The debate over who truly stands atop the NFL's quarterback hierarchy just got a whole lot more interesting. According to a sweeping survey of 50 league executives and coaches, only four signal-callers have earned the right to be called 'Tier 1' — and one of the league's most decorated players is notably missing from that exclusive club.
The Athletic's Mike Sando polled a diverse group of NFL insiders, asking them to rank the league's starting quarterbacks into four distinct tiers. The results, averaged out, paint a clear picture of how the league's decision-makers view the game's most important position as we head into the 2026 season.
Leading the pack are Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Matthew Stafford, and Joe Burrow — the four quarterbacks who received the most top-tier votes. Mahomes, despite tearing his ACL in a disappointing 2025 campaign, was placed in Tier 1 by all but one respondent. That lone dissenting vote came from a general manager who cited concerns about the Chiefs star's recent performance and the physical toll of his injury.
“He's not carrying them every week anymore,” the GM explained. “They had the season (2024) when they were historically, you could say, lucky in the one-possession games and then got trounced in the Super Bowl. They were not as impressive in the one-possession games (in 2025). Now, he's coming off an injury. Is he gonna deteriorate physically?”
Allen and Stafford, the league's last two MVPs, each received 48 of 50 Tier 1 votes, while Burrow earned all but four. Their inclusion solidifies them as the consensus elite, but the real shocker came just below them: Lamar Jackson, the two-time MVP and reigning MVP runner-up, was relegated to Tier 2.
Jackson's cumulative score of 1.56 placed him at the top of the second tier, but only 22 of the 50 respondents viewed him as a Tier 1 quarterback. That's a sharp drop from last year, when he was a clear top-tier pick. One offensive coordinator voiced the sentiment of many: “The arrow is probably down. I'm just not ready to give him a 2 yet. If he doesn't play well, they don't win games. He has been able to carry that roster no matter what the rest of it looked like, even last year.”
The survey also revealed a wide range of opinions on other quarterbacks. Justin Herbert drew 19 Tier 1 votes but also three Tier 3 placements, showing a lack of consensus on the Chargers' signal-caller. Dak Prescott received a dozen top-tier nods, while Drake Maye, despite a breakout season, only got five — with eight respondents placing him in Tier 3. Jared Goff tied Maye for ninth overall, and Jordan Love earned two Tier 1 votes.
Interestingly, a handful of quarterbacks — Brock Purdy, Jayden Daniels, Baker Mayfield, Trevor Lawrence, Bo Nix, and Aaron Rodgers — each received a single Tier 1 vote, though Nix and Rodgers still landed in Tier 3 overall. This suggests that while some insiders see flashes of greatness, the broader league isn't ready to elevate them to the top echelon.
For fans who love to debate the analytics behind quarterback performance or who follow bold claims about NFL readiness, this survey is a goldmine of discussion. The gap between the consensus elite and the rest of the pack appears wider than ever, and the absence of a player like Jackson from the top tier is sure to spark heated arguments across the league.
As the 2026 season approaches, all eyes will be on these quarterbacks to see if the executives' assessments hold up. Will Mahomes bounce back from injury and reclaim unanimous status? Can Jackson silence his doubters and force his way back into the top tier? Only time will tell, but one thing is certain: the quarterback hierarchy is far from settled.
