July 26, 2024, was a busy day for the 2020 NFL Draft’s quarterback class. Just hours after the Miami Dolphins gave Tua Tagovailoa four years and $212.4 million, Jordan Love and the Green Bay Packers agreed to a four-year, $220 million extension that made him the highest-paid quarterback in NFL history.
Love and Tua’s new pacts — plus the respective mega-deals Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert, and Jalen Hurts signed with the Cincinnati Bengals, Los Angeles Chargers, and Philadelphia Eagles last year — have made the 2020 QB class one of the most lucrative crops in league history.
Of course, those five signal-callers wouldn’t have gotten paid unless they produced. All five QBs finished in the top 15 of Pro Football Network’s quarterback rankings; Burrow and Herbert were in the top five.
The 2020 quarterback class has undeniably shaped today’s NFL landscape, but where does it rank among the best groups in league history? Let’s run through the top 10 QB classes in the NFL’s record books and determine where Burrow, Tua, Herbert, Love, and Hurts land.
Ranking the Top 10 QB Draft Classes in NFL History
High-end play matters in our QB class rankings, but the depth of each class also plays a critical role. For example, the 2000 QB class featured seven total Super Bowls and three MVP awards — unfortunately for the class as a whole, Tom Brady selfishly won each of those trophies.
The next-best QBs in the 2000 draft were Marc Bulger and Chad Pennington, league-average starters with spotty track records. No other quarterback selected that year appeared in more than 40 career games. Brady et al. didn’t make our list due to that lack of breadth.
10) 1998 NFL Draft
Notable QBs: Peyton Manning, Matt Hasselbeck, Brian Griese, Charlie Batch
While you might think the 1998 QB class looks similar to the 2000 cohort we just ruled out, don’t underestimate Hasselbeck.
Manning, the No. 1 overall pick who went on to win an NFL-record five MVP awards and two Super Bowls, is the gem of the class. He’s already enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame and is arguably a top-three quarterback in league history.
Hasselbeck was no slouch, though. He spent 17 seasons in the NFL, including 11 as his team’s primary starter. After backing up Brett Favre for the Green Bay Packers, Hasselbeck took the Seattle Seahawks to six postseason appearances, including their first Super Bowl trip after the 2005 campaign.
9) 1993 NFL Draft
Notable QBs: Drew Bledsoe, Mark Brunell, Trent Green, Elvis Grbac
Just as in 1998, the first pick in the 1993 NFL Draft ended up as the crown jewel.
While Bledsoe may be best remembered for giving way to Brady, he made four Pro Bowls across a 14-year career and guided the New England Patriots to an appearance in Super Bowl XXXI.
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Brunell took the expansion Jacksonville Jaguars to two AFC Championships and four total playoff berths in their first five seasons.
Injuries ruined the early portion of Green’s career, but he was prolific with the Kansas City Chiefs during the early 2000s. Even Grbac went 40-30 and earned a Pro Bowl nod.
8) 1973 NFL Draft
Notable QBs: Dan Fouts, Ron Jaworski, Bert Jones, Joe Ferguson
While he didn’t come off the board until the middle of Round 3, Fouts became the most productive quarterback of the 1973 class. The longtime San Diego Chargers QB led the NFL in passing yards each season from 1979 through 1982; he’s still the only QB to rank No. 1 in passing four years straight.
Fouts is 1973’s only Hall of Famer, but Jaworski helped the Philadelphia Eagles to four straight playoff berths and a Super Bowl appearance.
Jones earned NFL MVP and Offensive Player of the Year honors in 1976. And Ferguson was an 11-season starter who led the NFL in touchdown passes in 1975 and passing yards in 1977.
7) 2005 NFL Draft
Notable QBs: Aaron Rodgers, Alex Smith, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Jason Campbell, Matt Cassel, Kyle Orton, Derek Anderson
Rodgers infamously had to wait until pick No. 24 in 2005 to be chosen, but he turned into a surefire future Hall of Famer for the Packers. After taking over for Brett Favre in 2008, Rodgers won four MVP awards and Super Bowl XLV in Green Bay. He’s led the NFL in QBR three times, touchdown rate four times, and TD:INT ratio six times.
Smith went 99-67-1 as an NFL starter, earning three Pro Bowls while making playoff runs with the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs.
Cassel and Anderson went to Pro Bowls, Fitzpatrick made 147 career stats, and even Campbell and Orton had their moments.
6) 2012 NFL Draft
Notable QBs: Russell Wilson, Kirk Cousins, Ryan Tannehill, Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III, Nick Foles
Wilson is 2012’s best chance at a Hall of Famer; even if he doesn’t make it, the four-time Pro Bowler still posted an outstanding career. The third-round choice took the Seahawks in eight of his 10 seasons as a starter, winning one Super Bowl while narrowly missing out on another. Wilson, a nine-time Pro Bowler, won more games than any NFL quarterback through nine seasons.
Tannehill was a full-time starter for a decade-plus, while Cousins won’t be stopping any time soon after signing a four-year contract with the Atlanta Falcons this offseason.
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Foles came off the bench to lead the Eagles to one of the NFL’s most unexpected Super Bowl runs.
Luck and Griffin might’ve been the best QBs among the 2012 class if not for injuries.
5) 2020 NFL Draft
Notable QBs: Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert, Tua Tagovailoa, Jordan Love, Jalen Hurts
Clearly, the 2020 QB class has produced less total value than some of the other groups on our list. There are no MVP or Super Bowl winners here; only Burrow and Hurts have appeared in the season’s final game.
