C.J. Stroud had a marvelous rookie season and since the Super Bowl has been completed, it's fair to say he's no longer a rookie, but what a rookie he was. He capped off his first year in the NFL with the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year Award and did so while leading the team to the playoffs and an AFC South title. All in his first year.
He established himself as a big-time player and helped elevate guys like Nico Collins around him. It got people thinking that maybe, just maybe he's a top-tier quarterback in the league. He certainly deserves to be in the conversation, but we may not agree with how high others have him.
Cut to the 33rd Team. They put out their Top 32 quarterbacks list and have Stroud at No. 7. Now, we don't necessarily disagree, but after looking at their list we have a lot of questions, like how the heck is Anthony Richardson at #16 when he did next to nothing as a rookie, and why is Aaron Rodgers still in the Top 15 considering he missed an entire season of action due to an injury, an injury that may have ended any elite play he had left?
Pre-free agency QB rankings 🎯
— The 33rd Team (@The33rdTeamFB) February 13, 2024
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These lists are highly controversial. For instance, if you're putting guys like Jordan Love and Geno Smith that high, we have to really question what the criteria you're grading on is. Love and Smith had good years, but Love looked unplayable at times in 2023, while Smith declined significantly from 2022; despite what his second Pro Bowl selection would imply.
So does Stroud make it in the Top 10 of our quarterback rankings? Let's find out.
1. Patrick Mahomes
2. Josh Allen
3. Joe Burrow
4. Justin Herbert
5. Lamar Jackson
6. Dak Prescott
7. C.J. Stroud
8. Tua Tagovailoa
9. Jalen Hurts
10. Brock Purdy
11. Matthew Stafford
12. Baker Mayfield
13. Derek Carr
14. Jared Goff
15. Jordan Love
16. Trevor Lawerence
17. Geno Smith
18. Justin Fields
19. Russell Wilson
20. Kyler Murray
21. Daniel Jones
22. Kirk Cousins
23. Aaron Rodgers
24. Aiden O'Connell
25. Will Levis
26. Sam Howell
27. Bryce Young
28. Deshaun Watson
29. Anthony Richardson
30. Desmond Ridder
31. Kenny Pickett
32. Bailey Zappe
We're not sure how 33rd Team or how you at home may rank guys, but I just looked at their play in 2023, their team's success, their importance to that success, and of course their health. It's not a permanent ranking of talent, just where everyone shook out after 2023. And for those wondering, Gardner Minshew wasn't listed on the 33rd Team's rankings, but we would've had him at No. 15, ahead of Love, and we would've taken Richardson off the list.