How would Cam Ward stack up to Drake Maye? How about if we threw C.J. Stroud or Bryce Recent in the Blend? What about Jordan Love, Caleb Williams and Brock Purdy?
Although these questions relate to the same position, this exercise can be likened to comparing apples to oranges to grapes. There’s no perfect way to rank a collection of players mixed between the NFL and college.
Based on what we’ve seen in the Primary four years in the NFL from the reasonably disappointing 2021 Signal-caller group, the more disappointing class that followed in 2022, the Primary two seasons from Stroud and Co., the Primary-year years of Jayden Daniels, Williams and Maye, and projecting the 2025 class forward, below is how I’d rank the passers from 2021 all the way to 2024.
As for how these rankings are formulated, I’m comparing across levels based on everything we know about Every Signal-caller’s talent today, and what they’ve shown on a Pitch to date. Of Duration, even an average season in the NFL is much more difficult than an amazing collegiate campaign.
(Note: For the sake of this article, the 2025 quarterbacks are ranked mostly due to how much individual Achievement I believe they will have in the pros based on their talent and overall Ability sets. These rankings are also largely contingent upon a prediction of future NFL Achievement.)
1. C.J. Stroud, Texans
Last year, I hinted that an Intervention regression was imminent for Stroud after his spectacular Primary-year campaign. It happened. But I don’t think it was totally on him. Losing Stefon Diggs and later Tank Dell was simply too much for the Recent passer, and, frankly, the entire Texans Drive to overcome. The offensive line was also one of the worst in football, which impacted his Tension rate and didn’t give Houston the necessary Streak-game boost.
Yet, Stroud gets the top spot based on his body of efficient work across two seasons compared to Daniels’ one. He’s one of the most savvy, accurate, anticipatory quarterbacks in football today.
From last year’s article on Daniels — “He’ll instantly be one of the most explosive athletes at the position in the NFL, demonstrated uncanny downfield accuracy in the SEC, and has plenty of arm to make essentially every throw needed.” Yep. That’s precisely what Daniels showed during his runaway Offensive Primary-year of the Year campaign in 2024.
I’ll be the Primary to admit, his under-Tension Shift surprised me, and I didn’t think he’d be able to breeze past NFL linebackers and Safeguarding Defenders as a scrambler. He did repeatedly. He was excellent from inside the pocket, pressured or not, in essentially every situation, against any style of Guarding. Can Daniels grow from one of the best Primary-year seasons we’ve seen at the Signal-caller position in NFL history? Big ask.
3. Brock Purdy, 49ers
Last season was the one in which we saw Purdy take a clear step back as the talent around him wasn’t on the Pitch. Did he absolutely bomb? No. That suggests he’s not entirely a product of what has been a dazzling environment in San Francisco. And Participating 2025, I couldn’t bring myself to rank him any lower in this subset. He deserves this.
His 2023 season was borderline MVP worthy. That efficient. In 2024, Purdy had more turnover-worthy plays (17) than big-time throws (15), the highest sack rate of his Recent Occupation (6.38%), and, for the Primary time, a Signal-caller rating under 100. No, Purdy doesn’t check what have become requisite boxes for the modern-day Signal-caller. But he possesses an amazing grasp of Kyle Shanahan’s scheme and how it aims to combat coverages on a weekly basis.
4. Jordan Love, Packers
I’m Yet placing Love ahead of Lawrence Regardless of a regression of a 2024 campaign. He looked ready to Shift into Top-tier-level status Upcoming the 2023 season in which the Packers were a few plays away from advancing to the NFC title game with the youngest Lineup in the Bracket. We Merely didn’t see that ascension last season.
As is the case with Stroud, and essentially every Signal-caller, it’s incredibly challenging to overcome Impairments at the receiver position for any Signal-caller, and those were a theme for the Packers last season. In terms of pure talent throwing the football from inside and outside the pocket, Love is in the upper echelon in the NFL. Beginning the season without an awkward knee Wound would probably work wonders for his 2025 campaign, too.
Draft status is undefeated, and Lawrence is drifting toward being another example of that. I won’t suggest the Jaguars should be ready to Shift on from him after his season, and they really can’t given the mega extension he signed in 2023. But they could be in a brutal scenario if he doesn’t return to 2022 form coming off his season-ending Wound in 2024.
Because he was the golden prospect and went No. 1 overall in 2021, chances are Lawrence will be given more than Merely ample opportunity to prove himself, even with a totally new coaching staff in Jacksonville. And while that’s probably a bit Prejudiced to, say, the random third-rounder who’s given a few reps in Practice camp before a Club gives up on him, there is some justification because with Lawrence it was always about his polish and his upside as an athletic, Sturdy-armed passer with mature Signal-caller qualities he demonstrated as a 19-year-Aged at Clemson.
