incentivize them to bench Jones late, if he plays poorly.
Best Ball Quarterback Rankings – Tier 7
This tier can best be described as let someone else make this mistake unless it is the last round.
Justin Fields – Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh has the muddiest quarterback situation in football. Wilson was a favorite to win the job until he suffered an injury, opening the door for Fields.
Russell Wilson – Pittsburgh Steelers
Gardner Minshew – Las Vegas Raiders
There is some debate if Minshew or Aiden O’Connell will start for Las Vegas. Minshew has been better in almost every metric, but the uncertainty drops Minshew a bit.
