2024 NFL power rankings: Top 32 starting quarterbacks entering Week 1

2024 NFL power rankings: Top 32 starting quarterbacks entering Week 1 originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

A new NFL season is almost here, and you know what that means: It’s time for a fresh batch of starting quarterback rankings.

There’s never been more quarterback talent in pro football than right now. Even many of the players listed in the bottom-third of this list have plenty of talent. Putting together the top 15 was more difficult than previous years.

Last season saw several upper-tier quarterbacks, such as Aaron Rodgers and Joe Burrow, miss a lot of games due to injury. It’ll be exciting to see those players return in Week 1 and try to lead their teams back to the playoffs.

So without further ado, here’s our ranking of the top 32 starting quarterbacks.

Nix beat out Jarrett Stidham to win the Broncos’ starting job. The No. 12 pick in the 2024 draft played well in the preseason and will try to help the Broncos compete for a playoff spot after finishing just outside the wild card race in 2023.

Darnold became the clear-cut starter in Minnesota after rookie J.J. McCarthy tore his meniscus a few weeks ago. It’s a great opportunity for the former No. 3 overall draft pick to revive his career. And he’s very lucky to have several excellent weapons around him on offense, including the league’s most talented wide receiver in Justin Jefferson.

Even though rookie Drake Maye outplayed Brissett in recent practices and the final two preseason games, the Patriots announced Thursday that the veteran will start Week 1. The real question is how many games will Brissett play. When will Maye take over? In the meantime, Brissett should be pretty comfortable running the offense because of his familiarity with offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt from their time together on the Browns.

The Giants weren’t able to trade up for a quarterback in the 2024 draft, so they’re running it back with Jones. He was limited to six games last season due to an ACL tear, and his performance in the preseason this month was subpar. It’s going to be a long season in New York.

Young’s rookie season was a disaster, and making matters worse was the fact that the Panthers owed their 2024 first-round pick (No. 1 overall) to the Bears. Carolina did add a few quality pass catchers in the offseason with wide receivers Diontae Johnson (trade) and rookie Xavier Legette (draft). Is it enough to help Young take a huge leap in Year 2? Doubtful.

Levis has a lot of potential after a decent rookie year that saw him play in the second half of the season. The Titans did a nice job in the offseason surrounding their young QB with talent at the skill positions. They signed star running back Tony Pollard and signed wideout Calvin Ridley early in free agency. Tennessee already had DeAndre Hopkins and Treylon Burks on its wide receiver depth chart. Levis has a powerful arm and isn’t afraid to take chances down field. This Titans offense has the potential to be pretty entertaining.

Minshew is getting another chance to be a starting quarterback, and it’s a great opportunity because of the talent around him in the Raiders offense. Davante Adams is still one of the league’s best wideouts. Jakobi Meyers is a very good WR2, and the tight end combination of Michael Mayer and rookie Brock Bowers is impressive as well. Minshew doesn’t have a high ceiling, but he’s pretty reliable. He has three seasons of at least 15 touchdown passes and fewer than 10 interceptions. The Colts almost made the playoffs with Minshew last season.

After a disastrous two seasons with the Broncos, Wilson has a fresh start with the Steelers. Pittsburgh likely will have a run-heavy offense with Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren leading the way. If Wilson protects the football, Pittsburgh could be a wild card team in the AFC. His stats last season — 3,070 yards, 26 touchdowns and eight interceptions — were better than you might think.

Daniels is a really exciting player with his dual-threat skill set. The reigning Heisman Trophy winner will bring real excitement and flair to a Commanders franchise that has lacked elite-level talent on offense for some time.

Richardson is a fascinating player. His passing ability is still a work in progress, but the strength and athleticism he plays with as a quarterback is pretty unique. The main concern is whether he can run as much as he does and stay healthy for a full season. He suffered a season-ending injury just four games into his career in 2023.

We know what Carr is at this point. He’s a good-not-great quarterback who can help you win eight or nine games. And given the weakness of the NFC South, nine wins might be enough to win that division. Chris Olave is a legit No. 1 wideout and will be Carr’s top target again. But after Olave, the talent level on the Saints wide receiver depth chart drops off significantly. Carr has averaged 24.75 touchdown passes over the last four years. The Saints need him to get closer to 30 in 2024.

