How do we define a great quarterback? Of course, you’d ideally want a guy who can do everything required of the position at a high level, but that’s not generally possible because the requirements are so varied and exacting. Tom Brady is never going to juke a linebacker out of his socks on a scramble (unless you count this play against Hall-of-Famer Brian Urlacher in 2006). Lamar Jackson was the NFL’s unanimous MVP last season, but as dynamic as he is as a thrower and runner, there are still minor processing issues that showed up in the playoffs.
Patrick Mahomes is probably the best quarterback in the NFL right now, but he still threw two interceptions in Super Bowl LIV. Drew Brees had had seasons in which his deep ball seemed to disappear, only to return in time.
So, when evaluating quarterbacks, coaches and player personnel people need to figure out what attributes work best for their teams, and respond accordingly. It doesn’t matter that Brady isn’t Lamar Jackson — he’s also the best pocket mover the position has ever seen. And while Jackson may break the NFL if (more likely when) he sands down his few rough spots, he’s also the most impossible mobile quarterback to solve since Michael Vick in his prime.
Who’s best under pressure? Who performs at the highest level when using play-action? Who needs to keep his drops short and orderly to maintain his poise, and which quarterbacks thrive on the broken play?
We’ll be taking deeper dives into these individual questions over the summer, but for now, here’s the NFL’s best quarterbacks from 2019 when you need just one of these kinds of throws.
(All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus and Sports Info Solutions).
The three-step drop: Ryan Tannehill, Tennessee Titans
Play-action was a crucial part of the Titans’ passing game when Tannehill took over for Marcus Mariota halfway through the 2019 season, but the quick game was another integral aspect. And on three-step drops, Tannehill led the league with a 123.9 passer rating, completing 96 of 138 passes for 1,356 yards, 12 touchdowns, and two interceptions.
The five-step drop: Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints
Moving from the three-step drop to the five-step drop gets us into the intermediate passing game (say, 10-19 air yards), and that’s where Brees reigned supreme in 2019 with a 132.4 passer rating on such throws. He completed 79 passes on 106 five-step throws for 955 yards, 11 touchdowns, and one interception.
The seven-step drop: Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks.
As the NFL has transitioned to more of a quick passing game by default, the seven-step drop is almost a thing of the past. Jared Goff was the only quarterback in 2019 with more than 50 attempts on seven-step drops (68), but it was Wilson, Goff’s NFC West rival, who proved most effective on those longer dropbacks with a 157.6 passer rating. Wilson completed 23 of 30 passes for 450 yards, five touchdowns, and no interceptions. He also took sacks on 16.7% of his dropbacks, which is the nature of the beast. Interestingly enough, Wilson also dominated on zero-step and one-step drops, with 11 touchdowns and just one interception.
The designed rollout: Baker Mayfield, Cleveland Browns
It may surprise you to know that Jared Goff had the most rollout throws in the NFL last season with 75, 15 more than any other quarterback. But Goff wasn’t the most efficient quarterback when rolling out — that was Mayfield, who completed 16 of 20 passes for 285 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions. Expect far more boot-action rollouts for Mayfield in Kevin Stefanski’s offense in 2020.