Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #18 - Ben Roethlisberger

Ben Roethlisberger

Ben Roethlisberger was the third quarterback taken in the first round of the 2004 NFL Draft, but so far he has been the most successful of the trio, which also included Eli Manning and Philip Rivers.

He was expected to begin his career as a backup, but within the first two weeks of his rookie season, both quarterbacks ahead of him on the depth chart went down with injuries, thrusting him into the starting role. Although he didn't have impressive numbers, he did lead the Steelers to a 13-0 record in his starts, and they finished 15-1, the best in the league. He led them to an overtime victory in his first playoff game, but ended up losing to the Patriots in the AFC title game.

The following season, he remained an average starter, but the Steelers were once again good enough to make the playoffs, and he was very good in three consecutive road playoff wins, throwing for 680 yards, 7 touchdowns, and only one interception as they made it to the Super Bowl as a 6th seed. He was not as good in the Super Bowl, throwing for only 123 yards and 2 picks, but they were able to win the championship anyway.

They were unable to match the feat in 2006 after Roethlisberger suffered serious injuries in an off-season motorcycle accident, and they didn't even make the playoffs, while Big Ben had the worst season of his career, leading the league in interceptions and setting his career low in completion percentage.

He improved over the next two years, setting a career high in touchdowns in 2007 with 32, and leading the Steelers back to the Super Bowl in 2008, this time winning two home games en route. He played better this time, throwing 256 yards and the game-winning touchdown against Arizona, making him a two-time champ, even though he still has not won an MVP.

He had a bit of a down year in 2010 overall, but managed to make another run to the Super Bowl, where he lost in the title game for the first time, although his play was equal to that of his previous Super Bowl. He has been very consistent for his entire career, missing only a few games here and there to injury and suspension, and never more than 4 in a season.

In 2014 he had his best year, leading the league in passing yardage with 4952, which was his career high by over 600, and tied his career high with 32 touchdowns while tossing only 9 picks all season. Unfortunately, the amazing regular season didn't translate over into the postseason, where they were upset by the Ravens in the first round.

He has continued to be a solid starter over the last 4 seasons, even setting new career highs in yardage and touchdowns again in 2018, but he also led the league with 16 interceptions. It was the first time he reached the magic 5000 yard plateau, so he may still have several good years in front of him.

He is a two-time Super Bowl champ with three overall appearances, but he wasn't the best quarterback in any of those three games. He has bounced between solid and star status for his entire career, and with 15 seasons as a starter, he is helped by longevity. If he continues his current level of play, he could end up making it into the top 15, and has an outside chance at the top 10.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #19 - Steve McNair

Steve McNair

Steve McNair was a starting quarterback in the NFL for a full decade, and was one of the better ones in the league for a good chunk of that time, and literally came within inches of being a Super Bowl champ.

McNair was drafted by the Houston Oilers with the 3rd overall pick in the 1995 Draft out of tiny Alcorn State to be their quarterback of the future, and he spent his first 2 seasons backing up Chris Chandler. He did not play much, but when he did, he showed signs of how good he was going to be.

When the team moved to Tennessee before the 1997, McNair was named the starter and started every game the Tennessee Oilers ever played, and they won exactly half of those games. He was getting better and better, and even led the team and all quarterbacks in rushing touchdowns in 1997, when he reached the end zone 8 times in the season.

In 1999 the team officially changed their name to the Titans, and McNair had his best season up to that date, even though he missed 5 games early in the season. He again finished with 8 rushing touchdowns, matching his career high, and threw another 12 to go with only 8 picks, and Tennessee finished with a record of 13-3.

That season's playoffs were very memorable. First came the wild card game against Buffalo, which ended with the Music City Miracle, one of the most unforgettable endings to a playoff game in history. McNair scored his team's only offensive touchdown of the game. They eventually reached the Super Bowl, where they held the Greatest Show on Turf Rams team to only 23 points, and McNair's pass to Kevin Dyson came up just short of the goal line as time expired.

He continued to play well through the next 3 seasons, even getting the Titans back to the AFC title game again in 2002, but they failed to reach the Super Bowl again. He had his best season in 2003, when he won the MVP after throwing 24 touchdowns with only 7 picks, but they were bounced by the Patriots in the playoffs.

His seasons ended early due to injury in 2004 and 2005, which prompted the Titans to move on, trading him to Baltimore for a draft pick. He was healthy in his first season for the Ravens, and started every game as the team went 13-3, but they lost 15-6 to the Colts in their first playoff game. Following another injury-plagued season, he announced his retirement once the 2007 season ended.

McNair never won a championship during his career, but he is one of the best to have fallen short of that honor, and he was probably the closest of anyone to fall short. He was one of the best running quarterbacks of his time, and didn't make many mistakes passing the ball, and consistently led his team to the playoffs. He may not be in the Hall of Fame yet, but he should be, and I believe that he deserves to be ranked this high among the greatest QBs of all time.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #20 - Johnny Unitas

Johnny Unitas

Johnny Unitas is often remembered as one of the greatest passers of all time, leading the league in many different categories multiple times, but he also struggled to get his team to the playoffs for much of his career, which contributed to him just barely making the top 20.

