The Top Ten Best Quarterbacks Currently in the NFL
By Editorial Staff
The NFL Network recently finished up their series on the “Top 100 Players in 2011” as voted on by the players. Whether you agreed with their list or not one thing is clear and that is that quarterbacks are still considered to be the most important position on a football field. Twelve quarterbacks made an appearance on the NFL Network list, three of which were ranked in the top ten. This list even forced a few of my friends into a heated debate as to who were the best quarterbacks currently playing in the league. Below is my opinion. Let me know what you think and who your top ten quarterbacks are.
1) Tom Brady
Brady is coming off of a terrific season and he is still in the prime of a hall of fame career. You could make a case that Manning is the better player, but it is VERY close and I am going to give it to Brady because (a) he is coming off of a better season and (b) he has a better head of hair.
2) Peyton Manning
Brady and Manning should really be described as a 1 and 1a. They both are the pinnacle of what being a great quarterback is about. Peyton is coming off of a slight down year by Manning standards, but he is still one of the best in the business. No quarterback is more feared at the end of games than this crazy Colt.
3) Drew Brees
I have difficulty talking about Brees. Not because he isn’t a great player, but because I am Dolphins fans and every time I see him play I think of how good he would have looked in the Aqua and Orange. Too bad Nick “the d_ _k” Saban didn’t feel the same way in 2006…but at least I got to watch Culpepper play four times! Simply put Drew Brees is an assassin under centre.
4) Aaron Rodgers
The last few years Rodgers was always described as a great player who needs to win a Super Bowl if he is going to be placed in the same sentence as Brady, Manning and Brees. Well Rodgers has now accomplished that and being he is still only 27, his potential appears endless.
5) Ben Roethlisberger
Ben Roethlisberger plays ugly, but he wins ugly too. He might not always have the greatest stats but he has a knack for playing his best in the biggest moments. At 28 he has already been to three Super Bowls and won two of them. Outside of Brady and Manning, Big Ben might be the most terrifying fourth quarter quarterback in the game.
6) Philip Rivers
Rivers is currently faced with the same dilemma that Rodgers dealt with last year. He is an unbelievable talent, with great stats, but he still needs to go to a Super Bowl to carve a place among the elite.
7) Michael Vick
I still cant believe I am placing Vick in the top ten. Not because he wasn’t terrific last year, because he was, but to think that two years a go his image was tarnished and he had to beg a team to take a chance on him as a back up. I give Vick a lot of credit for owning up to his mistakes and trying to fix his public persona. This current seventh ranking might still be high considering Vick has only played one good year in the last five, but if he continues to go in the direction he was heading in 2010, than this seventh ranking might be considered low at this same time next year.
8)Matt Ryan
“Matty Ice” has proven he has all of the tools to succeed in the NFL. He has shown great poise and an ability to lead. Ryan still has his whole career in front of him and if the next five years are anything like the last five have been then Falcons fans are in for a real treat.
9) Tony Romo
Romo often gets knocked for his inability to come up clutch in big situations. There is no denying that Romo has struggled in some big games throughout his career. But he is still one of the most dangerous quarterbacks in the game. If Romo ever wins a Super Bowl I think people will start viewing his career a lot differently. His stats are great and he has won a lot of football games for the Cowboy’s over the years; he just needs to win the big one and prove the doubters wrong the same way another star player from Dallas did this year during the NBA Finals.
10) Eli Manning
Eli’s biggest fault is that he is Peyton’s little brother. He will never be as good as Peyton, but he is still a darn good quarterback. He has proved he has the ability to get the job done when it matters most after his MVP performance in the 2008 Super Bowl. Manning’s fourth quarter drive to upset the heavily favored Patriots was the stuff of legends.
Honorable Mention: Josh Freeman