National Football League

QB Confidential: NFL passers pick the smartest QB, best arm, top WR, defender, more

Published Sep. 5, 2024 8:18 a.m. ET

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Greg Auman

NFL Reporter

In recent years, we've had fun doing a "Pro Bowl Confidential" where, in an anonymous survey, we ask 10 quick questions, mostly superlatives about the best of the NFL, from the best of the NFL.

This year, we wanted to survey the most important position in the league, talking to NFL quarterbacks about the best at their position, the positions they work with and the coaches who develop them. We reached out across the league in training camp and preseason, through teams, agents, even through social media.

With all that help, we queried a panel of 38 quarterbacks, a good mix of veterans and rookies, Pro Bowlers and backups, former first-round picks and undrafted players.

The goal was to let them answer the debates that fans have all the time — with friends, on social media, at the bar watching games. Who's the smartest QB in the league? Who has the best arm? Who's the most underappreciated quarterback in the NFL? Which coach has the best offensive mind? If you could throw to any receiver in the league, who would you pick? Which defensive player creates the biggest challenge for a QB? Would you rather have an elite offensive line to protect you or elite receivers to throw to?

Answer those questions yourself, and then see how a group of NFL quarterbacks answered. Here we go ... 

Who's the smartest quarterback in the NFL?

The first question we asked was simple. Some QBs could answer based on first-hand knowledge, some relied on well-earned reputations, but after a few seconds to think, nearly all offered impassioned responses. In this case, what's most interesting might be who didn't show up among the top vote-getters.

The winner? The most experienced quarterback in the league today, Aaron Rodgers, who at age 40 will try again to resurrect the New York Jets after missing almost all of last season with a torn Achilles tendon. Rodgers was named by 15 of our quarterback respondents. He's a Super Bowl champ and a four-time league MVP, so it may not be surprising he won the vote. 

"We played against him my rookie year, and it was so cool," one QB said. "You'd hear stories about his IQ and his way of seeing and understanding the game. But to see it in person, the way he operated, just hand signals ... his whole operation was smooth and calm, like he'd done it a million times. I mean, he has."

Expectations for the Jets, Aaron Rodgers and Robert Saleh this season?

A close second with 12 votes was the Rams' Matthew Stafford, now 36 and entering his 16th season. Stafford's smarts are renowned enough that one young quarterback still remembers his Wonderlic score from 2009. The QB recalled Stafford scoring a 39, though in truth it was only a 38 — which is still outstanding for any non-Ryan Fitzpatrick passer.

"How he moves people around the field, and his knowledge of everything going on at one time," one quarterback said of Stafford.

"The way he can adjust on the fly, just watching him play live, he has a great feel for all the intricacies of the position," said another.

Another quarterback, not knowing the final results of our panel, correctly assessed the top two, noting a fundamental difference in what makes each great.

"It's between Matthew Stafford and Aaron Rodgers," he explained. "Aaron does so much freestyling, but Matthew within the system is extremely good."

The Falcons' Kirk Cousins was a distant third with three votes. In total, eight quarterbacks were named, including much younger players like the Packers' Jordan Love and the 49ers' Brock Purdy.

What's perhaps most surprising is that the Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes — he of the three Super Bowl wins and three Super Bowl MVPs — was named by only one quarterback.

"I know what type of offense he runs, and the play calls are pretty long," that QB said. "What he does is pretty impressive."

It's possible that quarterbacks attribute the Chiefs' offensive wizardry more to head coach and playcaller Andy Reid. Mahomes probably would have dominated if the question were "Who's the best quarterback?" but we wanted to delve a little deeper with our query. 

Nick Wright: 'Patrick Mahomes is the best QB ever and Tom Brady is the GOAT'

Final results: 

Aaron Rodgers, Jets: 15
Matthew Stafford, Rams: 12
Kirk Cousins, Falcons: 3
Jordan Love, Packers: 1
Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs: 1
Dak Prescott, Cowboys: 1
Brock Purdy, 49ers: 1
Russell WIlson, Steelers: 1

(Three QBs declined to answer.)

Which NFL coach has the best offensive mind?

There's a slight offensive tilt to the current NFL head coaches — 18 of 32 have backgrounds on that side of the ball — and six of the past eight Associated Press NFL Coach of the Year winners have come from the offensive side. There are veteran coaches with perennial success, and there are young prodigies, some not even 40 years old, who are revered across the league.

In polling QBs on the league's best offensive minds, we had expected a closely contested three-way race, but it ended up being more of a two-coach finish. Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan led the way with 12 votes, and Reid took second with eight.

"A lot of teams are trying to do what they're doing," one quarterback said of Reid's offense.

Then again, a lot of teams don't have Mahomes, who has led Kansas City to back-to-back championships and three titles in the past five years.

Perhaps developing Purdy, the final pick of the 2022 draft, into a Pro Bowl QB is why Shanahan, who has lost two Super Bowls to the Chiefs in the past five years, got the nod over Reid. And many quarterbacks referenced the influence of Shanahan's coaching tree across the NFL, which includes Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel, Texans OC Bobby Slowik and Rams OC Mike LaFleur. 

