RP's Quarterback Rankings Preview

From left to right: Aaron Rodgers, Cam Newton, Drew Brees, Tom Brady, Matthew Stafford.

Tomorrow, I am set to start my annual quarterback rankings. But first, a little sneak peak of what will come.

I’ve decided to make a few changes to the format of how I’m doing things this year. First, I’ll put out one quarterback each weekday (besides 4th of July) instead of every other day. I’m also using a different point scale than last year’s to grade QBs – this year’s scale is out of 100 points:

/30 — accuracy & anticipation

/15 — arm talent

/20 — mechanics

/20 — decision making

/5 — mobility

/10 — intangibles & mental make-up

That’s a major step up from last year’s 50-point scale, where I recorded physical traits and athleticism, arm talent, mechanics, mental make-up, and intangibles (ten points for each category).

For reference, this was last year’s list of rankings:

Linking all of those names to their articles from last year took an eternity. Anyway, in this year’s articles, I’ll include how far each quarterback rose or fell, so right next to the name, it’ll look something like “Player X, team Y (+4)”. Based on the 2013 season, the worst three drops were -17(!), -12, and -10, while the most significant improvements were +16, +11, and +10.

These rankings are based solely on each quarterbacks’ performance in 2013; I am not basing any of my opinions on how a quarterback played in 2012, or 2010, or 2007 (sorry, Tom Brady fans). So don’t blow up my comments if Brady isn’t ranked first or second, or if Eli Manning isn’t ranked among the “elite” signal-callers (spoiler!). So how did I come up with these rankings? No, I didn’t base them off stats. I actually used the stats of each quarterback to figure out which games to watch — I watched the three statistically worst and best games for each QB, and I based my opinions off of the film.

Lastly, I’ve decided to leave the rookies out of this, since these rankings are based on only the 2013 NFL season. Therefore, it would be unfair to grade the rookies after what they did in college against the veterans who played in a tougher league (obviously). Last year, I didn’t project any rookies to start, so I was able to begin at 32 with Matt Flynn of the Raiders, whom I projected to start. So for Teddy Bridgewater, Johnny Manziel, Blake Bortles, and Derek Carr, see you next year (I’m projecting all of them to start on day one this season). Because of this, I’ll be starting at 28 instead of 32 this year.

Stay tuned tomorrow for number 28.

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RP’s Quarterback Rankings Preview

By Rishi Pochiraju | Jun 17, 2014