Who is the best quarterback in each division? These NFL Power Rankings work that out with new battles featuring Josh Allen, Aaron Rodgers and more to come.
In the NFL, quarterback is king. Having a good one is usually the difference between winning and wallowing. Having a great one doesn't guarantee a division crown or a Super Bowl but it makes it a whole lot easier.
So which teams have the edge in their division, at the quarterback position at least?
We're looking at each of the eight divisions in the league and determining the pecking order of quarterbacks going into the 2023 season.
NFL power rankings: Quarterbacks in the AFC East
- Josh Allen
- Aaron Rodgers
- Tua Tagovailoa
- Mac Jones
Josh Allen used to reign pretty easily as the best quarterback in the AFC East but the competition is rising to meet him, putting the pressure on the Bills more than ever.
Aaron Rodgers trading in his Packers Green for Gang Green means there is legitimate debate at the top. Even so, Allen is entering his prime while Rodgers is seeing out the final stages of his career. It may be hard for Allen to match the breadth of Rodgers' career but in terms of the 2023 season, it's not a difficult pick.
Tua Tagovailoa is the wild card here. Playing the way he was before the first of multiple concussions in 2022, the Dolphins quarterback looked every bit the Top 5 draft pick. All-in-all, even with the concern over his health, he put in a strong campaign with a better passer rating, touchdown percentage and interception percentage than any of the other three quarterbacks in play here. Outperforming Rodgers is not out of the question this season.
Mac Jones didn't stand a chance in this one. The Patriots quarterback will surely produce more with an actual offensive coordinator leading the way in New England this year. He's just never going to be in the conversation with the other three.
NFL power rankings: Quarterbacks in the AFC North
- Joe Burrow
- Lamar Jackson
- Deshaun Watson
- Kenny Pickett
There's a strong argument to say the AFC North has the second-best lineup of quarterbacks of all the divisions in the league (no one is touching the AFC West, but more on that later).
It starts at the top with Joe Burrow, who is far and away the No. 1 guy even in a stacked division. The Bengals quarterback led his team to the brink of a Super Bowl appearance with a quarterback rating of 100.8. There's no reason to believe he can't keep them in contention this year and beyond.
It says more about Burrow that he's No. 1 than it says about Jackson that he's No. 2. The former MVP is still one of the top playmakers in the NFL. When he's healthy, he's a unique challenge to defend with rushing ability to supplement underrated passing prowess. Managing to bring him back means Baltimore will have a chance to unseat the Bengals at the top of the standings.
Deshaun Watson slotting in at No. 3 is a nod to his previous form with the Texans. He looked like he'd sat out a season and a half when he finally got to step in at QB for the Browns. After completing just 58.2 percent of his passes and posting an interception rate of 2.9 in six games last year, he needs to prove he's still got it.
Kenny Pickett struggled early in his rookie campaign but he noticeably progressed with each week of the season, giving Steelers fans plenty of reasons for optimism that he can handle replacing Ben Roethlisberger in the long term.
NFL power rankings: Quarterbacks in the AFC South
- Trevor Lawrence
- Ryan Tannehill
- CJ Stroud
- Anthony Richardson
There are only two types of divisions in the NFL this year when it comes to quarterbacks: Ones that are stacked and ones that have question marks splattered all over. The AFC South is the latter.
Trevor Lawrence is the cream of the crop. He's on schedule coming out of his second year in the league with improvement at just about every level. The next question for the young Jaguars quarterback is whether he can take the leap from Year 1 to Year 2 and continue to build on it.
Ryan Tannehill is in the final year of his contract and another season like 2022, with just 2,536 yards, 13 touchdowns and six interceptions, won't give the Titans any incentive to persist with him. He is who he is. But knowing that Tennessee has a serviceable, if uninspiring quarterback, keeps him ahead of the rookies.
CJ Stroud was the No. 2 overall pick in the NFL Draft. Anthony Richardson was the No. 4 selection. Both look in line to start immediately as rookies because the Texans and Colts don't have quarterbacks ahead of them worth delaying the inevitable. At this stage, we can't possibly know what either quarterback will be capable of delivering so early in their careers.
NFL power rankings: Quarterbacks in the AFC West
- Patrick Mahomes
- Justin Herbert
- Russell Wilson
- Jimmy Garoppolo
It is absurd how strong the AFC North quarterback picture is. You've got the MVP, one of the best young passers in the game, a nine-time Pro Bowler and a quarterback with a 40-17 career record.
Patrick Mahomes is the best quarterback in the league, so there's no question who tops the AFC West. He makes all the plays, with his arm or his legs, on the biggest stages. With another Super Bowl victory under his belt, Mahomes is without equal right now.
Justin Herbert looks like he has it all but a reliable team around him. Yeah, his numbers dipped in 2022 and he'll have to rebound a bit to prove he's still on the path towards elite status. However, it feels very reasonable to say the Chargers are holding him back more than he's holding them back.
Russell Wilson had a truly miserable 2022 season. Between the Broncos' unimaginably toothless offense under Nathaniel Hackett and injuries hampering the quarterback, everything that could go wrong did go wrong. Wilson was an outstanding QB for a decade. It has to get better in 2023 right?