He was drafted in 1955 by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 9th round, but was cut before the season began, and instead spent what would have been his rookie year working in a steel mill. He signed on with the Baltimore Colts in 1956, and even started 7 games in his rookie year.

In his second season, he led the entire league in passing yards and touchdowns, getting 2550 yards and 24 TD's, but the Colts missed the championship by a game. He led the league in touchdowns again in 1958, but this time they ended up in first place and got to play the Giants for the title. They won that game 23-17 in overtime behind Unitas' 349 yards in the very first overtime game in league history, and Johnny U went from being cut to winning a championship in just 3 seasons.

He followed up that championship performance with the best season of his career, leading the league with 2899 yards and 32 touchdowns and winning the league MVP award while taking Baltimore back to the title game. He threw 264 yards and 2 touchdowns in that game as they repeated as champions by beating the Giants again.

In 1960 he led the league in passing yards and touchdowns again, but set a new career high in interceptions while setting a new career low for winning percentage, with a final record of 6-6, ending his chance at a 3-peat. His overall production continued to drop for the next couple seasons, with his interceptions remaining high, and the Colts could not get back to the title game.

Things finally came together for him again in 1964, when he was able to drop his interceptions to a career-low of 6, and the Colts finished at 12-2 and made it back to the title game after a four year absence. Although he won his second MVP during the regular season, he didn't play like it in the championship, throwing only 95 yards and 2 interceptions as the Colts were shut out by the Browns 27-0.

In 1967 he led the league in completion percentage and nearly set a career high in passing yards, finishing at 3428, but the Colts missed the playoffs due to losing a tiebreaker to the Rams, even though the two were tied for the league's best record. He was rewarded for his efforts with his 3rd MVP award, but no third title.

The next year he injured his throwing shoulder in the preseason, which led to Earl Morrall taking over the starting job, which he did to near perfection, taking Baltimore to a 13-1 record and winning the MVP. He also led them all the way to the Super Bowl, but when he struggled in the title game, Unitas came in and led the team to its lone touchdown, although it wasn't enough to beat the Jets.

Unitas started struggling with interceptions again the next season, tossing 20 of them with only 12 touchdowns, and the Colts missed the playoffs after the Super Bowl loss. He had one last hurrah in 1970, when he led Baltimore to the top record in the AFC and back to the Super Bowl, where he threw a touchdown before getting hurt early in the game. Earl Morrall came in and led them to a comeback victory, but Unitas still got his Super Bowl win.

He lost his starting job after that game, and though he hung around for 3 more years, he didn't have much left. In all, he won 3 titles in his career, 1 Super Bowl and 2 NFL titles. He also won three MVP awards and led the league in passing 4 times, but he also made the playoffs only 6 times in an 18 year career. His team's best season came in the year that he was out with an injury, but there is no denying that he was one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #21 - Matt Ryan

Matt Ryan

Matt Ryan is the fifth active quarterback to appear on this list, and though he has had some ups and downs over the past several years, the highs were very high, and are the biggest reason he belongs on this list.

Ryan was drafted with the 3rd overall pick in 2008 by Atlanta, and was named the starter before his first pro game. He had a solid first season, for which he was named Rookie of the Year. He missed two games in his second season to a turf toe injury, which are to date the only games he has missed in his career.

Over the next 3 years, he made steady improvement, raising his yardage and touchdown totals each year, and he even led the league in completion percentage in 2012. He had led the Falcons to the playoffs 3 times before, but in 2012 he finally earned his first playoff win, knocking out the Seahawks in the divisional round before losing to the 49ers in the NFC title game after Ryan suffered a minor shoulder injury.

The next 3 seasons were down seasons for both Ryan and the Falcons, as he had his 3 highest interception totals, his touchdowns dropped, and the team missed the playoffs in all 3 seasons. Things may not have been looking good, but they were about to get much better.

Ryan had a career season in 2016, winning the MVP after setting career highs with 4944 yards and 38 touchdowns, as well as a career-low 7 picks. The Falcons stormed through the playoffs behind a dominant Ryan, who threw 1014 yards and 9 touchdowns without an interception in 3 games, peaking midway through the Super Bowl when they led 28-3 before the offense stagnated and the defense allowed the Patriots back into the game. It was still a very successful postseason, and would have been remembered as one of the best ever if they had only won.

2017 looked a lot like the 3 seasons before his MVP year, but he returned to form in 2018, putting up numbers that were nearly identical to his MVP numbers, though he did not receive the same level of recognition due to the Falcons missing the playoffs.

