ranking playoff quarterbacks

1. Tom Brady. Leader of the best offense in the NFL. Turns ordinary joes into superstars. 16-6 record in the playoffs including five Super Bowl appearances. 109-24 touchdown to interception ratio the last three seasons. Passed for 4,827 yards and led Patriots to 49% third down conversion rate in 2012.

2. Peyton Manning. Four-time MVP. League leader in Total QBR, and Top 3 in touchdowns, completion percentage, passer rating, and yards per pass attempt. Led Broncos to eleven game winning streak to finish season, outscoring opponents 346-175 during that time.

3. Aaron Rodgers. Reigning MVP. League leader in passer rating for the second year in a row. 84-14 touchdown to interception ratio the last two seasons. Four games with 4+ touchdown passes in 2012.

4. Russell Wilson. Threw rookie-tying-record 26 touchdowns and ran for 4 more. Over the last half of the season Wilson was the NFL’s best quarterback, throwing for 20 touchdowns and just 3 turnovers, and had a passer rating over 104 in seven of those eight games, and the Seahawks averaged 37 points. Rushed for an additional 489 yards.

5. Robert Griffin III. Famous for his legs but even greater for his arm and his head. Rookie record passer rating of 102.4, and threw only 5 interceptions in 393 pass attempts. 65.6% completion rate and NFL-best 8.14 yards per pass attempt with no great receivers. Put that on top of 815 rushing yards (NFL-best 6.8 yards a carry), throw in Alfred Morris for balance and you have the toughest offense to cover.

6. Matt Ryan. Led the league in completion percentage; top five in yards, touchdowns, rating, Total QBR. Led Falcons to 3-0 record against current playoff teams. 0-3 career playoff record.

7. Joe Flacco. Playoff wins in all four career seasons. The physically largest caller in the field with one of the biggest cannons, at times he plays like an elite quarterback; at others he makes poor decisions.

8. Andrew Luck. #1 draft pick thrown into the deep end of the pool. Passed for 4,374 yards and turned the Colts from a 2-14 team to 11-5. Rookie records include single season passing yards, pass attempts (627), single game yards (433), fourth quarter comebacks (6). MVP in two years?

9. Colin Kaepernick. #3 in Total QBR behind only Manning and Brady. Led 49ers to 5-2 record, including a strong performance in win in New England. Future star.

10. Matt Schaub. Passed for over 4,000 yards for the third time. Zero playoff wins in 9 seasons, although his backup T.J. Yates won one for the Texans last year. Seems to come up small in every big moment.

11. Andy Dalton. One of league’s best QB-WR connections with A.J. Green. Taken Bengals to playoffs in both years after joining a 4-12 team in disarray.

12. Christian Ponder. Led a team devoid of any legitimate receivers for half the season to the playoffs, including wins over San Francisco, Houston, and Green Bay. Outplayed Aaron Rodgers in a must-win game last week.