Jimmy Garoppolo is a perfectly solid game manager who can lead a team to victory if they're built to win. He's not going to elevate a team, however, so he's an easy fourth choice in the AFC West. Having said that, he's probably the best fourth-place QB in the league.
NFL power rankings: Quarterbacks in the NFC East
- Jalen Hurts
- Dak Prescott
- Daniel Jones
- Sam Howell OR Jacoby Brissett
The NFC East could be one of the better divisions for quarterbacks, but the doubters also could have a field day in this one.
Jalen Hurts quieted a whole lot of the questions about him with an exceptional campaign and playoff showing. While he only threw 22 touchdowns, he added 13 on the ground, proving his dynamic ability to lead an offense. His performance in the Super Bowl will go down as one of the all-time great outings in a losing effort, making him an easy pick for No. 1 in the division.
Dak Prescott is a good quarterback. Can he become a great one? He started to look that way in 2021 with 37 touchdowns to his name, but last year he regressed. Leading the league in interceptions is not the way to assure fans that you can lead them to the promised land.
Speaking of questions about being "the guy," Daniel Jones has entered the conversation. Jones is…fine. He delivered through the air and on the ground last year with 15 passing TDs and seven rushing. He minimized mistakes with just five interceptions. He's just not anything special. At least not yet.
The Commanders would love to have a quarterback of Jones' level though. They're going into the season with either Sam Howell or Jacoby Brissett at the helm. Brissett is not getting enough credit for his admirable showing with the Browns last year but he's not a particularly inspiring starter. Howell has one game of playing experience. Whichever QB wins the job, they're the worst in the division.
NFL power rankings: Quarterbacks in the NFC North
- Jared Goff
- Kirk Cousins
- Jordan Love
- Justin Fields
Ah, here's where the controversy really ramps up. The NFC North boils down to a preference between Jared Goff or Kirk Cousins, with Jordan Love and Justin Fields waiting in the wings to prove they belong in the discussion. Right now they don't.
Goff gets the nod. He threw the same number of touchdowns and half as many interceptions as Cousins in 2022. He also had a better passer rating and did a better job of avoiding sacks. The Lions quarterback is leading a team on the rise and it's going to be fun to watch him with the full backing of Detroit.
Cousins is cursed as a good but never great quarterback. He can put up excellent numbers but there always seems to be something missing. Still, 4,547 yards through the air is nothing to scoff at.
Fields has had more opportunities to show us what he does and doesn't do well, and that's working against him relative to Love, who has made minimal appearances. Still, Love acquitted himself well last year when he was called upon and chances are he'll be serviceable for the Packers this year.
As for Fields, his touchdown rate of 5.3 percent and interception rate of 3.5, both division highs, say it all. He's feast or famine. If he settles down and cuts out the turnovers in 2023, he'll rise.
NFL power rankings: Quarterbacks in the NFC South
- Derek Carr
- Baker Mayfield
- Bryce Young
- Desmond Ridder
The NFC South is going to be a fascinating watch in 2023 because quarterback play could be all over the place.
Derek Carr is far and away the surest thing in the division. His time with the Raiders may have ended ugly but even his worst years in black and silver were mostly solid. He's thrown 14 interceptions each of the last two seasons so he'll need to clean that up if he really wants to be the class of the NFC South.
Turnovers are also a problem for Baker Mayfield, but at least we've seen what he can do across a full NFL season. In Tampa Bay, can he recapture the 2020 version of himself that threw for 26 touchdowns with just eight interceptions while leading the Browns to an 11-5 record? Or will he revert to the 17-touchdown, 13-interception version from 2021? The answer is probably somewhere in between.
Bryce Young was the No. 1 overall pick in the draft because he's that gifted. That doesn't mean he'll be an instant success. His size is a real concern and the rookie learning curve is steep.
Ridder started the final four games of the season for the Falcons, waiting until the final game to throw his first touchdowns. The former third-rounder doesn't have the clear talent of Young, but he did fine in his 2022 debut. We'll see where he goes from here.
NFL power rankings: Quarterbacks in the NFC West
- Geno Smith
- Matthew Stafford
- Kyler Murray
- Brock Purdy
Imagine telling yourself in 2021 that Geno Smith would be the top quarterback in the NFC West going into 2023. But it's the truth. Smith tossed 30 touchdowns with 4,282 yards while completing 69.8 percent of his passes last year. Maybe he'll come back to earth this year. It just feels like he's found his place in Seattle.
The Rams were the biggest train wreck last year, which is saying something in a division that also houses the Cardinals. Under most other circumstances Matthew Stafford would be the man in the NFC West but what about LA makes anyone believe they'll give the support he needs to bounce back?
We've seen Kyler Murray be a thrilling playmaker, but injuries and the deterioration of his relationship with the Cardinals brass has essentially tanked his reputation. First-time offensive coordinator Drew Petzing needs to rebuild the quarterback from the ground up.
If we assume Brock Purdy returns from his elbow injury no worse for wear, it feels absurd to place him at the bottom of the division. But who do you displace in favor of the former Mr. Irrelevant? Purdy ran Kyle Shanahan's offense beautifully and limited mistakes. He needs to replicate that success in 2023 before it's justified to place him ahead of Smith's production, Stafford's history or Murray's talent.