It was a bit surprising that Rams head coach Sean McVay, still only 38 and boasting a Super Bowl ring and a budding coaching tree of his own, received only three votes in finishing third. McDaniel, 41, who worked with both Shanahan and McVay as a young assistant and is 20-14 in two years in Miami, also got three votes.

We didn't specify that quarterbacks choose a head coach, but nearly all of them did. One said if he had a second vote, it would go to Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, who might very well be an NFL head coach next season. "He's a sleeper," the QB said.

In all, 13 coaches received votes, and it's worth mentioning with a smile that some quarterbacks might have used their vote to support someone with whom they've worked closely.

Final results: 

Kyle Shanahan, 49ers: 12
Andy Reid, Chiefs: 8 
Mike McDaniel, Dolphins: 3
Sean McVay, Rams: 3 
Brian Callahan, Titans: 1 
Matt LaFleur, Packers: 1 
Mike McCarthy, Cowboys: 1 
Kevin O'Connell, Vikings: 1
Sean Payton, Broncos: 1 
Arthur Smith, Steelers OC: 1
Shane Steichen, Colts: 1
Zac Taylor, Bengals: 1 
Alex Van Pelt, Patriots OC: 

Which rookie QB will have the best debut season?

Of course, our survey wouldn't be complete without asking about the league's talented class of rookie QBs.

An unprecedented six quarterbacks were drafted in the top 12 picks in April, including the top three overall picks, with USC's Caleb Williams going first to the Bears, LSU's Jayden Daniels second to the Commanders and North Carolina's Drake Maye third to the Patriots. Washington's Michael Penix Jr. then went No. 8 overall to the Falcons, Michigan's J.J. McCarthy went 10th to the Vikings and Oregon's Bo Nix went 12th to the Broncos.

Of those six, only three will be Week 1 starters: Williams, Daniels and Nix. McCarthy was lost to a season-ending knee injury in preseason (note that some of this survey was conducted before his injury), Maye will start the year as a backup to Jacoby Brissett, and Penix will back up Cousins in Atlanta.

Tom Brady on what to watch for in Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels' debuts

You need look back no further than last year to know that draft order doesn't always line up with immediate success. The Texans' C.J. Stroud, picked second in 2023, led Houston to a playoff win and made the Pro Bowl, while the Panthers' Bryce Young, who was picked first, struggled mightily as a rookie.

Nevertheless, Williams, the No. 1 overall pick this year, was easily the most popular choice in our survey, named by 22 of the 36 quarterbacks who had a response.

"That's the best situation I've ever seen a first overall pick go to," said one quarterback. Another said Williams "has the best supporting cast," and another cited "the pieces around him."

Fourteen QBs, however, didn't choose Williams, which is not insignificant. One quarterback was torn between Daniels and Nix, eventually choosing the Broncos rookie. Daniels took second with seven votes, Nix followed with five votes, and no other rookie was chosen more than once.

Final results: 

Caleb Williams, Bears: 22
Jayden Daniels, Commanders: 7
Bo Nix, Broncos: 5
J.J. McCarthy, Vikings: 1
John Rhys Plumlee, Jaguars: 1

Who has the best arm in the NFL?

We framed this question hoping it wasn't just a "who can throw the farthest" measure, and the winner was still who we expected: Bills quarterback Josh Allen, who led the way with 17 of 38 votes. "He's got a cannon," one quarterback said.

Mahomes was second with nine votes, and some noted the creativity of his throwing, beyond just remarkable physical skills.

"I think Josh has a stronger arm," one said, "but just on arm talent, I have to go Mahomes."

Said another Mahomes voter: "Not just arm strength, but being able to change arm angles. He can truly make every throw."

Final results: 

Josh Allen, Bills: 17
Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs: 9
Matthew Stafford, Rams: 6
Aaron Rodgers, Jets: 3
Justin Herbert, Chargers: 1
Kyler Murray, Cardinals: 1
C.J. Stroud, Texans: 1

If you could have one NFL receiver to throw to, who would it be?

With everyone and everything in the NFL ranked and re-ranked year-round, we wanted our QB panel to weigh in on those kinds of debates. So one of the questions we asked them was: If you could have any receiver in the NFL to throw to, who would you want?

For many NFL fans in 2024, there are only two possible answers to this question, given a tier all to themselves: Vikings receiver Justin Jefferson and Dolphins receiver Tyreek Hill. It's no surprise they were the two most popular choices — Jefferson received 14 votes and Hill got nine — but impressively, seven other receivers combined for 13 votes, showing the depth of the position.

"The speed Tyreek has, we've never seen in this league," one quarterback said, and another in the minority said "that's an easy one" in choosing Hill.

The Raiders' Davante Adams got four votes and everyone else got two or fewer, and not all of them were from quarterbacks showing love for their teams' No. 1 receiver.

