With the NFL 2021 season behind us, we take a look back at the season and rank all 32 starting signal-callers in this Quarterback Power Rankings
We are heading into the second round of the 2021 NFL playoffs and one thing is apparent, teams that make it this far into the postseason have to have a quarterback they can win with.
It’s clearly the most important position in the sport and the teams that have the best are always the hardest to beat. This doesn’t mean you have to have an elite quarterback to win it all — but it helps — however, you do have to have one capable of running the offense and not folding in the clutch.
Here, we look back over the 2021 season and rank the 32 starting signal-callers with our 2022 NFL Quarterback Power Rankings.
Rookies kick off our NFL Quarterback Power Rankings
32. Davis Mills, Houston Texans
Entering the season, Davis Mills was never supposed to be the starter for the Houston Texans but by season’s end, that was the case. Originally, it was an injury suffered by Tyrod Taylor that put him at the helm but before long Houston was just trying to see what they had in Mills.
He wasn’t terrible with 2,664 yards and a completion percentage of 66.8 but with a record of 2-9 — and a lot of blowout losses — some of those numbers are inflated due to playing against prevent defenses.
31. Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars
The No. 1 overall pick in 2021 was Trevor Lawrence and the Clemson product tasted regular-season losing for the first time in his football career. And it was a lot of losing.
Lawrence finished 3-14 and had some abysmal stats. Entering 2022, his star has lost some shine even though much of that had to do with the roster around him — as well as the dysfunction they had at coach with Urban Meyer. Still, he has to prove this season was not all on him before he can start climbing the quarterback ranks.
30. Zach Wilson, New York Jets
Another rookie comes in as Zach Wilson from the New York Jets had some serious growing pains in year one. Like Trevor Lawrence, Wilson managed just three wins on the season although he missed four games so his record ended up being 3-10.
He also had only nine touchdowns and 11 picks in his start while completing an ugly 55.6 percent of his attempts. Also like his fellow rookies who made this list, Wilson didn’t have a great supporting cast — and he was also dealing with a first-year head coach.
The good news is, his coaching staff wasn’t fired so perhaps Wilson can see some growth in year two.
29. Sam Darnold, Carolina Panthers
If this power ranking took place in Week 3 of the season, Sam Darnold would have been much higher. He started out the year on fire with three wins in a row. Then, the bottom fell out as he went 1-7 from that point and was even benched for Cam Newton at one point.
Darnold finished with just nine touchdowns and 13 picks as he continued to prove that the Jets picked him far too high in 2018 — and that his turnover issues at USC weren’t solved simply by pretending they weren’t a problem.
As far as 2022 is concerned, Darnold is a player to watch as it wouldn’t be surprising to again see him switch teams, or at the very least, have another veteran come in and challenge him for his job.
28. Daniel Jones, New York Giants
When the New York Giants selected Daniel Jones at No. 6 overall in 2019, there were a lot of eyebrows raised. They were convinced that in the end, we would all see their brilliance after he took over for Eli Manning. That has yet to happen.
Jones has been wildly inconsistent in his career and he really struggles to get the ball in the end zone. In his last 25 games, he has just 22 touchdown passes against 17 interceptions. Even with New York adding Kenny Golladay and Kadarius Toney, things looked the same for Jones this season.
The question now is how safe his job is. Joe Judge was all-in on Jones but with him gone, the future for this young quarterback could hinge on who they choose to run the team.
27. Taylor Heinicke, Washington Football Team
A backup who burst onto the scene against the Bucs in the 2020 NFL Playoffs, Taylor Heinicke ended up as the starter this past season for the Washington Football Team when Ryan Fitzpatrick was injured. He performed well at times, going for 3,419 yards with 20 touchdowns and 15 picks but he struggled when facing the better teams.
Buffalo, New Orleans, and Dallas beat him up pretty badly as did the Denver defense. Then again, he did beat Tom Brady and Tampa Bay, so maybe if he could play 17 games against them, he would be a Hall of Famer.
