Seahawks/Russell Wilson ranked the top team/QB situation heading into the 2016 season:
"PATRICK DAUGHERTY
GOAL LINE STAND
“Franchise player” has a synonym: Elite quarterback. There are no franchise receivers or guards. Perhaps once a decade the moniker is applied to a non-signal caller.
J.J. Watt,
Adrian Peterson,
Ray Lewis and Lawrence Taylor have all made claims to it. Even amongst quarterbacks, those who earn true “franchise” status are few and far between. Perhaps 9-10 have it now. The rest must be built up instead of built around.
So which teams are in the best shape at sports’ most important position? It’s not as easy as simply having the best quarterback. Age and injury history must be included in any future calculations.
Tom Brady is still playing at an MVP level, but how many years does he have left?
Carson Palmer was dominant in 2015, but is a ticking time bomb of an injury risk.
Tony Romo is having trouble staying on the field. With all that in mind, we’ll assess the league’s quarterback situations
I’ll use the same explainer I did last year because it still rings true: This list will look dramatically different than a straightforward ranking based on 2016 expectations alone. Not that 2016 is completely discounted. Having a good quarterback locked down for even one year is an achievement many teams can’t muster. But the focus is on the future, particularly the next 3-5 seasons.
Last year's list can be found here.
1. Seahawks, Russell Wilson
Last Year’s Ranking: 3
Russell Wilson was the No. 75 overall pick of the 2012 draft. Four years later, he’s made 74 straight starts, and is coming off a stratospheric 2015 that cemented his standing amongst the elite of the elite. You could certainly argue that Wilson still isn’t as good as
Aaron Rodgers, but you can’t argue his age — five years younger. That’s not to say youth alone is Wilson’s claim to the top spot. Whereas Rodgers struggled with a bad supporting cast last season, Wilson has consistently thrived with them. He’s also been held back by a run-first scheme that finally gave way to his unique gifts in 2015.
Marshawn Lynch slept through his victory lap, so Wilson took the reins of the offense and put it on his back. Wilson has no missing pieces. He’s durable bordering on unbreakable, has made 10 postseason starts — including two Super Bowls — and gotten better each year. He is the envy of the league at its most important position. He is the most irreplaceable player in football, and the No. 1 reason the Seahawks will be challenging for Super Bowls for years to come.
2. Packers, Aaron Rodgers
Last Year’s Ranking: 2
12 quarterbacks threw for over 4,000 yards last season.
Aaron Rodgers wasn’t one of them. Playing with the worst supporting cast of his career, Rodgers proved human after all, posting career lows in completion percentage (60.7), yards per attempt (a stunning 6.68) and quarterback rating (92.7). This being Rodgers’ Packers, the season still ended in a place many would kill for — an overtime Divisional Round loss — but Rodgers proved no one is immune to an offense with
Davante Adams as its No. 2 receiver. The good news is, Rodgers appeared in all 16 games for the second consecutive year, and didn’t lose any miles off his fastball. Although he’s now 32, Rodgers remains in his physical prime. The even better news is that
Jordy Nelson is back for 2016, giving Rodgers the No. 1 he so desperately missed, and returning
Randall Cobb to the No. 2 role he’s best suited for. 2015 was a bad year for Rodgers, but a one-off, not the beginning of the end. Rodgers is the league’s best pure passer, and should remain so for at least the next 2-3 seasons.
3. Panthers, Cam Newton
Last Year’s Ranking: 8
Cam Newton was already unlike any player in NFL history. In 2015, he had a season to match, becoming the first quarterback to throw for 35 touchdowns while managing 10 more on the ground. Newton did so with
Ted Ginn as his “No. 1 receiver” and
Jonathan Stewart as his No. 1 running back. Newton carried his offense to a degree rarely seen, and an unprecedented one for a dual-threat quarterback. Newton’s 2015 was the fulfillment of the
Michael Vick prophecy. As you consider Newton’s future, you could harp on the fact that he takes more crushing hits than any quarterback, or instead marvel that he’s missed only one game with a football-related injury in five years. Newton may not be indestructible, but he sure has looked like it. He’s also remained on a steady upward trajectory, and is just 124 days older than
Andrew Luck. It’s possible Newton has already had his career year, but he’s 27 with an MVP and three straight division titles under his belt. Newton has delivered on his promise, and promises to keep the Panthers in contention for years to come.
4. Colts, Andrew Luck
Last Year’s Ranking: 1
Neither
Andrew Luck’s physical or mental gifts are in doubt. The 26 year old can make any throw, and is Roethlisberger-strong in the pocket. He is one of the most outwardly cerebral athletes in sports. He’s won. A lot. None of that can hide the fact that 2015 was a major step backwards. Even though he was playing hurt before he got
injured, Luck’s performance cannot be excused. He produced only two more touchdowns (15) than turnovers (13), and was more
Blake Bortles than
Peyton Manning with his accuracy. The disastrous campaign also brought Luck’s good-but-not-great career numbers into sharp relief. Through 55 starts and 2,106 NFL throws, Luck has completed a mediocre 58.1 percent of his passes. He’s barely cleared 7.00 yards per attempt (7.05), and is the owner of an 85.0 quarterback rating. Luck is a born playmaker. He almost singlehandedly turned a 2-14 disaster into a three-time division champion overnight. But he’s not a finished product, and four years in, it’s fair to wonder what Luck is working toward. He still might be the heir apparent to Manning, Brady and Rodgers. He could also be a glorified
Matthew Stafford. The former is still more likely, but the latter must at least be considered. That wasn’t the case this time a year ago.
5. Steelers, Ben Roethlisberger
Last Year’s Ranking: 5
Ben Roethlisberger is better than ever. This isn’t really up for debate. The 34 year old completed 68 percent of his passes last season while still somehow averaging 8.4 yards per attempt. Roethlisberger has the rare ability to not only drive the ball down the field, but maintain his accuracy while doing so. According to Pro Football Focus,
no one was better at it last year. The problem is that even though Ben is better than ever, he’s also older and more injury prone than ever. Roethlisberger got carted off the field not once, not twice, but three times in 2015, suffering knee, foot and shoulder injuries. He mixed in a concussion for good measure. Roethlisberger has truly gotten better with age, but can age remain kind to someone who takes so many hits? If it does, Roethlisberger will threaten for MVP status with
Antonio Brown,
Le'Veon Bell,
Markus Wheaton,
Sammie Coates and
Ladarius Green at his disposal.
6. Patriots, Tom Brady/Jimmy Garoppolo
Last Year’s Ranking: 9
In the NFL, age does not let you down gently — it stalks like a predator on the open savanna.
Peyton Manning was challenging for the MVP midway through the 2014 season. 16 months later, he was retiring because it was his only option. The cliff is waiting for
Tom Brady, too, but damn if he isn’t doing an amazing job eluding it. Brady was the league’s best player last season before injuries robbed him of his weapons. Even with all the carnage, he still got his team to within a field goal of its seventh Super Bowl appearance on his watch. Going on 39, Brady could have as few as two years left, but two years of Brady is better than five from an average quarterback. Brady’s four-game suspension complicates matters for 2016, but 12 starts should be more than enough to put the Pats in the driver’s seat for their eighth consecutive AFC East title.
"
NFL's Best QB Situations 2016 - Rotoworld.com
