30 Best Quarterbacks of All Time

Every season Otto Graham played for the Cleveland Browns, the team reached the league championship game — the first four as members of the AAFC and the last six in the NFL. With Graham under center, the Browns won four AAFC and three NFL titles. In his six NFL seasons, Graham led the league in completion percentage three times and passing yards twice.

Terry Bradshaw was the first quarterback to win four Super Bowls, accomplishing that in a six-season span with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Hall of Fame quarterback also led the Steelers to eight AFC championship appearances. When he retired, he held Super Bowl records for passing yards (932 yards) and touchdowns (9).

The first modern T-formation quarterback, Sid Luckman led the Chicago Bears to NFL titles in 1940, 1941, 1943, and 1946. Sixty-eight years after his last pass, the Hall of Famer is still in the NFL record books as the career leader in passing touchdown percentage (7.9%) and No. 2 in yards per completion (16.2).

When Fran Tarkenton retired after 18 seasons in the NFL, he held the career records for most pass completions (3,686), passing yards (47,003), and touchdowns (342). The first great scrambling quarterback, Tarkenton still ranks sixth all-time for quarterbacks with 3,674 rushing yards. He’s not ranked higher on this list because he never won a championship, going 0-for-3 in the Super Bowl.

Unlike most Hall of Fame quarterbacks, Steve Young wasn’t a star until his eighth season, the first of his two MVP seasons. Young struggled in his first two seasons, when he was a Tampa Bay Buccaneer, and then moved to San Francisco to back up Joe Montana. Despite being a late bloomer, when Young retired he was the league’s leader in career QB rating (96.8) and is still fifth on the list. Young was a dual threat as his 4,239 rushing yards are the fifth most ever gained by a quarterback.