When it comes to sports, there aren’t many that are bigger than American Football. People are drawn to it by the excitement and the spectacle in huge numbers. And, now, when there are so many ways to watch it whether live at the game, on broadcast TV and even being streamed on the internet, it’s estimated that around 100 million people a week follow their favorite teams.
But it’s the end of the season Super Bowl that achieves the really breath-taking figures. The 2022 final, between the Los Angeles Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals attracted a worldwide audience of over 208 million gridiron fans.
It was also a match that showcased just how exciting the game could be with the Rams finishing strongly to overcome the Bengals late into the fourth quarter. There have also been some equally exciting matches this season and in many cases it’s the quarterback who has driven much of the action.
This is because this is the position from which much of the game is dictated – and that’s why the QBs tend to be the superstars who also take home the biggest pay-packets of the team. Capable of both making inch-perfect passes and also heading off on a ground-gaining run, it’s also usually the QB who decides what the next play will be – and here are five who are outstanding in their various ways.
Tom Brady, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tom Brady isn’t just considered to be one of the best quarterbacks playing at the moment, he is widely regarded as the greatest of all time. Aged 45 now he shows few signs of slowing down – and that’s why he remains at the heart of the Buccaneers’ line-up. He started his career with the New England Patriots way back in the year 2000, only moving down to Florida in 2020. But this has been far from a retirement for Brady – even though he announced that he was quitting back in March 2022. But the lure of the game meant he was back in the saddle by the start of the season.
Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs
Almost as legendary as Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes, might well have gone into a completely different sport altogether – major league baseball. While a student at Texas Tech he was selected by the Detroit Tigers in the 2014 draft but never took up the offer to play in the sport in which is father, Pat Mahomes, was a pitcher. Instead, he headed for the Chiefs and is now in his sixth season for them. If there’s a record, the chances are that Mahomes holds it. For example, he’s the only player to date to have notched up 5,000 throwing yards in both college and NFL seasons.
Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills
Take a look at the NFL odds and you’ll see that the Buffalo Bills aren’t just the favorites to win their next game, they also come top of the list as potential Super Bowl winners. A lot of this has to do with the great skills of Josh Allen. The 6.5”, 237 lb quarterback holds the all-time Bills records for both passing yards and touchdowns in a single season. What’s more, on December 11th 2022 he became the NFL’s first ever quarterback in NFL history to score six or more rushing touchdowns in five consecutive seasons.
Aaron Rogers, Green Bay Packers
Aaron Rodgers, at 39 years of age, is another relative veteran in the NFL, but one who still has plenty to offer the Packers. He has been with them ever since being picked up in the 2005 draft, but it wasn’t until the 2008 season that he really started to make his mark. To date, he has been named Most Valued Player no less than four times by the NFL and many people feel that he’s now at the very height of his potential. Among the many records he has to his name is the best touchdown-to-interception ratio in NFL history at 4.80.
Justin Herbert, LA Chargers
Herbert, now aged 24, was picked up in the 2020 draft by the Chargers and started to make an immediate impact by becoming only the third ever player to pass for at least 300 yards and rush for a touchdown in his first pro game. Now in his third season, he leads the NFL in air distance completions of 50 yards or more. So the promise that he showed as Offensive Rookie of the Year in his first season was no one-off and many more great things are expected of him.
Of course, there are countless other quarterbacks that turn in great performances week in and week out. But these five are probably the most exceptional – and that’s what keeps them earning the big bucks.