Ryan is currently 34 years old and could still have plenty of good years left, and though he has yet to win a Super Bowl, he is a recent MVP coming off of a very good season with solid offensive players around him, so he will have ample opportunity to improve on this ranking in years to come.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #22 - Randall Cunningham

Randall Cunningham

Randall Cunningham had a 16-year NFL career, but an assortment of injuries kept him out of the lineup quite often, and he only ended up spending 7 seasons as a full-time starter. He started out as a 2nd-round pick in 1985, and spent his first two seasons backing up Ron Jaworski.

In just his second season as a starting QB, he made history as the first black quarterback ever to be named a starting quarterback in the Pro Bowl. That season he threw for 3808 yards, his career high, and also tossed 24 touchdowns while running for another 6. The Eagles made the playoffs that season, but would fail to win a playoff game, which was a pattern throughout his Eagles tenure.

He was just as stellar over the next two seasons, making two more Pro Bowls while keeping up the same level of production, reaching 30 touchdown passes for the first time in 1990. That year he also ran for 942 yards, but lost in his first playoff game for the third straight year as well.

1991 was the first time that a major injury would hit Cunningham, when he tore his ACL while being tackled in the first game of the season. Without him, the Eagles missed the playoffs, but he would return healthy the next year. Although he wasn't able to match his previous production in his first year back, he did get Philly back to the playoffs, where they won a game for the first time in 12 years.

He spent much of the following season sitting out due to injury, with the Eagles going 4-0 when he played and 4-8 when he didn't. The next season he played through a series of minor injuries, and it was the first time in years that the Eagles missed the playoffs with Cunningham at the helm. That failure led to his benching in 1995, and he decided to retire at the end of the season, feeling unappreciated.

After one season away from the game, the Minnesota Vikings talked him out of retirement, and he spent most of 1997 as a backup, but took over as the starter late in the season and took them to an upset of the Giants in the wild card round. The next season he was named the full-time starter for Minnesota, and it led to the best season of his career.

That season he threw for 3704 yards, just short of a career high, and 34 touchdowns, the best he had ever done. Even more importantly, he led Minnesota to a 15-1 overall record, and the team scored what was then a record 556 points during the regular season. They won their first playoff game, but were upset by Atlanta in the NFC title game when the Falcons scored a touchdown late in regulation, then hit a field goal in overtime to finish them off.

He was unable to repeat the performance the following season, getting benched after throwing 9 picks in the first 6 games, and he would spend the final 3 seasons of his career as a backup. He only made one trip to the conference title game, but he was a consistent Pro Bowler, one of the best running quarterbacks of his era, and locked up this spot in the rankings after his amazing comeback with the Vikings.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #23 - Tobin Rote

Tobin Rote

Rote was one of the early pioneers in the NFL, playing most of his career in the 1950's, and while his name isn't remembered much today, he was a very good quarterback who had a couple of great seasons.

Rote was drafted by Green Bay in 1950, and he spent his first 7 years playing for the Packers, who were a struggling team at the time. He improved steadily every year, culminating in his career year in 1956, during which he led the league in completions, passing yards and touchdowns, and led all quarterbacks in rushing yards and touchdowns. Even with his great performance, his team finished 4-8, and he was traded to Detroit, while Green Bay replaced him with Bart Starr.

In his first season with the Lions, he split time at QB with Bobby Layne, but Layne broke his leg late in the season and Rote was given the starting duties just in time for a one-game tiebreaker against the San Francisco 49ers. The Lions trailed 27-7 early in the third quarter, but Rote led them on 4 scoring drives and they won 31-27.

The following week they faced Cleveland in the NFL Championship Game, and he had one of the greatest performances in championship history, finishing with 280 yards, 4 touchdowns without an interception, plus a rushing touchdown, as they destroyed the Browns 59-14. Championship MVP's were not named back then, but it is a sure thing that he would have been the choice.

Rote played for 2 more years in Detroit, but the team could not match their previous greatness, and Rote was released after the 1959 season. Finding no NFL team to join, he went to play in the CFL, where he played 3 seasons and set a number of records (although none of that was taken into account for this list).

In 1963 the AFL came calling, and he joined the San Diego Chargers, where he recorded his career highs in passing yards, completion percentage, and touchdown passes. He did have one last hurrah, as he won the AFL MVP and led his team to the championship that season, whipping the Boston Patriots 51-10 behind his 3 touchdowns, two passing and one on the ground, his second great championship performance. The aging QB played two more seasons before retiring.

While a few of the prime years of his career were cut out by his time in Canada, Rote was a two-time champion who led the league in multiple categories over and over, and he was great in championship situations, which is why he is able to live on on this list of the all-time greats.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #24 - Russell Wilson

Russell Wilson

Russell Wilson is one of the youngest quarterbacks in this countdown, older than Cam Newton by only a couple months, but his consistent level of play throughout his career so far has made it impossible not to include him on this list.

