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Who is the best QB in the NFL?

by Eric Berkenpas, Caleb Musselman & Ryan Frisco

One of those most opinionated and ambiguous arguments of all time has finally landed in our laps. Many factors go into determining who the best Quarterback in the league is. Some QBs have cannons for arms, some could keep pace with Usain Bolt and some could hit the bullseye on a 100mph train. There are so many different types of QBs who find success in drastically different ways but we, the writers at Sports Eye View, think we know the answer to the age old question. Let's begin.

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Eric - It took me all of about 1 second to determine who is hands down, without a doubt, the best QB in the league: Tom Brady of the New England Patriots. Where do I even start? Since claiming the starting position in 2001 after Drew Bledsoe, Tom Brady has enjoyed winning seasons every year and has only missed the playoffs twice. The other year, he sat out with a torn ACL. He has played in 5 Super Bowls, which is tied for the most all time, and won 3 of them, which is tied for second all time. He has the best all time winning percentage of any QB in the regular season and has the most playoff wins all time (please note how many times I have to say "all time"). He is second best among current QBs (behind Peyton Manning) when it comes to come from behind wins with 44 game winning drives, 7 of which were in the playoffs which, once again, is the most all time. I really shouldn't have to say anything more so I will let someone else try to match up to that.

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Caleb - In my opinion, this is currently the most difficult question in all of sports. If the question was "Who has been the most clutch QB in the past 10 years?" the award would go to Tom Brady. If the question was "Who is the QB who does the most with the least amount of talent?" that award would also have to go to Brady this year. Now the tense of this question is vital toward answering the question correctly. Who IS the best QB in the NFL? Right at this very moment, only a fool wouldn't pick Peyton Manning. Tom Brady has 14 TDs and 7 interceptions this year coupled with his lowest completion percentage since he's been a starter (58%). Peyton has over 1,000 more yards than Brady, 20 more TDs than Brady and a 69.8% completion percentage. Does Peyton have better offensive weapons? Without a doubt. But to say a QB who is currently breaking records each and every week is not the best in the league is just plain silly. Peyton may not be around much longer, but he is now proving that he IS the best QB in the league. And now for a crazy argument from Ryan Frisco...

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Ryan - Hmmm, I don't know about crazy...but I will say unorthodox.  Yes, I picked the Seattle Seahawks to win the Super Bowl this year, and Yes, I'm taking Russell Wilson as the best CURRENT quarterback in the league.  Thank you for clarifying the tense there Caleb.  Tom Brady does have a very good record this year...but he's been beating the likes of Geno Smith, E.J. Manuel and Ryan Tannehill, while looking less then lackluster.  Caleb, Peyton Manning is on his way to breaking records...but a QB's success as far as records go is based just as much on his incredible offensive weapons as it is his talent.  Most starting quarterbacks would do almost what Manning is doing if they had the same talent around them.  Now, to my argument as naming Russell Wilson the best current QB?  It is a bit crazy, a little farfetched and I don't expect a single reader to agree with me.  Most base his success on the Seattle defense, which is incredible.  Others give Marshawn Lynch the credit, which much is due.  But a great QB is measured in other ways too...like leadership.  Wilson was a third round pick out of the draft.  He faced a ton of criticism off the bat about his height...and overcame it by winning the starting job in his rookie season, against a much hyped Matt Flynn.  He then took a team of veterans, and rallied them on to an improbable 11-5 playoff season.  This year, he looks primed for 14-2, starting his career 25-7.  If you measure on Leadership, and Will to Win, this kid's got it.

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Eric - Leadership and Will to Win? You can't say those two things in the context of NFL QBs without Tom Brady's name coming immediately to mind. Have you ever seen Brady at the end of a close contest or especially at the end of a few and far between loss? Will to Win doesn't even begin to touch the surface of his intensity. Year in and year out Brady is given a new crew of young, inexperienced no-names and each year, he displays his incredible leadership ability by rallying them all together under his ingenious offensive scheme. That is as much argument as Wilson is worthy of when attempting to compare him to Brady. He has been quite the story so far, but has hardly compiled enough games and experiences to make a credible argument. Now on to the tougher argument...Peyton is indeed having a heck of a year. He also has arguably the greatest receiving core of all time at his disposal, as well as a dynamic and incredibly effective running game. Brady has neither and is still winning, and just so happened to beat Manning head to head while also out-performing him. Sometimes record breaking individual offensive stats like TD-Int ratio or passing yards don't mean anything when they don't translate into wins when they matter. Brady is a winner, plain and simple. He has proven this all throughout his illustrious career and is proving it more than ever this year by leading his rag-tag bunch of inexperienced kids to an impressive 8-3 record. No other QB can compare to that. Manning has never dealt with any of that and has always been protected by an all-star offensive line and, up until last year, a pretty dome to protect him from inclement weather.

