National Football League

From Mahomes to Garoppolo: Ranking NFL playoff QBs

Updated Jan. 20, 2022 4:02 p.m. ET

By Bucky Brooks
FOX Sports NFL Analyst

If you do not believe the NFL is a quarterback-driven league, just take a look at the eight QBs remaining in the playoffs.

The list includes three former MVPs, a pair of No. 1 overall picks and a few passers who have garnered all-star consideration in the past.

Super Wild Card Weekend once again showed that quarterback play is often the difference between good teams and great teams in this league. Sure, a team can rack up regular-season wins and perhaps a wild-card victory with a solid quarterback at the helm, but it is difficult to advance to the championship rounds without a premier QB1.

The playoffs are about poise, playmaking and production, and even the best schemers can't mask a middling quarterback’s flaws in the pressurized environment of the postseason.

Ranking the NFL playoff QBs

Bucky Brooks ranks the remaining quarterbacks in the postseason, from Patrick Mahomes to Jimmy Garoppolo.

With that in mind, I believe this is the perfect time to assess the remaining quarterbacks in the playoff field to determine which ones have the best chance to hoist the Lombardi Trophy next month.

RANKING THE PLAYOFF QUARTERBACKS

1. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs

Mahomes is already a legend in the making. The former league and Super Bowl MVP is just two touchdown passes shy of the NFL record for the most by a player in his first 10 playoff games. Mahomes is currently tied with Dan Marino (22) and just one behind Kurt Warner and Drew Brees.

As an efficient playmaker with gaudy numbers (65% completion rate, 22:5 touchdown-to-interception ratio, 105.1 passer rating) and a 7-2 playoff record, Mahomes is exactly what every team covets in a franchise QB. Given his combination of five-star tools, improvisational skills and winning pedigree, Kansas City's QB1 is the front-runner in a loaded playoff field.

2. Tom Brady, Buccaneers

The seven-time Super Bowl winner entered the tournament with plenty of momentum. Brady posted the second 5,000-yard season of his career, along with a 43:12 touchdown-to-interception ratio and a 102.1 passer rating. As a model of consistency and a clutch performer with a résumé loaded with playoff wins, Brady has the experience and expertise to get it done against any opponent.

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That said, the 44-year-old needs more help at this stage of his career, and the Buccaneers’ banged-up lineup will make it harder for him to snag another ring. You can't count out the GOAT based on his track record, but he entered the playoffs with less complementary weaponry than some of his competitors, and that could make the difference in a championship run.

3. Aaron Rodgers, Packers

The three-time MVP might claim some more hardware this season as the best player in the league, but that does not guarantee him the top spot on this list. Rodgers’ repeated playoff failures in the championship rounds cannot be ignored in a league in which wins matter more than individual stats.

Rodgers has a 12-9 playoff record, with a 64.9% completion rate and a 45:13 touchdown-to-interception ratio, but he has just 10 games with a passer rating of 100.0 or better in those contests.

Aaron Rodgers under pressure

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For a QB with a career passer rating of 104.5, the inefficient postseason play represents a drastic decline from Rodgers’ regular-season dominance. Until he is able to advance to another Super Bowl with strong performances in the championship rounds, the soon-to-be four-time MVP will have a hard time moving up this chart.

4. Josh Allen, Bills

As a spectacular one-man show for the Bills, Allen became just the third quarterback in NFL history to throw 30-plus touchdowns while rushing for 750-plus yards. He's a freak athlete with five-star arm talent and one of the few quarterbacks with the ability to win the battle on the ground or through the air.

With his superior size (6-foot-5, 237 pounds) making him nearly impossible for smaller defenders to tackle, Allen poses quite a dilemma for defensive coordinators tasked with slowing him down inside and outside of the pocket.

5. Joe Burrow, Bengals

The super sophomore has energized Cincinnati with his championship swagger and rock-solid game. Burrow led the Bengals to their first division title since 2015 with 4,000-plus pass yards and a 34:14 touchdown-to-interception ratio.

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The former No. 1 overall pick is a model of efficiency, as evidenced by his six games with a passer rating of 120.0 or better. With a star-studded cast of playmakers around him, Burrow can operate like a scoring point guard running the floor on a fast break. If the Bengals’ protection holds up, the ultra-confident QB can put up big numbers on any opponent.

6. Matthew Stafford, Rams

The 13-year veteran finally got the monkey off his back with the first playoff win of his career last weekend. But the Rams did not acquire him in a blockbuster trade to win a wild-card game. Stafford was acquired to help the Rams win a Super Bowl; anything short of that is a failure.

Stafford has shown flashes of brilliance, with 4,800-plus pass yards and 41 touchdowns this season, but he also finished as the league’s co-leader in interceptions (17) and tallied four pick-sixes as an ultra-aggressive gunslinger. Given his track record as a clutch finisher (42 game-winning drives, 34 fourth-quarter comebacks) with a risky mindset, the Rams’ QB1 is the ultimate "boom or bust" player in the tournament.

7. Ryan Tannehill, Titans

Tannehill just finished one of the most inefficient campaigns of his nine-year career. After posting the NFL’s second-best passer rating (110.6) in 2018-19, he had an 89.6 rating this season. While injuries to playmakers Derrick Henry, A.J. Brown and Julio Jones contributed to Tannehill's decline, his significant dip in production suggests that he is more of a "trailer" (team carries the quarterback) than a "truck" (quarterback carries the team).

That said, Tannehill has won a lot of games with the Titans, and he is more than capable of running the table with his all-star supporting cast back in action.

8. Jimmy Garoppolo, 49ers

Despite Garoppolo's 34-15 record and a Super Bowl appearance with the 49ers, there are major concerns regarding the veteran’s turnover woes, accuracy and judgment. Garoppolo is a bit of a double agent — keeping the 49ers and their opponents in games with his questionable decisions with the ball.

Jimmy G's turnover woes

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Considering that the QB has five total giveaways in 10 wins, compared to 11 turnovers in six losses, the 49ers’ playoff hopes hinge on Garoppolo’s ability to take care of the football. It has worked out to this point, but we will see if playing with a high-end game manager will result in the Lombardi Trophy making a trip back to the Bay Area.

Bucky Brooks is an NFL analyst for FOX Sports and regularly appears on "Speak For Yourself." He also breaks down the game for NFL Network and is a cohost of the "Moving the Sticks" podcast.