26. Justin Fields, Chicago Bears
With Matt Nagy out as head coach for the Chicago Bears, Justin Fields’ value should be on the rise. As a rookie in 2021, Fields had just 1,870 yards and seven touchdowns but he also added 420 yards on the ground. His play improved as the season progressed and that was even with Nagy seemingly calling every play that went against the rookie’s strengths.
Having said all that, Fields does need a coach who will help him take his next step as a passer. He’s got all the tools but
25. Teddy Bridgewater, Denver Broncos
For the second season in a row, Teddy Bridgewater took over as a starting quarterback for a new team. In 2020, he went from New Orleans down to Carolina and threw for 3,733 yards. However, he was 4-11 as a starter so the Panthers moved on as they landed Sam Darnold in a trade — and we all saw how that worked out.
Bridgewater ended up in Denver with the Broncos and threw 3,052 yards with 18 touchdowns and just seven picks. He was a solid game manager but the team was still just .500 with him starting and he doesn’t really move the needle. Chances are, they will look for an upgrade in the offseason but he can at least keep a team treading water.
24. Baker Mayfield, Cleveland Browns
This one is a little hard to judge. Baker Mayfield is not a bad quarterback overall but this is a ranking for how the signal-callers stand right now, and Mayfield’s stock has never been lower.
Cleveland was supposed to be a contender this season but they went 8-9 (6-9 with Mayfield starting) and their ineffective passing game was a huge reason for that. Of course, he was injured in Week 2 and just had surgery to fix a partially torn shoulder labrum but he now enters a contract year coming off his worst statistical season.
And if we are being honest, it doesn’t look great for him that he and Odell Beckham, Jr. never got on the same page but yet OBJ fit right in with the Rams and made a big impact.
23. Carson Wentz, Indianapolis Colts
Early on in the season, it seemed the Indianapolis Colts made a grave error in trading for Carson Wentz, who was 0-3 in his first three starts. Then, he led the team on a run bit before long, the issues he had early in the season began again.
Wentz lost his final two starts, including a Week 18 defeat at the hands of the Jacksonville Jaguars. That dropped them to 9-8 and cost them a shot at the postseason. Afterward, no one seemed to want to commit to him beyond this season, which is terrible considering he was acquired for a first-round pick.
As far as the numbers go for Wentz, he looks good — but his effectiveness is anything but.
22. Jared Goff, Detroit Lions
Jared Goff was thrown into an impossible situation this season when he was traded to the Detroit Lions from the Los Angeles Rams. Not only was he replacing Matthew Stafford, but the Lions got multiple picks as well in order to give up Stafford and take one Goff’s deal.
Making matters worse, they were bringing in a new head coach and their roster was depleted, especially at wide receiver. Even with all that happening, Goff put up respectable numbers. He completed 67.2 percent of his passes for 3,245 yards with 19 touchdowns and only eight picks.
Not superstar numbers, and he was just 3-10-1 as the starter but he did just about all he was expected to with this offense.
21. Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins
Looking purely at the numbers, there wasn’t much to be excited about with Tua Tagovailoa. Still, he had another winning season as the starter and is now 13-8 in his career. He also increased his passing percentage, threw fewer picks, and had more touchdowns than he did as a rookie, which is progress.
The biggest problem with evaluating Tua is how well his fellow quarterbacks from the 2020 class are doing. But taking out Joe Burrow and Justin Herbert, Tua is on the right path. And that’s even with a coach who apparently didn’t want him in Brian Flores.
20. Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers
The man is a magician. Ben Roethlisberger somehow led the Pittsburgh Steelers to a winning season and they made a trip to the postseason. They did this despite the fact that he lost one of his best wideouts for a stretch and while playing behind a pretty bad offensive line.
In the end, he finished with some very respectable numbers including a touchdown-to-interception ratio of 22-to-10. Not to take anything away from him, but those numbers don’t tell the whole story. Big Ben is one of the best quarterbacks to ever play the game but during 2021, he was making it work with quick passes that were schemed to get his players running after the catch.
He wasn’t the same player we were used to seeing for so many years but he still got the job done and deserves some respect for that.
19. Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles elected to go with Jalen Hurts this season as they sent Carson Wentz to the Indianapolis Colts. After one season, it appears they made the right call.
Hurts might not be a dynamic passer but he did manage 3,144 yards and had 16 touchdown passes. He might never be an elite pocket passer but as long as he forces defenses to respect his arm, he could find success as he did in 2021.
Of course, his running is what moves him into the top-20- as he ran for 784 yards with 10 touchdowns.
18. Kirk Cousins, Minnesota Vikings
The criticism never ends for Kirk Cousins, and at times, it’s understandable. He’s not a bad player by any means but when the bright lights come on, he simply doesn’t get the job done.
This season, he had one of his more efficient campaigns, completing 66.3 percent of his throws with a 33-to-7 touchdown-to-interception ratio. While all of that was good, he still went just 8-8 on the season as the Vikings missed the playoffs and their head coach was fired. With Mike Zimmer gone, there are also rumors Cousins could be on the way out, which diminishes his stock in these power rankings.
17. Jameis Winston, New Orleans Saints
It was really unfortunate that we didn’t get to see more of Jameis Winston under center for the New Orleans Saints. The once turnover-prone starter for Tampa Bay spent 2020 on the bench for the Saints but won the starting job this year.
He then started seven games and was 5-2 with 14 touchdowns and only three picks. He did have a completion percentage under 60 but that’s not a huge deal when the team is winning and the quarterback is protecting the ball.
Chances are, New Orleans will want him back because they were on a roll with him and couldn’t get things working after he was out.
16. Mac Jones, New England Patriots
Outside of the game where he threw the ball just three times — in a win nonetheless — Mac Jones proved he was capable of leading the New England Patriots offense to wherever they wanted to go. As a rookie, he completed 67.6 percent of his passes for 3,801 yards with 22 touchdowns against 13 picks.
He was head and shoulders above the other rookies in this class and while many want to diminish it as part of the Pats system, they’re overlooking the fact that he’s done everything asked of him by his coaching staff. A 10-7 record in year one is a great start and the more comfortable he gets, the more dangerous this team will be.
15. Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons
Matt Ryan deserves some credit for what he did this season. Sure, the Atlanta Falcons were just 7-10 and his numbers weren’t exactly Pro-Bowl caliber but he still managed 3,968 yards and 20 touchdowns with his No. 1 receiver being a rookie tight end. Sure, Kyle Pitts is an insane talent but outside of that, Ryan didn’t have a lot to work with and still put up some respectable numbers.
Atlanta could still be looking to move on since he will be turning 37 soon and is coming off his fourth losing season in a row but with all the issues around him, there wasn’t much more he could do in 2021.
14. Jimmy Garoppolo, San Francisco 49ers
Another quarterback who could be on his way out this offseason is Jimmy Garoppolo. His problem, however, isn’t his ability to win bug games, but rather his durability concerns. Garoppolo boasts an impressive record of 31-14 with the San Francisco 49ers and has even taken them to the Super Bowl.
Still, the Niners took Trey Lance third overall in the 2021 NFL Draft to eventually supplant Jimmy G, which naturally meant he would lead them to the playoffs again and win in Round 1. Garoppolo is a quarterback who can make all the throws and doesn’t fade in the clutch, but he does still have some erratic plays at times. That coupled with the injury concerns keeps him from going much higher than a mid-tier starter.
13. Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals
At the beginning of the season, Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals appeared destined for great things. He led them to a 7-0 start and they were the final team to suffer a defeat. But from there, they struggled.
Murray was injured in their first loss and then went 2-4 when he returned. That included a 1-4 finish to the season and a brutal playoff loss to the Los Angeles Rams. Murray is still a bright young star but he’s closer to the middle of the pack than the elite tier after the way this campaign ended.
12. Ryan Tannehill, Tennessee Titans
For some reason, Ryan Tannehill never gets the love he deserves. Sure, things went sour with the Miami Dolphins but he had Adam Gase as his head coach so how else could they have gone? He since found new life with the Tennessee Titans where he has a record of 30-13 as a starter.