Williams was an electrifying player at USC and won the Heisman Trophy in 2022. The Bears took him No. 1 overall in the 2024 draft and he impressed in the preseason. Chicago also has surrounded Williams with plenty of talent in the passing attack, highlighted by veteran wideouts D.J. Moore and Keenan Allen, as well as rookie Rome Odunze.

This is an important season for Smith. He’s 33 years old and entering the final year of his contract. He’s put together two very good seasons in Seattle, and the team has surrounded him with plenty of weapons on offense, including wideouts DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett and Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Smith went 2-5 against teams that made the playoffs last season. That can’t happen again if Seattle is going to reach the postseason from a very competitive NFC West division.

Watson has been limited to just 12 games as a Browns player, including only six last season due to injury. The Browns have a playoff-caliber roster, and they earned a wild card spot in 2023 with veteran Joe Flacco as their starter. If Watson is able to play like he did for many years in Houston, the Browns could be a tough team to beat in the AFC.

Mayfield had a career year in 2024, setting personal bests with 4,044 passing yards and 28 touchdowns. He helped lead the Buccaneers to a 9-8 record and an NFC South title. Mayfield parlayed that success into a new three-year, $100 million contract to stay with Tampa Bay.

Murray played just 11 games last season as he worked his way back from a torn ACL in 2022. Now fully healthy, expectations are high for Murray, who, at times in his career, has looked like an MVP candidate. The Cardinals have some nice pieces on offense, including running back James Conner, rookie wideout Marvin Harrison Jr. and tight end Trey McBride. If Murray is healthy, this Arizona offense could be quite prolific.

Lawrence had a breakout 2022 season during which he led the Jaguars to an AFC South title and a playoff win. Last year was a step back, as both the team and Lawrence regressed a bit. After signing a massive five-year, $275 million extension in the offseason, the Jaguars need Lawrence to jump up into the second tier of quarterbacks. He has the ability to be an elite player. The question is if he can play at that level on a consistent basis.

Cousins’ career with the Vikings ended in Week 8 last season after tearing his Achilles. He signed with the Falcons as a free agent in the offseason. Atlanta is hoping that Cousins will be the final piece that unlocks the true potential of its offense. The Falcons have some impressive young talent in running back Bijan Robinson, wide receiver Drake London and tight end Kyle Pitts. Cousins isn’t an elite player, but if healthy, you can pencil him in for 4,000-plus passing yards and 25-plus touchdowns.

Goff led the Lions to the NFC Championship Game last season, and expectations are for Detroit to be right back in the mix again in 2024. He threw for 4,575 yards with 28 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in 2023. There’s no reason why Goff shouldn’t be able to match or improve on those stats this season. The Lions offense is loaded, headlined by running back Jahmyr Gibbs and wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown.

Purdy could probably be higher on this list. He’s not super flashy, but anyone who throws for 4,000-plus yards with 31 touchdowns and 11 interceptions is pretty dang good. It does help that he plays in arguably the most talented offense in the league. San Francisco boasts a plethora of elite offensive talent, including running back Christian McCaffrey, wide receivers Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk, and tight end George Kittle.

Purdy was a legit MVP candidate last season, and it wouldn’t be surprising if that was the case in 2024 if the 49ers challenge for the No. 1 seed again. Purdy also has plenty of motivation after losing last year’s Super Bowl in overtime.

After an injury-plagued 2022, Matthew Stafford looked like his old self last season and led the Rams back to the playoffs. You won’t find many quarterbacks with a stronger arm or more pure toughness than Stafford. Even at age 36, he’s still one of the league’s top QBs.

Stroud had a phenomenal rookie campaign, leading the Texans to an AFC South title and a playoff berth. He threw for 4,108 yards with 23 touchdowns and five interceptions. After adding star wideout Stefon Diggs in the offseason, the Texans offense could be even more explosive in 2024.

Rodgers tore his Achilles in the first quarter of his Jets debut last season. Now healthy, it will be fascinating to see if the future Hall of Famer can get back to the elite level he played at before the injury. He won back-to-back MVPs not too long ago in 2020 and 2021. Despite the injury, expectations are enormously high in New York. The Jets haven’t been to the playoffs since 2010. For that to change, Rodgers needs to have a fantastic season.

