Top 25 Quarterbacks Prior to the Start of the 2018-2019 NFL Season

Going into the 2018- 2019 NFL season it appears the quality of quarterbacks is very deep. More than half the league believes their quarterback is good enough to win them a super bowl. I go through my ranking of the best quarterbacks right now before the season starts. This favors older more proven guys like Drew Brees and Matt Ryan where it keep guys like Deshaun Watson and Carson Wentz a little bit lower on the list until they can prove their elite status for more than one year.  Check back again as I continue this series ranking other key positions and what guys are the best of the best at their respective positions.

1. Aaron Rodgers: After missing much of last season there will be a fire under Rodgers’s belt. He is one of the most consistent quarterbacks in the league and he will do whatever it takes to make the playoffs.
2. Tom Brady: His age says 41, but his arm says 25. It’s insane that this guy is still playing at such a high level and to be honest, as long as he can still compete, I don’t see him stopping any time soon.
3. Drew Brees: Talking about consistency, Drew Brees has not throw for less than 4000 yards in a season since 2005 with San Diego. The man just puts up numbers and will do the same again this season.
4. Russell Wilson: Coming off a year where he lead the league in passing touchdowns, Russell Wilson has shown real growth to his passing game. If he continues to elevate his game you might see him rise up even higher on this list in the coming future.
5. Cam Newton: Cam is a very tough player for me to rank because unlike the other players above him, he isn’t as consistent. However, for NFL teams he is one of the toughest players to game plan for because of how dominant he is in so many aspects of the game.  
6. Ben Roethlisberger: After starting the season very slow, Big Ben picked it up big time and finished 5th in passing yards and 6th in touchdowns. Even though he is 6th on the list now, it does appear Big Ben is suffering from aging and I would not be surprised if he started to take some steps back in the coming years.
7. Philip Rivers: With a team primed for success (baring injuring), Rivers has shown that he is still a very solid quarterback. If his offense plays to its potential I could absolutely see Rivers lead the league in passing yards in this upcoming season after finishing 2nd to Brady in 2017. Oh, also did I mention the guy has never missed a game in his entire career? Watch out for Rivers and the Chargers this year.
8. Matt Ryan: After an extremely disappointing Super Bowl loss and an even more disappointing season for Matt Ryan, he is ready to turn everything around this year. Everybody can calm down because Matt Ryan is still a top 10 quarterback regardless of one not so great year. Even with his off year he was still 5th in the league in QBR and 6th in passing yards.
9. Matthew Stafford: Maybe a surprising pick here for some, but Stafford cannot be overlooked. His stats tell it all as he was 3rd in passing yards, 4th in passing touchdowns, and threw only 10 interceptions.
10. Carson Wentz: After a torn ACL, which ruined a potential MVP season, Carson Wentz showed extreme potential. I ranked him at 10 because I want to see him post the numbers he did last year again, but it’s likely Carson will be higher on this list come next year.
11. Andrew Luck: Eleven might be surprising for Luck but people need to think back to how good this guy was when he was healthy. He is coming into this year with a massive question mark towards his health and how his injuries will affect his play.
12. Kirk Cousins: After some solid play with the Redskins, Cousins is on his way to an extremely talented Vikings team where he could do very well. I expect Cousins to have a great year this year and make a solid playoff run with this Vikings roster.
13. Dak Prescott: After falling off a cliff when Zeke was suspended, it is clear that Dak needs to make huge improvements to his game to be a top quarterback in this league. Despite that, Dak still managed to come in 4th in QBR for the season, which is why Dak lands at 13th on this list.
14. Deshaun Watson:With a monster showing before his injury, the majority of football fans were crushed to see his season cut short. Watson has so much to prove and after this season if he can get that knee right, I could see him vault to the top of this list. 
15. Alex Smith: Alex Smith is actually coming off his best season in his entire career. He had a career high in passing yards, passing touchdowns and quarterback rating. Alex Smith also rarely throws interceptions and is extremely careful when making passes with the football. We will see if Smith can pick off where he left off in Kansas City this season as he looks to try to lead this Redskins team to the playoffs.
16. Jared Goff: Goff had a fantastic sophomore year with the Rams last year. He was just shy of 4000 yards and 30 touchdowns this year, which in a 15 game span is a very good stat line. The Rams are many peoples favorites to win it all this year and that will lie heavily on the shoulders of this young quarterback.
17. Derek Carr: After moving in the right direction Derek Carr took a step back this year. With John Gruden in town I’m optimistic that Carr will take a step in the right direction this season. The big question is can get take a big enough step to jump up to the next tier of quarterbacks.
18. Jimmy Garoppolo: I think Jimmy G is the biggest quarterback to watch coming into this season because I have no idea how good he is going to do. The man just doesn’t seem to lose football games no matter what team he’s on. This guy has the potential to play like a top 5 guy this year like everybody is hyping him up to be. On the other hand he could flop and everybody might have taken a small sample size of him and just assumed a little bit too much.
19. Jameis Winston: Winston has actually shown to be a pretty  good passer in his first few years in the league. However, he makes poor decisions on and off the field and he still has a lot of growing up to do if he’s going to be a great quarterback in this league.
20. Case Keenum: Coming off his best season by far in his career, Case Keenum was 2nd in QBR only behind Carson Wentz. He was very reliable for a talented Vikings team and it will be interesting if he can do the same with the Broncos or if it was just a fluke of a season.
21. Marcus Mariota: After 3 years in the league, Mariota has yet to play all 16 games. He has been a solid runner and an average passer so far in his career. Throwing only 13 touchdown passes the entire season last year just isn’t good enough and I know Mariota has the talent to do better.
22. Tyrod Taylor: Tyrod was non existent until 2015 where he found a role on a Buffalo Bills roster that could use a quarterback. He’s had a pretty average 3 years and now is on a Browns roster where he will be fighting for the starting job with first overall pick Baker Mayfield.
23. Blake Bortles: Bortles is actually in a really nice place on his team. He has a great running back to keep the defense guessing and his team has a top 3 defense in the league which means he doesn’t need to do much on offense. Statistically, Bortles really hasn’t been bad. He just needs to throw less interceptions and be a little smarter with the football. The Jaguars need Bortles to be a guy they can rely on if they want to overpower the Patriots in the AFC.
24. Joe Flacco: Joe is never going to be flashy and never going to have crazy eye popping stats. He is an average quarterback in this league and with Lamar Jackson hot on his tail, I’m not so sure average will be good enough for Joe come next season.
25. Eli Manning: Oh good old Eli, still holding on to his job in New York. Honestly, with his receiving corps stacked and healthy and a stud running back ready to pave the way, I could see Eli having a bounce back year.