Yesterday on the show, our big topic was Justin Herbert signing that massive extension worth over 260 million dollars. As is usually the case, he now becomes the top paid QB in the league and the richest in NFL history on an annual basis, yadda-yadda, its the same thing every time a top level QB signs a new deal.
Part of the conversation we had yesterday was comparing the great Justin Herbert to other starters at the position. I, personally, have him no lower than 4th. Right behind Mahomes, Burrow, and Allen. And believe me, it pained me to disrespect the good name of Trevor Lawrence, Lamar Jackson, and Jalen Hurts - but this is what happens when you create rankings. Truth is, you'd be more than pleased with any of these guys QB'ing your favorite team and the margin between a few of them is so razor thin, we're really just splitting hairs for fun sports-talk sake.
The right way to do this is to create a tiered system of current QB-greatness. So that's what I'm going to do here, my very own QB tiers heading into 2023. All 32 (presumed) starters ranked here via my personalized system of tiers.
Best of the Best:
Patrick Mahomes
Uber-Elite:
Joe Burrow, Josh Allen
Sub-elite:
Justin Herbert, Lamar Jackson, Jalen Hurts
Excellent:
Trevor Lawrence, Aaron Rodgers, Matt Stafford
System QB's with Upside:
Dak Prescott, Tua Tagovailoa, Jared Goff
Good But Volatile:
Kyler Murray, Deshaun Watson, Daniel Jones, Justin Fields, Derek Carr, Russell Wilson, Geno Smith, Kirk Cousins
Game-Managers:
Ryan Tannehill, Brock Purdy, Jimmy G, Mac Jones
Bottom of the Barrel:
Kenny Pickett, Sam Howell, Desmond Ridder, Baker Mayfield, Jordan Love
Unknown Rookies:
Bryce Young, CJ Stroud, Anthony Richardson
Photo: Mitchell Leff / Getty Images Sport / Getty Images