Even with him leading Tennessee to one win after another, he wasn’t getting the credit. That should have changed since he led the Titans to the No. 1 seed in the AFC even after losing running back Derrick Henry in Week 8. Following Henry’s injury, Tennessee was expected to falter but Tannehill led them to a 6-3 record.
11. Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens
In 2019, Lamar Jackson was the NFL MVP. In 2021, he was not.
Jackson enjoyed a ton of early success with the Baltimore Ravens but this was not his greatest campaign. He was 7-5, which is his worst record as a starter, and had a career-worst 13 picks. Just for some reference, he had just 18 picks and seven losses in his three previous seasons combined.
He should be able to bounce back from this and once again be the most dangerous dual-threat in the game but 2021 is a year he will want to forget.
10. Derek Carr, Las Vegas Raiders
Derek Carr is another quarterback who had to deal with adversity in 2021 but still found success. The Las Vegas Raiders were an absolute mess with Jon Gruden resigning after some horrible emails he sent were leaked. Then there was the tragic incident involving Henry Ruggs.
Even after losing his head coach and top receiver, Carr showed his leadership skills and helped the Raiders navigate a 10-7 campaign. They wound up losing in Round 1 but he still threw for 4,804 yards with Hunter Renfrow serving as his wide receiver No1.
There will again be some change coming to Vegas this offseason which will lead to speculation about Carr’s future with the team. If he does get moved, some team will wind up with a great option under center.
9. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys
After breaking his ankle in Week 5 of the 2020 NFL Season, Dak Prescott was able to come back this year and put together a great campaign. He completed a career-high 68.8 percent of his throws for 4,449 yards. He also broke the franchise record for most touchdown passes with 37.
Of course, it all ended in a complete flameout as he and the Dallas Cowboys played poorly for 45 minutes of their Wild Card game against San Francisco. A late comeback fell short when Prescott ran an ill-advised quarterback draw and allowed the clock to run down.
There are issues with him — and this team — including their continual choking in the big games, but Dak is still a top-10 quarterback who boasts a 53-32 record in the regular season.
8. Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks
There are plenty of rumors that Russell Wilson could be on the move this offseason. A potential split between him and the Seattle Seahawks has been on the table before but this time, it seems to be much closer to reality.
If he does leave Seattle, he will have finished with a record of 104-53-1 — only failing to win 10 games in a season twice. On top of that, he has two Super Bowl appearances with one ring.
Even this past season, he continued to play well despite a 6-8 record. He threw for 3,113 yards with 25 touchdowns and only six picks. Wilson continues to be a top-10 quarterback and could climb even higher if he heads to another team where he feels more comfortable.
7. Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams
It took 13 years but Matthew Stafford finally got his first playoff win. Formerly of the Detroit Lions, Stafford was traded to the Los Angeles Rams this offseason and he promptly led them to a 12-5 record while throwing for 4,886 yards with 41 touchdowns.
Not everything was great as he ended up with 17 interceptions, tying with Trevor Lawrence for the most in the league. Of course, it’s much easier to overlook all those picks when there are 41 touchdowns.
Stafford definitely took a step forward in L.A. and has a real shot at winning a title with his new club before his career is done.
6. Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers
As a whole, the Los Angeles Chargers finished their season in the worst way possible. For much of the year, they were in line to challenge for the AFC West title but then they dropped three of their final four games to go from 8-5 to 9-8.
Even worse, they still nearly made the playoffs as all they needed was a tie with the Raiders but a last-second kick in overtime ended that hope.
Despite the frustrating finish, Justin Herbert had a season to remember. In his second NFL campaign, he had 5,014 yards passing and 38 touchdowns. He added another 302 yards and three touchdowns on the ground as he continues to prove he’s one of the better young quarterbacks in the game.
5. Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills
When Josh Allen entered the NFL in 2018 there was a lot of debate about how good he could be. He had an insane arm but struggled with accuracy and there were plenty of critics who thought he could never make it.