Wilson was a 3rd-round draft pick by the Seahawks in 2012, and was named the starter after just one preseason game, which is pretty rare for a passer who was not taken in the first round. He quickly validated the team's trust in him, tying Peyton Manning's rookie record for touchdown passes in a season while leading them to an 11-5 record and a playoff win while being named Rookie of the Year.

The following season was also pretty special. The Seahawks started the season 11-1 and ended up as the #1 seed in the NFC. They breezed through the playoffs, including a 43-8 beatdown of the Broncos in the Super Bowl, and Wilson became just the second black quarterback to ever win the big game. In addition, he is also the only quarterback under six feet tall in history to win a Super Bowl.

The next season he had a career-low with only 20 passing touchdowns, but it was actually his best overall season when you take into account that he led all quarterbacks with 849 rushing yards and 6 rushing touchdowns, and he also led the Seahawks to another Super Bowl appearance. He nearly became the youngest to ever win 2 Super Bowls, but an interception on the 1 yard line late in the game allowed the Patriots to hold on and win.

In 2015 Wilson reached the 4000-yard milestone for the first time, and set a new career high with 34 touchdown passes, while throwing only 8 interceptions. He set a record in the middle of the season when he had 5 consecutive games with at least 3 touchdown passes without an interception, something has nobody else has done before or since.

The next year he had the most passing yards of his career, but his mobility was limited by injuries to his ankle and his knee, which forced him to focus more on passing and minimized his effectiveness on the ground. He still led the Seahawks to the playoffs for the 5th straight year, and also won a playoff game for the 5th year in a row.

He was fully healthy in 2017, and he even led the league in passing touchdowns, tying his career high with 34, but the Seahawks missed the playoffs for the first time in his career. After the season the team lost many of its star players, but instead of sliding even farther away from the playoffs, Wilson had another great season, setting a new career high with 35 touchdowns, while tossing a career-low 7 picks, and Seattle made the playoffs as a Wild Card.

Though he has had a shorter career than anyone else in this countdown, Wilson has been consistently great throughout that short time. He has never missed a game, has a career TD:INT ratio that is better than 3:1, has never finished with a losing record, and is a Super Bowl champion. At only 30 years of age, there is no telling how high he can climb on this list of the greatest to ever play the game.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #25 - Ken Anderson

Ken Anderson

Ken Anderson is one of the best quarterbacks in history that has yet to be elected to the Hall of Fame, but his long career as one of the top quarterbacks in the league should be enough for him to be a member.

Anderson was a 3rd round draft pick of the Cincinnati Bengals in 1971, and by the end of his rookie year he had taken over as the starting quarterback for Cincy. He improved steadily for his first 5 seasons, hitting his first peak in 1975, when 3000 yards and 20 touchdowns for the first time in his career and led the Bengals to an 11-3 record, the best record they achieved during Anderson's career. They earned the wild card that season, but could not beat the Raiders, even with Anderson's 201 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Things went downhill from there for the rest of the decade, with Anderson throwing more interceptions that touchdowns and missing the playoffs for 5 straight seasons. It appeared that his run as Cincinnati's starter was drawing to a close, especially after he was benched at halftime of the opening game in 1981. Coach Forrest Gregg decided to give him one more chance, starting him in week 2, and it turned out to be the jump start he needed to have the best season of his career.

By the end of the season, he had thrown for 3754 yards, eclipsing his previous career high by nearly 600 yards, and 29 touchdowns, 8 higher than his old record. He was named the league MVP and Comeback Player of the Year for his performance. The Bengals finished at 12-4, the top record in the AFC, and defeated Buffalo and San Diego on their way to the Super Bowl. It was the first time the franchise had even won a playoff game. Anderson was very good in the Super Bowl, throwing for 300 yards and 2 touchdowns while running for another, but Joe Montana and San Francisco beat them 26-21.

He was just as good the next season, which was shortened to 9 games by a strike, throwing for 2495 yards and an NFL record 70.6% completion percentage, which has since been broken by Drew Brees. They topped it off with a 7-2 record and a return trip to the playoffs, but they were blown out in their first playoff game. He remained the starter for a couple more years, but was always hurt or ineffective, and was eventually replaced by Boomer Esiason as the starter. He remained on as his backup for two seasons before retiring.

Other than the Super Bowl season, he did not have any playoff success at all, but he was one of the top quarterbacks in the league for 4 seasons, and was a solid player for several more. He won the MVP in 1981 and was close to it in 1975, all while leading a franchise that had always been a laughingstock to the brink of a championship. All of that is why he is one of the all-time greats.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #26 - Len Dawson

Len Dawson

Len Dawson was the #5 overall draft pick by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1957, but he was unable to take over the starting job in 3 seasons in Pittsburgh, so they traded him to Cleveland, where he faced the same problem. In his first 5 seasons in the league, he threw a total of 45 passes, only two for touchdowns, definitely not the kind of start you'd expect from a first-round pick.