Final results: 

Justin Jefferson, Vikings: 14
Tyreek Hill, Dolphins: 9
Davante Adams, Raiders: 4
Ja'Marr Chase, Bengals: 2
Cooper Kupp, Rams: 2
CeeDee Lamb, Cowboys: 2
A.J. Brown, Eagles: 1
Mike Evans, Bucs: 1
DJ Moore, Bears: 1

Which defensive player presents the biggest challenge on game day?

More often than not, as quarterbacks talked through the defender at any position who's the most problematic on Sundays, they said aloud that the easy answer up until this season would have been Aaron Donald, the future Hall of Famer who retired after a decade of dominance with the Rams.

The next comment was often that it really should be an edge rusher, and out of 35 responses, all but eight were edges. This was perhaps the most closely contested question of the lot, with the winner decided by one vote: The Cowboys' Micah Parsons got nine votes to edge the Browns' Myles Garrett with eight.

"Game planning against Micah Parsons was not fun," one quarterback said. "They move him around so much. It's hard to have protection rules. When we played Kansas City, we made sure we were sliding to Chris Jones, but for the most part, you knew where he was going to line up. Micah can be on the ball, off the ball, nose tackle, all that."

Steelers edge T.J. Watt got four votes, as did 49ers DE Nick Bosa. "You have to always double or chip," one quarterback said of Bosa. "You have to change your plan, and Nick plays the run so well. He's a pro."

Final results: 

Micah Parsons, Cowboys: 9
Myles Garrett, Browns: 8
Nick Bosa, 49ers: 4
T.J. Watt, Steelers: 4
Maxx Crosby, Raiders: 2
Patrick Surtain, Broncos: 2
Fred Warner, 49ers: 2
Jessie Bates, Falcons: 1
Chris Jones, Chiefs: 1
C.J. Mosley, Jets: 1
Jalen Ramsey, Dolphins: 1

Would you rather have an elite line or elite receivers?

We liked the simplicity of this one, but it wasn't quite the battle we thought it might be. Turns out quarterbacks — even anonymous ones — value their survival.

"You can't throw on your back," one said.

"It all starts with protection," another added.

So the final vote was the most lopsided we had: 29 quarterbacks, or better than 80%, chose the offensive line, while only seven (20%) chose the elite receivers.

We'll also give an anonymous shoutout to one quarterback who didn't want to choose, sticking with "both" as his answer.

Who is the NFL's most underappreciated quarterback?

Considering that the replies include a two-time NFL MVP and five QBs making more than $50 million a year on their current contracts, "underappreciated" means different things to different people. 

But the big winner was Stafford, who was named by 12 quarterbacks. The Rams veteran, who finished second as the league's smartest QB, edged out the Lions' Jared Goff, who got seven votes.

"He's had the most underrated career, hands down," one quarterback said of Stafford. Another who voted for a different passer said, "I would have said Stafford, but that's not the case anymore now that he's got a Super Bowl."

Where does Matthew Stafford rank among QBs?

Goff, who has played in one Super Bowl and just missed a second last year, also just missed more votes: "I would have said Jared, but I feel like he's finally getting some respect."

Cousins got four votes. "He always gives his team a chance," one voter said. The Bucs' Baker Mayfield, fresh off a great comeback season, finished fourth with three votes.

Final results: 

Matthew Stafford, Rams: 12
Jared Goff, Lions: 7
Kirk Cousins, Falcons: 4
Baker Mayfield, Bucs: 3
Lamar Jackson, Ravens:  2
Brock Purdy, 49ers: 2
Geno Smith, Seahawks: 2
Derek Carr, Saints: 1
Jalen Hurts, Eagles: 1
Jordan Love, Packers: 1
Tua Tagovailoa, Dolphins: 1

What's the most important skill for a QB to succeed?

As a fairly open-ended question, we asked our quarterbacks what the most important skill is for a quarterback to succeed in the NFL. The answers were almost entirely mental in nature. The lone exception? Five pointed to "accuracy" as a physical must for any kind of success.

"You can have as much arm strength as you can, you can be elusive, but if you can't place the ball where you're supposed to put it, you're going to have trouble on Sunday afternoons," one quarterback said.

The most common sentiment? The word "processing" came up quite often — a quarterback's ability to see the defense and put the offense in the right play, both before the snap and after. One described it as "managing chaos."

"I would say your ability to process and make decisions quickly. You've got to know 11 spots," one quarterback said. "The Shanahan system, it's like another language. You have to be able to listen to the play call, visualize it, speak it out loud, operate with shift and motion to see what the defense is doing. I would just say your ability to process information fast is really important."

Others pointed to confidence, but smarts came up more often than anything: "mental acuity" and "mastery of the offense" and "having a deep understanding of the offense." 

Also suggested were leadership and the innate ability to improve everyone around you.

"The ability to step in the huddle and 10 guys play better when you're in there," one said. "It's the Tom Brady effect, the Peyton Manning effect. … They can't test for it at the combine."

Greg Auman is an NFL Reporter for FOX Sports. He previously spent a decade covering the Buccaneers for the Tampa Bay Times and The Athletic. You can follow him on Twitter at @gregauman.

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Greg Auman