Good game manager
The makings of a good game manager are diverse, but you know him when you see him. The quarterback is capable of making some key plays when he is needed to, but largely is there to manage the game and limit costly mistakes. You can get good quarterback play or some of the most mediocre play you have seen from a signal caller.
Tanner McKee
Although it was not announced that Tanner McKee would get the start until later on in Week 6, he did get in there against the Carolina Panthers and put up a decent fight. While it was not a performance that would knock anyone’s socks off, McKee did not have any turnovers on the day, and led the Eagles down for a pair of touchdown drives. While the game ended in a double-digit loss for Philadelphia, McKee had a performance that kept him out of the bad backup quarterback tier.
Jalon Daniels
The aforementioned rookie who was not in the previous tier is Jalon Daniels due to his ability to string together successful drives one after another. Sure, his first start in the Packers game was not pretty by any means, but Daniels has regrouped from those mistakes and has thrown up some competitive games in all three of his starts. While there is much more for Daniels to learn and grow into as a quarterback in the NFL, there is no doubting that he has managed to keep the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in every game he has played in, landing him in the good game manager tier.
Tyler Huntley
The Baltimore Ravens have played some mediocre teams while Tyler Huntley has been at the helm in the absence of Lamar Jackson. However, you have to call it how you see it, and Huntley has kept every game he has played competitive up to this point in the season. Most impressive is the Atlanta Falcons matchup where he made big plays throughout the night en route to the Ravens grabbing an overtime win.
That said, it has not been all sunshine and roses for Huntley and the Ravens. There have been multiple halves under his watch where the team has failed to put up a single point. So, as good as the Falcons game was for Huntley, he, in good conscience, cannot go into any higher tier than the good game manager.
Carson Wentz
If there is a player this season who has embodied the final sentence of the good game manager tier, it is Minnesota Vikings backup quarterback Carson Wentz. In the Packers game, he took advantage of short fields set up by his defense and made some amazing plays to end that game in a blowout. During the Chicago Bears game, Wentz put on a stinker of a performance, but was able to do what he needed to for his team to walk out with the win.
It was not pretty by any means, but Wentz was a good game manager in both of his appearances in the 2026 season. It just happened to be that he did not have to do much in the Windy City for the Vikings to walk out victorious. Wentz’s ability to not make the costly mistakes that he has made in the past shows his growth as a quarterback and his ability to properly manage a football game.
Case Keenum
If ever there was a perfect embodiment of the good game manager quarterback, it would be Case Keenum, who made a deep playoff run in 2017 playing that style of football. Honestly, if Keenum was limited to his start on Monday Night Football in Week 3 for the Bears, he might have been in the tier following this one. However, he took over for Tyson Bagent in the Packers game and had some mistakes (while his team was down big, it did prevent the Bears from making any kind of comeback that day), keeping him in the game manager tier.
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