He caught his lucky break in 1962 when he signed on with the Dallas Texans of the AFL. In his first season, he led the league in touchdown passes (29) and completion percentage (61.0), and he led them to the best record in the Western Division, at 11-3. Although he only threw for 88 yards in the title game, he was much better than Houston's George Blanda, who threw 5 interceptions, which allowed Dallas to win.

The team moved to Kansas City the following season, and while the Chiefs failed to make the playoffs in their first three seasons, Dawson still led the league twice each in touchdowns and completion percentage. In 1966, he led them back to the playoffs when he led the league in both categories again, and they defeated Buffalo behind 227 yards and 2 touchdowns from Dawson. That earned them the right to play in the first-ever Super Bowl, which they lost 35-10 to Green Bay.

Three years later was one of the most memorable of his career. He missed 5 games with a severe knee injury, but came back in time to lead the Chiefs back to the playoffs, where they pulled off 3 straight upsets to become Super Bowl champions. He was named the MVP of the Super Bowl after he threw the game's only passing touchdown late in the 4th quarter to put the game away. It was also the second straight time an AFL team won the Super Bowl, and validated the AFL as equal with the NFL in the final game before the merger between the two leagues.

Dawson played another 6 seasons in Kansas City, and although he only saw the playoffs once more, he did enough in his first 8 years as a Chief to earn this spot on the list. He led the AFL in touchdowns 4 times, completion percentage 6 times, won 3 AFL titles and a Super Bowl as the MVP. He wasn't a big yardage guy, but he was accurate and a winner, and he belongs in the top 30.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #27 - Cam Newton

Cam Newton

Cam Newton is the youngest player on this list, having just turned 30 late last season, but he has done enough is his short career, especially in the first 5 years, to warrant a spot among the all-time greats.

Cam was drafted with the first overall pick in the 2011 draft by the Carolina Panthers, where he was immediately named the starter after a whirlwind year in which he also won the BCS Championship and the Heisman trophy.

Though rookies generally struggle with the transition to the NFL, Newton had success immediately, though his team didn't. As a rookie, he threw for over 4000 yards and broke Steve Grogan's 35-year-old record with 14 rushing touchdowns by a quarterback. He also became the first rookie ever to throw for 400 yards in his first game, breaking Peyton Manning's record for yardage in a debut game by 120 yards. He topped off the season by winning the Rookie of the Year award.

He was a very good quarterback over the next two years as well, reducing his interception totals while helping his team win more games, even leading them to the division title in 2013, which came with a first-round bye. His first playoff game didn't go how he had hoped, as the Panthers fell 23-10 against the 49ers, with Newton throwing for 267 yards, 1 touchdown, and 2 picks.

The next season was a rough one. He missed the opening game, the first he missed in his career, while recovering from a rib injury he suffered in the preseason. Later that season he was involved in a car accident, which caused him to miss another game with a back injury, but he still managed to get Carolina back to the playoffs, where they even pulled off a win in the wild card round before falling to Seattle.

The next season was by far the best of his career. Newton threw 35 touchdowns and only 10 interceptions, ran for another 10 touchdowns, and led Carolina to a 15-1 record, best in the league. For his great season, he was named the league MVP. They earned revenge on Seattle in the divisional round, holding on for a 31-24 victory, before demolishing Arizona in the NFC title game to reach Super Bowl 50. The game was a defensive struggle, and the deciding play of the game was a strip sack of Newton, but he was the best overall QB during the playoffs by far.

Coming off that amazing season, Newton had a disappointing 2016, with a career low completion percentage leading to the team missing the playoffs for the first time in 4 years. Over the past two years he has rebounded somewhat, but has yet to regain his MVP level of performance from 2015. But, as the youngest player in this countdown, he still has plenty of time to improve and continue to climb.

Newton's MVP season was among the best of all time, and his rookie season also may be the best debut season ever. He is already the all-time rushing TD leader among quarterbacks in NFL history, and holds the single-season record as well. If he regains his MVP form, we could be talking about him as one of the 10 best ever eventually.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #28 - Troy Aikman

Troy Aikman

Troy Aikman is the first quarterback to appear on this list who won at least 3 Super Bowls, so it seems a little strange to see him ranked this low. The truth is, apart from those 3 championship seasons, he didn't do that much, and he had a rather short career, so he doesn't even get the benefit of longevity.

Aikman was the #1 overall pick in the 1989 draft, but his rookie season was a disaster. His record as a starter was 0-11, and he threw twice as many interceptions as touchdowns. In all, over his first three years, he threw for 31 touchdowns and 46 interceptions, and the Cowboys were 14-24 when he started.

Everything turned around very quickly. Aikman was finally fully healthy in 1992, and Michael Irvin and Emmitt Smith had blossomed into star players. That year, Dallas finished with a 13-3 record and upset MVP Steve Young and the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game to get to the Super Bowl. He was also named the MVP of the Super Bowl after throwing 273 yards and 4 touchdowns without an interception in the 52-17 blowout.