But they were proven wrong as Allen has carved out a nice start to his career — and has led the Buffalo Bills to the AFC East title the past two seasons. In 2021, he had 4,407 yards and 36 touchdowns and he continued to be dangerous with his legs.
Allen added 763 yards on the ground which was a career-high for him and put up six more touchdowns rushing as well.
4. Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals
Talk about someone climbing the ranks in a hurry. Joe Burrow looked solid as the No. 1 pick in 2020 but was still just 2-7-1 as the starter for the Cincinnati Bengals. He also had his season end on a torn ACL, leaving many to wonder how he would look in 2021.
Burrow came out and quickly showed the injury was not going to slow him down. He led Cincinnati to a win in Week 1 over Minnesota while throwing for 261 yards and three touchdowns. Things only got better from there including an unreal stretch where he had 525 yards and five touchdowns in a win over Baltimore and 446 yards and four touchdowns in a win over Kansas City.
Those wins put them in the playoffs as Burrow got to rest in Week 18 while enjoying a 10-6 season as the starter. He then showed he was hungry for more, leading the Bengals to their first postseason win in 31 years in the Wild Card Round over Las Vegas.
3. Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs
You can tell a quarterback is elite when he throws for 4,839 yards with 37 touchdowns and 13 picks in a season where people were asking if he lost a step. Patrick Mahomes was slow out of the gate for his own standards and the Chiefs were 3-4 at one point.
Then, things started to click as they went on a roll and finished 9-1. Mahomes continued to make throws that seemed physically impossible while frustrating defenders who simply had no answers.
He’s now 50-13 in his career as a starter with 18,991 yards. He also has 151 touchdowns against just 37 picks. He’s a threat to score on any play and is one of the most feared passers in the game.
2. Tom Brady, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
He’s called the GOAT for a reason.
Tom Brady is still going strong at 44-years of age — which is hard to even fathom. And he’s not just a game manager as many elder statesmen have been. No, he’s doing better than he ever has since he bolted from the New England Patriots and headed to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Brady had 4,633 yards and 40 touchdowns in his first season with the Bucs, which of course, led to him winning a Super Bowl in their home stadium (of course Brady managed to be the first quarterback to do this). Somehow, he got even better in year two as he had 5,316 yards with 43 touchdowns leading his squad to a 13-4 record.
He’s done this even with players such as Chris Godwin going down due to an injury and while having Antonio Brown forging vaccine cards and doing strip-teases in-game.
Brady also just tore apart the poor Philadelphia Eagles in the NFL Wild Card round as he was a cool 29-of-37 with 271 yards and two touchdowns. The funny part is, that was also considered an off-day for him as his team won easily 31-15.
Brady will go down as the most accomplished quarterback ever and has set an insanely high bar if anyone were to challenge him. And while he doesn’t come in at No. 1 in our 2022 NFL Power Rankings, he still always finds himself right near the top.
1. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers
Want to know how to tell that you’re great at your job? It’s simple, spend an entire summer acting like you won’t come back, then show up and trash the decision-makers. If they let you go, then you were never really that great. If they completely act like you did nothing, then you might be the GOAT.
That’s pretty much what happened with Aaron Rodgers who skipped out on just about every camp for the Green Bay Packers and made it seem as though he had one foot out the door. Heck, the only reason he finally showed up is because they gave him the option to leave in the 2022 NFL offseason. Then after that agreement, he held a press conference where he bashed the team publicly.
Once the season began, however, it was business as usual for Rodgers. He was 13-3 as the starter and had 4,115 yards with an insane 37-to-7 touchdown-to-interception ratio. He’s so good that this was even a drop from the 48 touchdowns and five picks he had the prior season.
Rodgers is so good with the ball that he has never thrown more than 13 picks in a season and only twice hit double digits (he had 13 in 2008 and 11 in 2010). This year was his 11th in a row with fewer than 10 picks, which is unbelievable.
The reigning NFL MVP from a year ago, Rodgers is once again on the shortlist for the honors this season. He’s also the top quarterback in the game right now.