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NFL quarterback tiers, 2018: Ranking each team’s starter by category

By Peter Panacy

FOXBORO, MA - NOVEMBER 03: Ben Roethlisberger #7 of the Pittsburgh Steelers greets Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots following the game at Gillette Stadium on November 3, 2013 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)
FOXBORO, MA - NOVEMBER 03: Ben Roethlisberger #7 of the Pittsburgh Steelers greets Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots following the game at Gillette Stadium on November 3, 2013 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images) /
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ATLANTA, GA – JANUARY 14: Matt Ryan #2 of the Atlanta Falcons and Russell Wilson #3 of the Seattle Seahawks meet on the field after the Atlanta Falcons win at the Georgia Dome on January 14, 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA – JANUARY 14: Matt Ryan #2 of the Atlanta Falcons and Russell Wilson #3 of the Seattle Seahawks meet on the field after the Atlanta Falcons win at the Georgia Dome on January 14, 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /

Proven Winners

Matt Ryan (Falcons), Jared Goff (Rams), Russell Wilson (Seahawks), Carson Wentz (Eagles), Cam Newton (Panthers), Philip Rivers (Chargers), Andrew Luck (Colts)

While every NFL team is on the hunt for a franchise leader (the guy whose jersey will be retired 15 to 20 years from now), most squads would happily settle for a quarterback in this category.

These quarterbacks aren’t quite capable of carrying a team deep into the playoffs, but they’re pretty damned good. They just need a piece, or two, in place to help them reach their utmost potential.

For Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons, that might have been current 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan, who helped Ryan reach an MVP award a year ago. Ryan’s league-leading 117.1 passer rating in 2016 dropped down to 91.4 last year. And he nearly doubled the seven interceptions thrown when Shanahan was his offensive coordinator just over a year ago.

The Los Angeles Rams’ Jared Goff reached the Pro Bowl in 2017 after a forgettable rookie campaign the year before. Let’s see if his magic continues under head coach Sean McVay before bumping him up a category.

And the same goes for Carson Wentz of the Philadelphia Eagles, although he proved his value back in 2016 before a pretty stellar 2017 campaign pre-ACL injury.

The Seattle Seahawks’ Russell Wilson is one of those on the upper level of this category, as we’ll continue to question whether or not Seattle’s once-vaunted defense catapulted the team’s dominance during the first half of the decade. Still, Wilson is as close to must-watch television in today’s NFL, so he’s easily on the fringe of franchise elite.