The next season he led the league with a 69.1% completion percentage, but he threw only 15 touchdowns over a full season. Dallas did earn the best record in the league at 12-4, but it was Emmitt Smith who was named the league MVP. They returned to the Super Bowl by running through San Francisco again, then beat Buffalo again in the Super Bowl, but this time Aikman did not throw a touchdown pass, as Emmitt Smith ran the Bills into the ground en route to his first Super Bowl MVP.

He was even less effective the next season, throwing only 13 touchdowns to 12 interceptions, and he was unable to get past San Francisco in the NFC Championship, so they failed to three-peat. In 1995 he managed to get his interceptions back down, and the Cowboys returned to the Super Bowl, where they beat the Steelers, though Aikman only threw 1 TD.

He played 5 more seasons, but was not too effective, winning only one more playoff game for the remainder of his career. In all, he reached 20 touchdowns only once in his career and never reached 3500 yards in a season. He was only a top quarterback for 4 seasons, but he won 3 titles during that time, which is why he is here on this list of the best quarterbacks of all time.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #29 - Jeff Garcia

Jeff Garcia

Jeff Garcia is one of the most underrated quarterbacks to ever play in the NFL, largely because he took over as the quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers after 20 years of Joe Montana or Steve Young at the helm.

Garcia went undrafted in 1994, so he went north to play in the CFL, where he was a standout, being named an All-Star 4 straight seasons and winning a championship MVP in 1998, which earned him a shot in the NFL with the 49ers, who signed him to back up Steve Young. Young went down with a concussion early in the 1999 season, and Garcia stepped in. He struggled in his first 5 starts, but got better down the stretch, throwing 8 TDs and only 2 picks in the final 5 games.

Steve Young retired after the season, so the 49ers drafted 2 quarterbacks that spring, but Garcia beat them both out for the starting job, and he responded in a big way, setting a new franchise record for passing yards in a season with 4278, a number that still stands today. He also threw 31 touchdowns and only 10 interceptions, but the Niners won only 6 games.

The next year he was just as good, becoming just the 6th passer ever to have consecutive 30-touchdown seasons, a feat that has been matched by 5 others since. He led them to a 12-4 record and a spot in the playoffs, but they lost to Green Bay in their first playoff game, ending their season prematurely.

His numbers dropped off a bit in 2002, but he was able to get the Niners back to the playoffs, and even got them a win, beating the Giants 39-38 after completing the second-largest comeback in playoff history. He played well again in 2003, but his relationship with star receiver Terrell Owens was disintegrating, and the team fell short of the playoffs, which led to Garcia being released after the season.

He played a couple of difficult seasons with terrible teams in Cleveland and Detroit before landing in Philadelphia to back up Donovan McNabb, and when McNabb injured his knee late in the season, Garcia took over and guided the Eagles to a 5-1 finish and a playoff berth. He had his best postseason that year, beating the Giants before falling to the Saints, but he didn't throw any interceptions in those two games.

With McNabb slated to return the next season, the Eagles elected not to resign Garcia, who left for a starting job in Tampa Bay, where he was a solid starter for two years. He later returned to the Eagles for one final season before retiring from the NFL.

He may not have lived up to the legacies of his two predecessors in San Francisco, but very few have ever matched their production. Garcia had two superstar-level seasons for the 49ers, then two more very good seasons, and he remained a good starter for several years afterward. He may not have reached the heights that many hoped he would, but he was good enough for long enough that he has to be included on this list of the best quarterbacks of all time.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #30 - Daryle Lamonica

Daryle Lamonica

Daryle Lamonica was known as "the Mad Bomber" due to his affinity for throwing the long ball, and though he was only a starter for 6 seasons, he has one of the best winning percentages of all time and two AFL MVP awards to show for it.

Daryle Lamonica was drafted in the 24th round of the AFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills in 1963, and he spent 4 years in Buffalo, starting a total of 4 games for the Bills. After winning two titles as a backup, he was traded to the Raiders, which is where he would make a name for himself, though he never did get to hoist the trophy as a starter.

In his first season as a starter, he led the AFL with 30 touchdowns while throwing for 3228 yards, and Oakland finished the season at 13-1, far ahead of anyone else in the league, which helped earn him the league MVP. They destroyed Houston 40-7 to win the AFL title, needing only 111 yards and 2 TD's from Lamonica. They then faced Green Bay in Super Bowl II, and while his numbers were pretty much even with Bart Starr's, it wasn't enough for the Raiders to pull off the upset.

In his second season as a starter, his production was almost equal to his first season, and Oakland's 12-2 record earned them a return ticket to the playoffs, where they destroyed Kansas City in a tiebreaker game behind Lamonica's 347 yards and 5 touchdowns. In the AFL title game, they were unable to overcome the New York Jets, even while Lamonica was throwing 401 yards and a touchdown without an interception.