Hurts is the only one with an All-Pro nod (second-team in 2022). Love has a single season as an NFL starter under his belt.
Still, if we’re permitted a little bit of projection, it’s hard to understate what the 2020 class could become.
Now that all five of Burrow, Tua, Herbert, Love, and Hurts have earned second contracts with their respective franchises, it’s fair to pencil them in for multiple seasons of similar production moving forward.
The 2020 quarterback class will have to compete annually with Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, and Lamar Jackson for Super Bowls and major awards. But it feels safe to assume that at least one member of the 2020 crop will win a Lombardi, while additional Pro Bowl and All-Pro berths will only elevate this class.
4) 1971 NFL Draft
Notable QBs: Ken Anderson, Joe Theismann, Jim Plunkett, Archie Manning, Lynn Dickey, Dan Pastorini
Cracking the top three QB draft classes in NFL history will be challenging for the 2020 group. However, Burrow and Co. could eventually surpass this 1971 class, primarily because it does not feature any Hall of Famers.
Anderson should arguably be in Canton. One of the NFL’s most talented quarterbacks of the 1970s and 1980s, Anderson won the 1981 MVP award and took Cincinnati to a Super Bowl appearance while leading the league in touchdown rate (6.1%), interception rate (2.1%), passer rating (98.4), and adjusted net yards per attempt (7.43).
Theisman helped Washington win the Super Bowl in 1982 and took home MVP honors the following season.
Plunkett earned two Lombardi trophies with the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders.
Manning started 139 career games and went to two Pro Bowls, Dickey led the NFL in passing yards in 1983, and Pastorini made two playoff appearances with the Houston Oilers.
3) 1957 NFL Draft
Notable QBs: Len Dawson, Sonny Jurgensen, John Brodie, Jack Kemp, Milt Plum
The two Hall of Famers that boosted the 1957 QB class to the No. 3 spot in our rankings were chosen at disparate points in the draft, but both had to wait multiple seasons before becoming full-time starters.
While Dawson was the fifth overall pick in 1957, he didn’t grab a QB1 job until 1962. After joining the Chiefs the following season, Dawson took Kansas City to three AFL championships and a Super Bowl IV victory. The six-time Pro Bowler led the league in completion rate seven times, passer rating six times, and touchdown rate five times.
Jurgensen, a fourth-round pick, earned first-team All-Pro honors with the Eagles in 1961, his first season as a starter. He started 147 games for Philadelphia and Washington, pacing the NFL in passing yardage in 1961, 1962, 1966, 1967, and 1969. Jurgensen earned a place on the NFL’s All-1960s team alongside fellow QBs Johnny Unitas and Bart Starr.
Brodie, who won Comeback Player of the Year in 1965 and MVP in 1970, deserves a spot in the Hall of Very Good.
Kemp (a future Vice Presidential candidate) earned five first-team All-AFL nods and won AFL MVP in 1965.
Plum went 56-41-6 as a starter, leading the league in completion rate from 1959 to 1961.
2) 2004 NFL Draft
Notable QBs: Philip Rivers, Ben Roethlisberger, Eli Manning, Matt Schaub
You probably remember the beginning of the 2004 NFL Draft, when Eli Manning refused to play for the Chargers, who selected him No. 1 overall anyway before trading the Ole Miss product to the New York Giants for Rivers (the No. 4 choice) and additional picks.
Roethlisberger ended up falling to the Pittsburgh Steelers at 11th overall. But the truth is, all three franchises would probably have been pleased with any of the three quarterback choices.
While Rivers never won a Super Bowl, he’s arguably the best QB from the 2004 class. He started 240 consecutive games while battling numerous injuries. Rivers ranked first in yards per attempt in three straight seasons from 2008 to 2010, won Comeback Player of the Year in 2013, and went to nine Pro Bowls.
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Roethlisberger and Manning have four Super Bowls between them. The Steelers signal-caller is the more accomplished quarterback, having earned six Pro Bowl berths over 18 seasons. Manning was excellent in his own right, coming up clutch in crucial Super Bowl moments against the Patriots.
Schaub won’t join Rivers, Roethlisberger, and Manning in Canton but more than outplayed his third-round draft status. As the Texans’ starter for seven seasons from 2007 to 2013, Schaub grabbed two Pro Bowls, guided Houston to two playoff appearances, and led the NFL in passing in 2009.
1) 1983 NFL Draft
Notable QBs: Dan Marino, John Elway, Jim Kelly, Ken O’Brien, Tony Eason, Todd Blackledge
While it’s almost hard to believe, the 1983 NFL Draft started just like 2004’s: Elway refused to play for the Colts, who drafted him No. 1 overall anyway before trading him to the Denver Broncos.
Elway was the first of six first-round quarterbacks chosen in 1983, a record that has never been broken and wasn’t tied until the 2024 NFL Draft. A nine-time Pro Bowler and the 1987 NFL MVP, Elway finally won back-to-back Super Bowls to cap his career in 1997 and 1998.
Marino never won a Super Bowl but became arguably the best pure passer in NFL history, earning three first-team All-Pros and nine Pro Bowl nods in the process. Despite playing in a bygone NFL era, he’s seventh all-time in passing yards and eighth in passing touchdowns.
Kelly came exceptionally close to a Lombardi but lost four consecutive Super Bowls with the Buffalo Bills from 1990 to 1993. As Buffalo’s starter, he went 101-59, earned five Pro Bowl berths, and was named first-team All-Pro in 1991.
The 1983 QB class is — for now — the only group with three Hall of Fame inductees.