To complete my rankings of the top NFL players from 2001 through 2025, I turned to the most important position on the field. This quarterback list follows the same career-value approach used for the running backs, wide receivers, and tight ends, but it uses Quarterback Efficiency Rating instead of Scrimmage Performance Rating.
Tom Brady ranks first with 1,625.7 cumulative QER points. Drew Brees is the only other quarterback above 1,400, followed by Aaron Rodgers, Peyton Manning, and Ben Roethlisberger in the top five.
How the ranking works
I added each quarterback’s QER from every season in which he qualified. The resulting cumulative QER determines the order. When a quarterback appeared in multiple rows after changing teams during a season, I used his combined multi-team rating so that the season counted only once.
QER compares a quarterback with the other qualified quarterbacks from the same season. The Pass Score combines passing efficiency with total production, with efficiency receiving 75% of the weight and production receiving 25%. Passing efficiency considers success percentage, yards per attempt, interception avoidance, first-down percentage, and completion percentage. Production considers passing yards, touchdowns, and first downs.
Quarterback rushing creates a bonus worth up to five points. A quarterback can gain credit for rushing value but is never penalized for not running. The final QER is capped at 100. Quarterbacks qualify by averaging at least 14 pass attempts per scheduled team game.
Because the rating uses season-relative percentiles, cumulative QER provides a common framework for comparing quarterbacks across different offensive eras. This is a ranking of performance within the 2001–2025 window, not a full-career ranking. Production before 2001 does not count, which particularly affects Brett Favre and also excludes the first three seasons of Peyton Manning’s career.
For a complete explanation of the formula, see How the NFL Player Ratings Work.
The top 20
| Rank | Quarterback | Qualified seasons | Cumulative QER | Average QER | Best season | Top-five finishes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tom Brady | 21 | 1,625.7 | 77.4 | 2007 (100.0) | 8 |
| 2 | Drew Brees | 19 | 1,496.7 | 78.8 | 2011 (95.9) | 13 |
| 3 | Aaron Rodgers | 17 | 1,222.0 | 71.9 | 2011 (98.6) | 8 |
| 4 | Peyton Manning | 14 | 1,171.2 | 83.7 | 2004 (98.7) | 10 |
| 5 | Ben Roethlisberger | 17 | 1,168.0 | 68.7 | 2014 (92.6) | 3 |
| 6 | Philip Rivers | 15 | 1,107.5 | 73.8 | 2013 (92.9) | 6 |
| 7 | Matt Ryan | 15 | 1,031.7 | 68.8 | 2016 (97.0) | 3 |
| 8 | Matthew Stafford | 16 | 1,024.9 | 64.1 | 2025 (90.2) | 3 |
| 9 | Russell Wilson | 13 | 825.4 | 63.5 | 2015 (89.2) | 2 |
| 10 | Carson Palmer | 13 | 799.9 | 61.5 | 2015 (90.6) | 3 |
| 11 | Eli Manning | 14 | 737.0 | 52.6 | 2011 (76.7) | 0 |
| 12 | Kirk Cousins | 11 | 721.2 | 65.6 | 2016 (83.8) | 1 |
| 13 | Jared Goff | 9 | 659.3 | 73.3 | 2024 (91.0) | 5 |
| 14 | Brett Favre | 10 | 649.7 | 65.0 | 2001 (85.1) | 2 |
| 15 | Patrick Mahomes | 8 | 646.3 | 80.8 | 2022 (96.3) | 5 |
| 16 | Tony Romo | 8 | 632.4 | 79.0 | 2014 (89.0) | 4 |
| 17 | Dak Prescott | 9 | 616.4 | 68.5 | 2023 (95.7) | 5 |
| 18 | Derek Carr | 11 | 610.6 | 55.5 | 2019 (76.5) | 1 |
| 19 | Matt Hasselbeck | 11 | 592.1 | 53.8 | 2005 (90.7) | 3 |
| 20 | Donovan McNabb | 10 | 575.6 | 57.6 | 2004 (86.2) | 1 |
What stands out
Brady combines the best longevity with a perfect peak
Brady’s 21 qualifying seasons are the most in the top 20. He also finished in the top five eight times and reached the rating’s 100-point cap in 2007. That combination of longevity and elite performance gives him a 129.0-point advantage over Brees.
Brees was a fixture near the top
Brees recorded 13 top-five finishes, three more than any other quarterback on the list. He ranked first twice and averaged 78.8 QER across 19 qualifying seasons. His sustained place among the league’s best quarterbacks makes him the clear No. 2 in cumulative score.
Manning has the best average
Peyton Manning’s 83.7 average QER is the highest in the top 20. He ranked first five times—also the most in the group—and finished in the top five during 10 of his 14 qualifying seasons in the window. He reaches fourth despite the 2001 cutoff excluding three years from his career and missing the 2011 season because of injury.
Rodgers pairs peak performance with longevity
Rodgers ranks third with 1,222.0 cumulative points, eight top-five finishes, and four No. 1 finishes. His 98.6 rating in 2011 is the second-highest best-season score in the top 20, behind only Brady’s capped 100.0.
Mahomes climbed quickly
Patrick Mahomes reaches No. 15 with only eight qualifying seasons. He averaged 80.8 QER, second only to Manning in the top 20, and finished in the top five five times. His 96.3 rating in 2022 highlights how quickly an elite peak can build cumulative value even against quarterbacks with much longer careers.
Availability matters in a cumulative ranking
Roethlisberger ranks fifth and Stafford eighth with 17 and 16 qualifying seasons, respectively. Eli Manning reaches 11th with 14 qualifying seasons despite never recording a top-five finish. The system rewards quarterbacks who continued to meet the workload requirement and add season-relative value over a long period, even when their peak ratings were lower than those of players behind them.
This ranking is not a measure of championships, playoff performance, or reputation. It measures accumulated regular-season passing efficiency, production, and rushing value relative to each season’s qualified quarterbacks. That makes it a career-value companion to the individual yearly ratings rather than a replacement for them.
Browse the NFL ratings archive to see the complete quarterback rankings for each season from 2001 through 2025.