In 1969, he led the AFL in nearly every category, including completions, attempts, yardage, touchdowns, and interceptions, and Oakland again finished with the best record in the league at 12-1-1. He demolished Houston in the wild card game behind 276 yards and 6 touchdowns, but came up short again in the AFL title game, dropping this one to Kansas City 17-7.

The AFL and NFL merged in 1970, but it didn't slow him down. He did not put up the yardage that he had over the past few years, but Oakland won their division for the fourth year in a row, and he again led them to the AFC title game, but they again fell one game short of the Super Bowl. It would be the last time he would get that close to winning a title.

Lamonica was only a starter in the NFL or AFL for 6 full seasons, but his overall record is incredible, at 66-16-6, a winning percentage of 78.4%, #2 in history, behind only Otto Graham. He made it to the AFC or AFL title game in each of his first 4 seasons as a starter, and also made it to the Super Bowl in his first ever season as a starter, and never played poorly in the playoffs, even when his team lost. Taking all of that into account, Lamonica definitely belongs on this list of the best QBs of all time.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #31 - Warren Moon

Warren Moon

Warren Moon is quite possibly the one quarterback on this list who overcame the most on his way to greatness. He was not recruited by any major college to play quarterback, so he went the junior college route, where he impressed enough to get an offer from Washington. Despite a strong senior year, he went undrafted in 1978, so he ended up going to play in the CFL.

During his first 5 seasons in Canada, Moon and the Edmonton Eskimos won 5 consecutive championships, a feat that is still unmatched, and he set league records in passing yardage in both 1982 and 1983. After setting numerous records in Canada, he finally received a lot of interest from the NFL, and he finally signed on with the Houston Oilers.

His first 3 years in the NFL did not go quite as planned. He was starting every game for Houston, but he threw more picks than touchdowns in each of those seasons. He finally pulled it together in 1987, when he led Houston to their first playoff berth since 1980 and even won a playoff game, something he did not do much over the rest of his career.

He continued to improve steadily over the next few years, peaking in 1990, when he led the league with 4689 yards and 33 touchdowns, while throwing only 13 interceptions. He wasn't able to win in the playoffs, but he came back strong again in 1991, again topping the league in passing yards. That season he won a playoff game for the third and last time in his career, meaning that he never even saw a conference championship game.

He remained a starter in the league for another 7 years, but could never translate the regular season success to the playoffs. He had an incredibly long career, playing 17 seasons in the NFL after 6 seasons in Canada, and he started the majority of his team's games in each of his first 15 seasons. 

When he retired, he was in the top 5 all-time in completions, attempts, yardage, and touchdowns. He was also the first black quarterback elected to the Hall of Fame, and at the same time became the first undrafted quarterback to be enshrined. He may not have the playoff success of many of the QB's on this list, but very few can match the sheer volume he put up over the course of his career, which is why he is in this spot.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #32 - Rich Gannon

Rich Gannon

It is quite common for a quarterback to need a few years before hitting his stride and beginning to really contribute to a team, but Rich Gannon took that to the extreme. It wasn't until his 12th season, in which he was 34 years old, that Gannon finally became a star, but his next 4 seasons were absolutely great.

Gannon was a true journeyman by the time he reached Oakland in 1999. He was drafted by New England, traded to Minnesota, then Washington, then signed with Kansas City before arriving in northern California. He had never been a full-time starter when he got there, though he had started quite a bit in Minnesota, but he was a perfect fit in Oakland's system, and he led them to some of the best days the Raiders had seen in a while.

In 1999 he reached the top 10 in passing yards and #4 in touchdowns, with 3840 and 24, but the Raiders finished one game outside the playoffs. The numbers were by far his career highs at the time, and he was finally cemented into a starting job.

The following year his numbers were equally impressive, 3430 yards and 28 touchdowns, but he also led the Raiders to their best record in a decade, at 12-4. They even won their first playoff game 27-0, which advanced them to the AFC Championship Game, which they lost to Baltimore. It was pretty impressive for a team that hadn't even made the playoffs in 7 years.

His stats in 2001 were very similar to the previous two seasons, except that he increased his accuracy, connecting on 65.8% of his throws, up from 60.0% the previous year. They made the playoffs again, only to lose to the eventual champion Patriots in the divisional round.

After three very strong years he broke through and had an amazing season, winning the league MVP award with a league-leading 4689 yards, along with 26 touchdowns and a 67.6% completion percentage. Oakland won their division for the third straight year, and this time he took them even farther, getting clear to Super Bowl XXXVII, where they met the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

He turned in an uncharacteristically poor performance in the Super Bowl, finishing with only 272 yards and 2 touchdowns, but 5 interceptions, 3 of which were returned for touchdowns. Many have blamed this on the fact that Tampa's new coach was Jon Gruden, who had been coaching the Raiders and Gannon the previous season. Oakland's new coach had not changed any of the team's plays or audibles, despite the fact that Coach Gruden still knew them.

