There are a wide variety of NFL quarterbacks. Let's power rank them in tiers ahead of the 2025 NFL Season. While many QB rankings are just number rankings, we took a different spin here and are going to be ranking quarterbacks across the NFL by tiers.
We've got six clear tiers of the QB hierarchy in this league, and if a team wants to win substantive games in 2025 and beyond, they better hope that their QB is in one of the first three tiers. Finding a franchise quarterback does seem to be the hardest thing to do in all of sports, so many teams are struggling in that department.
Let's rank NFL quarterbacks by tiers for 2025.
Power ranking NFL quarterbacks by tiers for the 2025 NFL Season
Tier 6: We've got a problem
Anthony Richardson, Daniel Jones, Mason Rudolph, Joe Flacco
These quarterbacks are just truly the worst of the worst at this point, but could also have huge concerns due to age and perhaps an extremely low ceiling. We've got a wide variety of passers in this tier, but for multiple reasons, they are the worst QBs in the NFL right now.
You really can't get much worse.
Tier 5: Shaky veterans, not proven franchise players
Geno Smith, Sam Darnold, Justin Fields, Russell Wilson, Kirk Cousins, Aaron Rodgers
The shaky veteran tier is reserved for QBs who are clearly short-term options - perhaps only one-year options. They absolutely are not franchise passers, and there is a reason why every QB on this list won't start for their 2024 team in 2025.
I mean, I guess Kirk Cousins could remain with the Falcons and potentially get a start, but you get this point here. This is kind of a 'bridge quarterback' tier. No NFL team should entrust these passers for franchise QB ability - they don't have it.
Tier 4: Young passers with optimism
Drake Maye, Caleb Williams, Bryce Young, Michael Penix Jr, Cam Ward, JJ McCarthy
The young passers with optimism have varying degrees of such. Now while Cam Ward and JJ McCarthy have not taken a snap in a regular season game, they have optimism with their teams for different reasons. Drake Maye and Caleb Williams looked encouraging as rookies, and Bryce Young did come along nicely following his benching in the 2024 NFL Season.
There is a scenario where all of these QBs are unquestioned franchise quarterbacks in the 2026 NFL Season.
Tier 3: Average franchise QBs with concerns but reasons for optimism
Dak Prescott, Trevor Lawrence, Baker Mayfield, Jalen Hurts, Kyler Murray, Tua Tagovailoa, Brock Purdy
This is essentially the middle class of NFL quarterbacks. Teams could be a lot better off, but they could also be a lot worse off, so it does leave many of these teams in an interesting situation, as they could be holding out hope that their starting QB emerges as one of the best in the league, but there is also a path to winning with them in their current state.
We have seen all of these quarterbacks in the playoffs in recent years, but none of them are clear-cut, carry-the-team franchise passers. Brock Purdy did just become one of the highest-paid passers in the NFL, and all of Dak Prescott, Trevor Lawrence, Jalen Hurts, and Tua Tagovailoa are playing under deals worth over $50 million per season.
Tier 2: Franchise QBs with insane upside but still with something to prove
Jordan Love, Justin Herbert, Bo Nix, CJ Stroud
Now we are starting to get into the best of the best, but we're not quite there yet. These four passers are franchise quarterbacks, and no one should dispute that, but they do have something to prove despite the insane upside they possess.
Jordan Love and the Packers have been stuck in the 'good' mud for two years now. Justin Herbert has been extremely efficient, but is missing playoff success. Bo Nix did a lot with little in 2024 and led the Broncos to the playoffs, but can he do it again?
And CJ Stroud has helped lead the Houston Texans to two-straight AFC South titles and two-straight divisional round appearances, but will be eventually emerge as an elite QB who can push for a Super Bowl?
These four teams should still be very optimistic about the future with these young passers.
Tier 1: Elite, franchise quarterbacks; the best of the best
Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Joe Burrow, Lamar Jackson, Matthew Stafford, Jayden Daniels, Jared Goff
And now we have the unquestioned best in the NFL - these players are stud, elite, marvelous franchise quarterbacks. Four of these quarterbacks have at least played in the Super Bowl. Patrick Mahomes and Matthew Stafford have a ring, though.
Josh Allen won the MVP in 2024 and has thrusted the Bills to the top of the AFC, and Lamar Jackson is the best dual-threat QB of all-time. Jayden Daniels appeared in the NFC Championship Game as a rookie, so it's not hard to see why he's being ranked this high.
The Tier 1 quarterbacks are the best the NFL has to offer, period.