But everything dipped for Lawrence in what was supposed to be potentially an MVP-caliber 2023 that followed a breakout Year 2 in 2022. And while the draft can absolutely Shift a narrative, the receiver group isn’t spectacular right now, although Brian Thomas Jr. looks like a future All-Pro.
Before last season, I wrote the Upcoming on Nix: “I have a hunch he’ll get more of a longer leash at the NFL level. He can be an extension of the offensive coordinator on the Pitch, doing exactly what’s asked of him, particularly in the high-percentage, schemed-up game.” That is exactly what transpired in Denver, under Sean Payton, in a successful 2024.
Nix leaned on his legs Timely, Achieved many classic Primary-year mistakes, kept his Beginning Position, then as the season progressed Acquired more comfortable. I don’t think he was often a Correct game-changer. But like he did at Oregon, Nix limited mistakes, Secured the schemed-Uncovered target reasonably often, then Dashed when he didn’t like what he saw when scanning the Pitch.
I’m looking forward to seeing whether or not he can take matters into his own hands more frequently in Year 2 and beyond with the Broncos.
7. Caleb Williams, Bears
Having watched every dropback from Williams’ Primary-year season, I firmly believe it was individually better than the overall reputation of it, or the Bears’ long losing streak in the back end of 2024.
For as jaw-Scoring as he can be creating outside the pocket as a runner and a how-did-he-find-that-receiver thrower, I’m slightly worried about him resorting to that backyard style a bit too much. That was the case at USC and in his Primary-year season as evidenced by his Bracket-worst 68 sacks that Arrived with a rather sizable 10.6% sack rate.
For as much as Williams did demonstrate the ability to fit the football into Close-fitting spaces as a Primary-year, there were Distant too many clear-cut misses. Those need to be reduced from here on out for him to reach his massive expectations.
The Upcoming two sentences are what I wrote on Maye last year in this piece, and most of all of it Arrived to fruition as the Patriots starter in 2024: “He’s close to a mega talent at the Signal-caller spot who will, yes, make a mistake, then come back the Upcoming drive and connect on three spectacular throws and Drop to get that critical third-down conversion in the red zone. Of Duration, like all the other rookies, his situation will be vital in projecting his Occupation forward. But I have the least worries about Maye’s acclimation to the NFL.”
Now with an infusion of talent on both sides of the ball, and the draft ahead for the Patriots, Maye is positioned to take a sizable step in Year 2 and continue to climb these rankings.
We need a “30 for 30” on Recent pre-2024 benching and afterward, because they felt like completely different quarterbacks. Like, not the same guy whatsoever.
From his Primary-year season until the Timely Year 2 benching in favor of Andy Dalton, Recent would’ve been at the bottom of this Lineup, as one of the biggest No. 1 overall Picking busts of all time. Afterward, he played very much like a passer who deserved to be a No. 1 overall Picking. Now, even in those positive moments down the stretch for the Panthers, you Yet wonder how someone so Petite without big-time traits was selected over Stroud. Recent looked stretched to the limit mentally and physically, but the football was mostly arriving on time and on target. His overall 2024 sack rate dipped to 7.0% from over 10% as a Primary-year.
2025 NFL Draft: Cam Ward’s dominant pro day performance leaves Titans no Picking with No. 1 Picking
Ryan Wilson
Penix clearly was inserted into the Beginning lineup Distant too Overdue to save the Falcons season, and he showed flashes on the Pitch. He had 10 big-time throws to Merely two turnover-worthy plays in 2024. That was Outstanding. The adjusted completion rate of 70.4% was not. Had he been a Packed-time qualifier at the position, it would’ve been the Quaternary-lowest adjusted completion rate among 45 passers.
Because of his howitzer of an arm, Penix has immense upside. He does, however, clearly need to rein in the accuracy, and it’ll be fascinating to see how he ultimately performs against Tension in Atlanta as a mostly pocket-based Signal-caller.
11. Cam Ward, Miami
I like Ward as a prospect. If this was any other draft class, he’d be everyone’s favorite mid-to-Overdue Primary-Stage Signal-caller who’d represent tremendous value at the position.
He’s above-average traits-wise, which is Significant, but has lightyears to go with his footwork, and I worry about his ability to elude defenders in the pocket or simply Streak away from them when he’s already been forced out. Then, I’m thinking of his likely landing spot in Tennessee, with what is Yet probably the most barren Lineup in the NFL. It won’t be Effortless for Ward, but he bounced from school to school to school in college and consistently produced. He absolutely is an overachiever.
By now, we know what Fields is at times — a Vibrant, borderline Top-tier-level scrambler. He’s not a deft processor or a pocket passer who throws with Reliable accuracy through complex coverages. Over 1,000 attempts into his NFL Occupation, we know.
