The best young QBs
By: Jake Rajala
The NFL is filled with young, gifted talent at the quarterback spot. There are different styles of quarterbacks. Some young QBs have been up and down over the past couple of years. With that said, I’m going to lay out the best ten QBs that are 25 years old and younger.
1. Brock Purdy
Brock Purdy went to the Super Bowl in his second season. He’s tasted what winning an NFC Championship is like, even if he didn’t win the Lombardi trophy. Purdy can make deep throws and impressive throws on the run. Purdy signed a five-year $265 million dollar extension this past offseason. Purdy threw 31 TDs to 11 ints in his second season. He fell flat last season by going 6-9. I fully believe he will be the QB we saw succeed in his sophomore year when he returns. Mac Jones won’t steal the job away from him.
2. Jayden Daniels
It’s hard to not respect the dual-threat ability of Jayden Daniels. All he did was run for 891 rushing yards last season. Furthermore, he took his team to the NFC Championship as a rookie! Daniels is slightly injured right now and Marcus Mariota is filling in for him. I wouldn’t be too worried about his injury, as it’s minor and he never got banged up last season. His offense also has the big three: Deebo Samuel, Scary Terry, and Zach Ertz.
3. Drake Maye
My fantasy QB comes in at third. He’s the sixth best FF QB right now. He’s been on fire. He had three TDs in Week 2. He’s fifth in passing yards right now. He has Stefon Diggs and Hunter Henry. I expect the Pats to invest in younger weapons this upcoming off-season. He has been sacked 12 times, however. They play a scary Bills pass rush in a couple of weeks, so they need their OL to be prepared.
4. Bo Nix
The former Oregon Duck Bo Nix is graded as the worst QB by PFF. Nix is letting down Broncos nation. He might be making John Elway lose sleep. He’s also getting heated with Sean Payton on the sidelines. On the flipside, Nix started slow last season and really picked apart defenses. He finished with 29 passing TDs and 4 rushing TDs last season. I like how their running game is playing at least. Nix needs to turn things around, as two of their division foes, KC and LAC, are both very talented teams.
5. Caleb Williams
The former number one overall pick, Caleb Williams, had a less-than-admirable Week 1, and then he really turned on the jets in Ben Johnson’s creative offense by throwing 2 TDs in Week 2 and then unleashing four touchdowns last week against a pedestrian Dallas Cowboys defense. It was safe to say they miss Micah Parsons. The Bears are still 1-2, however. They need to get revenge and take down the Lions in their next dual.
6. Trevor Lawrence
Trevor Lawrence is playing with one arm behind his back. He needs to get first round pick Travis Hunter, who is one of the most explosive players in the game, the ball a lot more! Lawrence will be much more relaxed if he can throw screens to Hunter and watch him do the rest. Lawrence has 4 TDs to 4 ints, so it’s not exactly sexy so far. T-Lawrence could be traded if he fails to stay productive for the entire season.
7. CJ Stroud
CJ Stroud had a modest rookie season, and then it went downhill from there. He’s 0-3 right now and he’s thrown 2 TDs to 3 ints. It’s fair to say he’s the issue, and there are no excuses. He has a 64 PFF grade, which is 31st in the league! CJ lost to T-Lawrence last week, so I will put Lawrence one spot ahead of him. Stroud still has a very strong arm. He just needs to get more chemistry in his offense.
8. Bryce Young
Bryce Young had 10 TDs in his last three starts in 2024. He hasn’t quite had the same success thus far. His team beat the Falcons by a score of 30-0. Well, Young didn’t have a passing TD and he only had 1 rushing TD. Young did throw 3 TDs in Week 2 against a stingy Arizona Cardinals team. Young also has a PFF grade of 64.
9. Spencer Rattler
Spencer Rattler had a hot start to 2025. He threw a pass to Juwan Johnson in the end zone in Week 1 to tie the game, but Juwan dropped it. Then Rattler came close to beating the 49ers in Week 2, but they failed on the last drive. Well, things weren’t in reach in Week 3. They were blown out 44-13 by the Seattle Seahawks. Rattler has arm talent that’s off the roof, but he needs to be more consistent and get some help. He is 0-9 as a starter. He was ranked as the 10th best QB by PFF a week ago. He slipped all the way to 28 after his Week 4 blunder.
10. Michael Penix
Michael Penix may get benched for Kirk Cousins. Penix was shut out by Carolina (as mentioned). He only has 1 passing TD to 2 ints this season. The Falcons are fortunate to be 1-2, to be honest. I don’t believe they will even beat the Saints if Penix is the QB1. Per B/R, NFL insiders are saying that he isn’t getting enough help. I beg to differ, as he has Bijan Robinson, Drake London, and Kyle Pitts. PFF has given Penix a grade of 51.4, hich is 42nd among 47 QBs. Ouch.
Clearly, all 10 QBs on this list have potential. A lot of them have been up and down in their young careers thus far. They have also been let down by their supporting cast at times. Hopefully, some of these QBs can transcend into being All-Pro QBs. This would make the matchups all the more precious.
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