Expectations are super high for the Packers after they nearly upset the 49ers in the NFC Divisional Round last season. Love had a breakout 2023 as the Packers starter with 4,159 yards, 32 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. With a talented, young group of receivers around him, Love could climb a few more spots on these rankings by this time in 2025.

Tagovailoa finally played a full 17-game season and the results were fantastic. He led the league with 4,624 yards, and came up just short of 30 touchdowns (29). The Dolphins have done a great job adding talent to their offense to help Tagovailoa. There isn’t a better wide receiver duo than Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, and the running back tandem of Raheem Mostert and De’Von Achane is pretty good, too. As long as Tagovailoa stays healthy, the Dolphins should continue to have one of the highest-scoring offenses.

The 2023 campaign was a challenging one for Herbert and the Chargers as a whole. The upcoming season could be a struggle, too. The Chargers lost veteran wideouts Mike Williams and Keenan Allen, as well as starting running back Austin Ekeler, during the offseason. These players were not adequately replaced. The addition of head coach Jim Harbaugh and the drafting of Notre Dame left tackle Joe Alt at No. 5 overall might result in Los Angeles becoming more of a run-based team in 2024. Herbert is a phenomenal player, but it’s hard to be too excited about his weapons on offense.

Prescott is typically placed pretty high on these top QB lists, and a lot of non-Cowboys fans say it’s the result of Dallas bias. But if you actually look at Prescott’s stats, they’re really good. He completed almost 70 percent of his passes for 4,516 yards with a career-high 36 touchdowns and nine interceptions last season. He was the only quarterback in 2023 with 30-plus touchdowns and fewer than 10 interceptions. Prescott’s performance in the playoffs hasn’t always been great, but in the regular season he’s absolutely among the very best.

The second half of 2023 was pretty difficult for the Eagles and Hurts. They started out 10-1 and Hurts was a top MVP candidate. But then the Eagles lost five of their last six games, Hurts didn’t play well during that span, and they were dominated 32-9 by the Bucs in the NFC Wild Card Round.

Despite the tough end to last season, Hurts still managed to set career highs with 3,858 yards and 23 touchdowns. He also picked up 605 yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground. The career-high 15 interceptions was a problem, though. If Hurts can trim that number considerably, Philly will be in much better shape.

Allen is a matchup nightmare. He’s a tremendous passer, and he’s tough to take down in the open field with his 6-foot-5, 237-pound frame. Allen has thrown for 4,000-plus yards in four consecutive seasons, and he’s averaged 34.3 touchdowns per year during that span. The issue with Allen is he throws too many interceptions. He threw 15 in 2021, 14 in 2022 and a career-high 18 in 2023. There’s a lot of pressure on Allen’s shoulders without a true No. 1 wideout or an elite running back. But he has to cut down on the turnover-worthy plays for the Bills to finally get back to the Super Bowl.

Last season, Jackson became the 11th player in league history to win multiple MVP awards. He completed 67.2 percent of his passes for a career-high 3,678 yards with 24 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He’s also the most dangerous QB in the open field. He picked up 821 yards (5.5 per carry) and five touchdowns on the ground in 2023.

The only question remaining is whether Jackson can play at an MVP level in the playoffs. If he does, the Ravens could easily win the Super Bowl. It’s really the only thing he has left to prove.

A wrist injury ruined Burrow and the Bengals’ season in 2023. Now that he’s healthy again, the Bengals are expected to be a top contender in the AFC. There’s no reason why Burrow shouldn’t be among the most accurate QBs in the league and tally at least 4,400 yards and 34-plus touchdowns. And let’s not forget he has one of the league’s top WR duos in Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.

This was an easy one. Mahomes is in a class by himself.

He’s a three-time Super Bowl champion, including back-to-back titles and Super Bowl MVPs. He’s an elite passer, a tremendous improviser, and he can escape the pocket and pick up yards with his legs. There’s nothing he can’t do with the football. Mahomes is the best player in football, and it would take a lot for that to change.