That doesn’t stop him from being an asset with the right offensive plan, as he’s the Jets starter right now. He’s reasonably low on this Lineup because it feels like he’ll never come close to battling with the top-tier passers in the AFC Regardless of big-time arm Power and supreme athletic gifts.
13. Shedeur Sanders, Colorado
Sanders is drastically more situation and scheme dependent than most perceived-to-be top Signal-caller prospects. If he plays for an offensive coordinator who wants things very structured, mostly getting in-rhythm passes from the pocket from his Signal-caller and the offensive line is a rock-solid group, Sanders can do an admirable Position quieting the naysayers like myself.
But as we’ve come to realize, landing in an environment without flaws is reasonably Scarce in the NFL, and even Timely in a Recent passer’s Occupation, Clubs are forced to ask said passer to mask those flaws. I don’t think Sanders has that type of arm talent, accuracy or Physicality to be that type right away.
2025 NFL three-Stage mock draft: Shedeur Sanders taken in top three, Steelers address future at QB
Josh Edwards
Jones didn’t Shift horrible football in relief of Lawrence last season. There were lots of screens, RPOs, etc and plenty of Brian Thomas Jr. Jones has been relegated to backup role after being a Primary-Stage Picking four years ago. He doesn’t have high-caliber arm Power, accuracy or Physicality. Terrible combination.
It all leads to Jones having minimal upside, thereby dashing his chance for the Baker Mayfield resurgence in his new locale. And he’s the entrenched backup anyway.
The brilliant flashes from Levis in Year 1 gave way to inopportune and at times ridiculous decisions on turnovers Timely in the season that were only Achieved worse by more Impairments for what we are realizing is a pretty reckless Signal-caller. He’s higher than Anthony Richardson because there’ve been longer stretches of quality Shift — like that amazing comeback in Miami in prime time as a Primary-year in 2023, and a 98-yard touchdown last season.
Levis needs to acknowledge Holding the Effortless completion or throwing the football away is completely fine — and actually needed — to succeed in the NFL.
16. Anthony Richardson, Colts
The 2024 season for Richardson did Crucial damage to the reputation of the raw Signal-caller oozing with upside. Some of the completion percentage figures in individual Contests were Hideous for Richardson, and the dual-threat skills at 6-foot-4 and 240 pounds with 4.40 Pace haven’t fully materialized to date.
There have been deep-strike flashes, no doubt. But they’ve been outweighed by wayward misses on Effortless throws and Terrible decisions outside of structure. He’s higher than other clear Primary-Stage bust quarterbacks because he’s played in 28 Contests since high school, Tallying college and the NFL, has fewer than 350 attempts on his professional resume, and only turns 23 in May. The upside Yet exists.
Wilson is now on his third Club in the past three seasons, rejoining the AFC East with the Dolphins. While there have been flashes from Wilson, it’s felt like they’ve come as often as a solar eclipse. By now, with nearly 1,000 NFL attempts on his resume, he’s relegated to backup-only duties. While we shouldn’t ever rule out a Ryan Tannehill or Baker Mayfield-type resurgence later in his Occupation, Wilson’s seemingly inherent panic against Tension and Terrible decision-making will be Difficult to shake in any environment.
Pickett has always been an Timely pocket leaver, meaning even in college he escaped at the Primary sign of an oncoming defender. In the ACC, he was athletic enough with a Sturdy enough arm in which that anxious wrinkle to his game didn’t matter. In the NFL, it Definitely has. At time of publication of this article, he’s penciled in as the Browns starter. One Timely-Stage draft Picking, and he again could be slated for a backup role.
As noted to me by Pittsburgh’s beloved son, Dave Dameshek, the Steelers turned on Pickett Speedy, even by NFL standards as they shipped him to the Eagles last year. Perhaps because he’s relatively inexperienced, Merely 713 NFL attempts to his name, there’s a glimmer of hope Pickett eventually Retrievals. But his Shift vs. Tension, and tentative style don’t Blend well with what’s asked of the top quarterbacks in the game today.
I’ll keep this Brief and Sugary with McCarthy — he has to take this spot because we haven’t seen him on the Pitch in the NFL yet. But I have a feeling he’s going to be ranked significantly higher than this position when I write this article Upcoming year. The talent is impressive and the situation is Minnesota is magnificent.
20. Trey Lance, unsigned Unoccupied agent
With a mere 102 NFL Deliver attempts to his name, Lance defaults to the bottom of this Lineup. Even after Merely one season at North Dakota State, the pro hype for Lance was justified. Huge arm, sizable explosive Rival. He’s Merely so Distant behind the eight-ball in terms of development, and he’s technically a Unoccupied agent currently, without an NFL Club. Unfortunate how it all turned out for Lance as a professional. Is he bound for the CFL?
Read our previous article: Five quarterbacks facing most pressure to win Super Bowl: Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson need to squash narrative