Season tracker
Most weeks at No. 1
Patrick Mahomes 4 of 4 weeks
Season climber
Kirk Cousins ▲22 since debut
Season slider
Jj Mccarthy ▼22 since debut
These 2026 pre-season NFL QB tiers rank every quarterback worth watching, all 55 starters, backups, and rookies, from the GTA "Cheat Codes" down to the emergency-only "Clipboard Club." Instead of a flat 1-to-55 list because that's boring, we sort every QB by the question that actually decides seasons: who shows up when the games get hard? We are separating the quarterbacks who pad stats in the fall from the ones who deliver in January. For the full tier-by-tier breakdown, read our complete 2026 NFL QB tiers analysis.
No. 1 this week
Patrick Mahomes
Biggest riser
Michael Penix ▲20
Biggest faller
Jalen Hurts ▼14
This edition
55 ranked · 7 tiers
01
King
1 QBHe stands alone once again.
#1
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Patrick Mahomes
Patrick Mahomes
02
Can You See It
6 QBsI can see each of these guys holding up the Super Bowl trophy at the end of the year. Dak would be the hardest case, but if you squint hard enough you can see it.
#2
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Josh Allen
Josh Allen
#3
▲12
Trevor Lawrence
Trevor Lawrence
#4
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Joe Burrow
Joe Burrow
#5
▲1
Dak Prescott
Dak Prescott
#6
▲11
Brock Purdy
Brock Purdy
#7
▼4
Matthew Stafford
Matthew Stafford
03
What’s Going On Here?
7 QBsLamar is hurt, who knows how long he’s out. Drake Maye started off terribly and just beat Josh Allen and the Bills. Penix is back, are the Falcons for real? Sam Darnold doesn’t look like the guy from last year. We need more time with this bunch.
#8
▼3
Lamar Jackson
Lamar Jackson
#9
▲16
Bryce Young
Bryce Young
#10
▲12
Kirk Cousins
Kirk Cousins
#11
▲20
Michael Penix
Michael Penix
#12
▼5
Drake Maye
Drake Maye
#13
▼5
Jared Goff
Jared Goff
#14
▼1
Sam Darnold
Sam Darnold
04
Cold Leftovers
5 QBsCaleb Williams is hurt, and we just haven’t seen him enough this year for me to keep him in the top 10. The rest of these guys, you’re really just scraping the bottom of the barrel.
#15
▼5
Caleb Williams
Caleb Williams
#16
▲10
Aaron Rodgers
Aaron Rodgers
#17
▲16
Deshaun Watson
Deshaun Watson
#18
▲12
Geno Smith
Geno Smith
#19
▲1
Daniel Jones
Daniel Jones
05
Stepped In It
9 QBsWith the exception of Shough and his circumstances, no one here is playing well, flatly, and/or is hurt already.
#20
▲1
Tyler Shough
Tyler Shough
#21
▼12
Justin Herbert
Justin Herbert
#22
▼10
Jordan Love
Jordan Love
#23
▼7
Bo Nix
Bo Nix
#24
▼5
Cj Stroud
Cj Stroud
#25
▼14
Jalen Hurts
Jalen Hurts
#26
▼12
Baker Mayfield
Baker Mayfield
#27
▼9
Jayden Daniels
Jayden Daniels
#28
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Kyler Murray
Kyler Murray
06
Looking for a Replacement
4 QBsDart is out for the year through no fault of his own, but he missed time to injury before too. How are they evaluating him, and do you consider another QB already given the rookie timeline? They did trade for McCarthy, for what it’s worth. Everyone else here, count your days as QB1.
#29
▼2
Jacoby Brissett
Jacoby Brissett
#30
▼1
Malik Willis
Malik Willis
#31
▼7
Cam Ward
Cam Ward
#32
▼9
Jaxson Dart
Jaxson Dart
07
The Replacements
23 QBsThey aren’t here to actually replace these guys. With the exception of Mariota, who is already hurt, and Winston, who was so bad he may as well stay in that tier, none of them have played.
#33
▼1
Tua Tagovailoa
Tua Tagovailoa
#34
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Shedeur Sanders
Shedeur Sanders
#35
=
Drew Allar
Drew Allar
#36
=
Fernando Mendoza
Fernando Mendoza
#37
=
Cade Klubnik
Cade Klubnik
#38
=
Carson Beck
Carson Beck
#39
=
Ty Simpson
Ty Simpson
#40
=
Anthony Richardson
Anthony Richardson
#41
=
Justin Fields
Justin Fields
#42
=
Jj Mccarthy
Jj Mccarthy
#43
=
Trey Lance
Trey Lance
#44
=
Dillon Gabriel
Dillon Gabriel
#45
=
Quinn Ewers
Quinn Ewers
#46
=
Spencer Rattler
Spencer Rattler
#47
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Riley Leonard
Riley Leonard
#48
=
Joe Flacco
Joe Flacco
#49
=
Jameis Winston
Jameis Winston
#50
=
Mason Rudolph
Mason Rudolph
#51
=
Marcus Mariota
Marcus Mariota
#52
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Mitchell Trubisky
Mitchell Trubisky
#53
=
Mac Jones
Mac Jones
#54
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Jake Browning
Jake Browning
#55
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Davis Mills
Davis Mills
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