Gannon played two more seasons for Oakland, but was injured more often than he was healthy, and he retired in 2005 at age 39. He may not have won a Super Bowl, and he also had a relatively short period of success as a starter, but he did more during those 4 years than any of the QB's ranked below him on this list.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #33 - Ken Stabler

Ken Stabler

Ken Stabler was drafted in the second round in 1968, but only started 2 games in his first 5 seasons, as he was stuck behind Daryle Lamonica on the depth chart. He would go on to be one of the best quarterbacks of the 1970's once he was given a chance.

In his first season at the helm, he led the league in completion percentage, but threw for less than 2000 yards total. His Raiders won the AFC West, and he was able to lead them to a playoff win before losing in the AFC championship game, not bad for a first-year starter.

The following season he was much better, leading the league in touchdown passes with 26, and the Raiders finished at 12-2, best in the entire league. For his great season, Stabler was named the league's MVP, but once again was unable to advance to the Super Bowl, losing in the AFC title game again.

He struggled with his control in 1975, doubling his previous career high for interceptions, but rebounded nicely in 1976, when he set new career highs in touchdowns and completion percentage while leading the league in both categories. He also led Oakland to their fourth straight AFC Championship Game, but this time they were finally able to win, enabling Stabler to reach his first Super Bowl. In that game, he only threw for 180 yards and 1 touchdown, but it was enough for Oakland to win the title, and it capped off a mistake-free postseason from Stabler.

His production dropped off a bit the next year, but not enough to prevent him from leading the Raiders to their 5th consecutive conference title game, an achievement very few have ever achieved. His career wound down pretty quickly after that, with 5 more years as a less effective starter before his 1983 retirement.

Stabler passed away in 2015, and was finally inducted as a member of the Hall of Fame the next year, an honor that should have happened much earlier. Though he only won the Super Bowl once in his career, he kept his team in close contention for 5 years, matching the length of Bart Starr's peak while going through more playoff games and tougher competition to get there.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #34 - Alex Smith

Alex Smith

Alex Smith is the second active quarterback to appear in this countdown, and while many consider him just a game manager, the evidence shows pretty clearly that once he had good coaching, he became one of the better starters in the league, and once of the best at protecting the ball.

Smith was the #1 overall pick in 2005, going to the 49ers, and while he started 7 games that year, he was actually not very good, throwing only 875 yards with 1 touchdown and 11 picks in those games. He started to show some promise the next year, becoming the first 49er quarterback ever to take every snap in a season, but a couple of shoulder injuries in 2007 and 2008 cost him a year and a half.

In 2011 things finally started to turn around for Smith. He was playing under his 6th offensive coordinator in 7 seasons, but he fit well in new coach Jim Harbaugh's system, and the 49ers finished 13-3 under his leadership. Smith led 5 game-winning drives that season, best in the league, and was great in the playoffs. He threw 3 touchdowns and ran for another in their first playoff game with no interceptions, then threw for 2 more in the NFC title game without a pick, but they fell to the Giants due to a couple of special teams turnovers.

Smith started off the 2012 season well, throwing for 13 touchdowns and only 5 interceptions in the first 9 games while leading the 49ers to a 6-2-1 record, but he suffered a concussion in the ninth game and was replaced by Colin Kaepernick, who held on to the job for the rest of the season. After the season he was traded to the Chiefs, where he was immediately installed as the starter.

His first season in Kansas City was his best to that point, with 23 touchdowns and only 7 picks on the season, and another trip to the playoffs, where Smith threw 378 yards with 4 touchdowns and no picks in a close loss to the Colts. It was his second trip to the playoffs, and the second time he had stepped up his game when it mattered, even though things didn't quite go his way.

He had several more solid seasons in Kansas City before his career year in 2017, when he was the best passer in the league, throwing for career highs of 4042 yards, and 26 touchdowns, giving up only 5 interceptions, and leading the league in QB rating. The season ended in a close playoff loss again, falling by a point to the Tennessee Titans, while Smith threw 2 touchdowns and no picks in the loss.

The Chiefs decided to move on from Smith after the season in order to install Pat Mahomes as the starter, so he was traded to the Redskins. He lacked the offensive weapons he was accustomed to in KC and struggled through half a season before suffering a devastating leg injury on the same date as the one Joe Theismann suffered 33 years earlier for the same team. He hopes to return next season, but the Redskins drafted a QB in the first round as an insurance policy.

Though Smith's career got off to a slow start, he eventually became a very good starter for several years until he finally became the best starter in the league. He has always played very well in the playoffs, but has lost by a total of 5 points in his three best playoff opportunities, and though he may not get to build on his career totals, he had done enough to be considered one of the best of all time.