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Caleb - Put Russell Wilson on the Steelers and he is .500. Put him on the Bucs and he is .500. Sometimes the best way to measure a quarterback's effectiveness is to envision him on another squad. How would Russell Wilson do on another team? He has the best defense in the league and a top 5 running game. He only throws the ball about 20 times a game! Put Wilson on another team and he is good but not great. Don't get me wrong, Wilson is a very good player and a fantastic leader, but putting him in the same conversation as Manning and Brady is downright cruel. Good quarterbacks make average players great. Look at Eric Decker's stats. Look at Knowshon-freaking-Moreno's stats. How good was he before Peyton came into the picture? Now look back at Wilson. How is Sydney Rice doing this year? How about Golden Tate? Both of them are hardly WR3's this year! Wilson will have a great career but I can guarantee he will stay in Seattle a few more years as he gets better while his defense scores points. Peyton and Brady are just different. What Brady has done this year is pretty incredible. However, put these two squads together three times in one season and I would put my money on Manning winning two out of three. In their head-to-head matchup, while having easily the worst game of his season, Manning still managed 2 TDs. Brady has put up astronomical numbers with just above average offensive weapons his entire career. His numbers this season suggest he is still fantastic but Manning takes the cake as this season's best QB.

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Ryan - Yes, I know, and expected this criticism.  But, in reading the Professional Sports Writers stories the past two weeks, I realize I am not alone!! Halfway through the season, the MVP award obviously was going to Peyton Manning.  Now, there appears to be someone else creeping into the picture...and no, it's not Sir Nick Foles...it's Russell Wilson!  Ha, take that! Wilson doesn't run a shock and awe type of offense.  He isn't out there to turn everyone else into Super Stars, like Manning and Brady do.  He's there to manage the game, and most importantly, WIN the game. And that's what he does.  So he doesn't turn Sidney Rice into Megatron?  Golden Tate isn't getting you a million fantasy points? You're comparing this to Fantasy Football rankings....this is real life NFL football here!!! It's not about the stats.  It's not about how many points you score, or who wants you on their fantasy team.  It's about
winning.  That's it.  Russell Wilson wins games. The NFL's best QB.  End of story.

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Eric - Alright so the title of best QB goes to the QB who wins? Let's roll with this. Brady is 23-8 since Wilson joined the league and Manning is 25-6. Both records are equal or better than Wilson. Was Ben Roethlisberger the best QB in the league when he led the Steelers to 13 straight victories in 2004? Not a chance. I could come up with other examples of QBs who simply won games but would never have been considered as the best QB. Just because someone wins, it doesn't make them the best. The Steelers went 15-1 that season due in large part to their defense and running game. Same exact story rings true for the Seahawks this year. They have the best defense in the game and one of the best running games. Wilson doesn't even have to do anything and the Seahawks would be in the playoffs. I'm not going to reiterate all of Brady's stats that I listed above but there is no question that this crown belongs to either him or Manning, and I don't think there is any conclusive evidence for either one...but it's definitely one of them. I think Brady is better mostly because of how much he accomplishes with what little talent he is given but Manning has astronomical numbers that make it hard to deny he is the best. Either way, Wilson does not yet deserve to be talked about in the company of Brady and Manning and may well never be deserving of that.

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Caleb - So...Manning just broke the single season TD record and needs just 250 yards in Week 17 to break the record for most yards in a season. He is 37 years old. As this season goes on, this argument becomes less and less necessary. It's like arguing which mountain is the highest in the world. There are some mountains that are, in fact, taller from base to peak than Mount Everest because of their relation to sea level. However, does that make them more majestic than Everest? No doubt, Peyton has better weapons than Brady and Wilson. No doubt, Brady does more with less than anyone in the league. No doubt, Wilson is an unbelievable leader and could be the best locker room leader and game manager in the league (in a year or two). However, these qualifications do not answer the question which has been posed. These giants are like Mt. McKinley or Kilimanjaro; majestic in their own right but paling in comparison to the greatest of them all when placed side by side. Peyton Manning IS the best quarterback in the NFL. "Here I stand. I can do no other."

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Ryan - Okay okay, yes if you're going on stats alone, Brady and Manning would take the crown.  The thing is, I view the picture differently.  The Patriots and Broncos don't just beat teams when they are better, they blow them out.  They run up the score.  There was no need for Manning to throw 7 touchdowns against the Ravens in Week 1, and no reason for Tom Brady to continue scoring this past week against Baltimore.  These statistics are exponential now because they continue to beat a team while their down and out, not near the competition they should be.  The Seahawks and Russell Wilson are different.  They take the humble approach to the game, and work to run the clock out rather then score score score when they're already up.  I know my argument is the unlikely, unattractive one, but I stand by my statement.  Being the best quarterback is not about what records you break with the weapons you have.  It's about being able to lead a team in the most unlikely of circumstances.  Russell Wilson was not supposed to start in the NFL, but he came out, won the job, and hasn't stopped winning since.  A second year quarterback has the entire team, coaching staff and city behind him, and is primed for a Super Bowl run.  And that's without the likes of DT, Welker, Decker, Gronkowski, Moreno, Edelman, Amendola and more.  You judge how you want to, I'll judge how I see fit.  This kid is the best at his position now, and will be for years to come.

Well, I think that didn't get too intense.  Now, you be the judge!