No matter how great a quarterback is, true greatness is defined by winning championships, or at least getting one.
Not every great quarterback has a Super Bowl to his name, but more than stats or MVP trophies, that is what the elite players covet more than anything else.
The 2026 season is shaping up to be one of the most competitive we've seen in quite some time. This might be the deepest crop of teams and quarterbacks in both conferences that we've seen in the last 10 years or more, which will make winning it all even sweeter.
Entering this season, which quarterbacks are the most desperate to win it all? Our newest NFL Power Rankings will take a look at the top 5 most desperate QBs to add a Super Bowl -- or another one -- to their list of achievements this season.
NFL Power Rankings: Josh Allen, Aaron Rodgers lead top 10 QBs most desperate for a Super Bowl in 2026
1. Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills
The pressure is always on Josh Allen to win a championship, but it really feels like he and the Bills have been in a wide-open window over the last handful of years, and they simply haven't been able to get it done in January.
Allen and the Bills were beat in the playoffs by the Denver Broncos this past season, proving once again that the AFC West is somehow Allen's 'Kryptonite'. Allen is in the prime years of his NFL career. While his window isn't closing after this year, getting a Super Bowl win now would cement Allen's legacy not only for the Bills but as arguably the best QB of his generation.
2. Aaron Rodgers, Pittsburgh Steelers
You could make an argument that Rodgers should be #1 on a list like this, because this is literally his last year in the league. At least, that's what we think.
Now that he's in his 40s, Rodgers feels like he's playing on borrowed time and this isn't exactly the best team he's been on. And Rodgers has already won a Super Bowl, but that was back in 2011 at this point. It's been 15 years since Rodgers reached the mountaintop. Finding a way to win a second Super Bowl would make him one of the few to ever do it on two different teams.
3. Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens
Lamar Jackson has been a generational dual-threat at the quarterback position, an absolute cheat code when it comes to throwing and running. But as good as Jackson is, he's been a bit of a Houdini when it comes to the playoffs.
And that's his reputation right now. Fans joke around about Jackson being the James Harden of the NFL. He's in a very similar boat as Josh Allen, his 2018 NFL Draft classmate. Winning a Super Bowl might not be the difference for either of those guys when it eventually comes to the Hall of Fame, but neither of them wants to find out.
4. Jared Goff, Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions won 15 regular season games during the 2024 season, and got absolutely thrashed by the Washington Commanders in the Divisional Round of the playoffs. It was inexplicable for the team with the #1 offense in football, hosting a playoff game, to get bounced like that.
And that disappointment sort of carried over to the next year. The Lions didn't make the playoffs at all in 2025. Jared Goff has been to the Super Bowl before (2018 with the Rams) and has proven he can be good enough to lead the Lions there. He just has to prove it when it matters.
5. Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams
The pressure on Matthew Stafford to win a Super Bowl this coming season is lessened by the fact that he and the Rams won it all during the 2021 season, but the trade to acquire Myles Garrett absolutely puts the pressure square on the league MVP to get another title.
The Rams have invested a ton in Stafford, not just giving him a bunch of money by going out and getting Davante Adams, trading for Myles Garrett, trading for Trent McDuffie...They have given him one of the strongest supporting casts in league history, at least on paper. The expectation will be to deliver immediatley.
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