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2025 NFL Quarterback Rankings Week 18: The Christmas Where Matthew Stafford and Josh Allen Wish They Were Gifted the Jets’ Defense

Photo of Scott Kacsmar Scott Kacsmar31/12/2025 - 02:58 pm
(Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

The NFL gave us seven island games in Week 17, and the quarterback play was all over the map. We saw multiple players fail to pass for 70 yards, one team won their game with 3 net passing yards, Brock Purdy and Caleb Williams delivered the shootout of the year, and we had an MVP odds shake-up on Monday night to cap the longest week of the season.

Two of Sunday’s best finishes saw MVPs Aaron Rodgers and Josh Allen both down 13-6 late in bad weather against elite pass defenses like the Browns and Eagles. One got the touchdown but still missed the 2-point conversion pass.

Too bad they didn’t get to play the Jets and their “zero interceptions in 16 games” defense, but we’ll get right into that below with the MVP battle.

Each week at 365Scores, we are going to rank all 32 NFL quarterbacks from top to bottom. The methodology is to start with our preseason quarterback rankings from July, which were based on a mixture of career value and recent play. Then each week, we will adjust the rankings to account for the latest game to get a sense of which quarterbacks are performing the best in the 2025 season.

1. Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams

Week 17 rank: 1 (+1)

Matthew Stafford in all likelihood threw away the MVP award on Monday night in Atlanta after tossing a season-high three interceptions in a 27-24 loss. While he still helped the Rams rally back from a 21-point deficit to tie the game late, he was off early and it’s the second time in December he struggled with turnovers in a road game the Rams were heavily favored to win (Carolina the first).

We put so much emphasis on MVP probably because it guides the “who’s the best quarterback this year?” debate in the NFL each season. But MVP had come down to Stafford and New England’s Drake Maye, and after Stafford’s latest bad game and Maye’s career game against the Jets, you see the odds switch.

Stafford may also be out of time to change it too. The Rams could easily choose to rest starters on Sunday against Arizona, which otherwise would be a defense he could get to 45 touchdown passes against.

Two weeks ago, the Rams were Super Bowl favorites and up 30-14 in Seattle on their way to having control for the No. 1 seed. Now, they’re probably looking at no MVP award for Stafford, and a No. 6 seed, putting them right back in Philadelphia (or Chicago) for a rematch from last January’s most pivotal playoff game as the Rams pushed the Eagles harder than anyone on their Super Bowl run.

Maybe that’d be a fitting way to start things in the playoffs and get the Rams on track for a second Super Bowl run under McVay and Stafford. That’s still the ultimate goal here. But an MVP also would have cemented Stafford’s Hall of Fame case should that second ring not happen.

He still has a chance to do something great this season, but with the way the Rams have already blown so many leads and allowed five game-winning drives, it doesn’t look likely they’re going to get it done in the postseason.

But unlike some fickle MVP oddsmakers, I’m not going to let one bad game against a good pass defense tarnish what’s been a strong season for Stafford. He’s still No. 1 here heading into the final game of the regular season.

2. Drake Maye, New England Patriots

Week 17 rank: 2 (+3)

It was a career game for Drake Maye against the lowly Jets, leading the Patriots to six straight touchdown drives while tossing a career-high five touchdowns to get him to 30 on the season.

Again, not to turn this into the MVP discussion and ignore the other 30 teams, but Maye’s big game on Sunday combined with Stafford’s loss on Monday night has him as a heavy favorite to win MVP now (-340 at FanDuel), basically flipping the odds from where they were a week or two ago.

I understand the odds closing, but it feels so foolish that one big game against a horrible defense like the Jets combined with a 27-24 loss to an average team can do this much damage to Stafford’s case. Granted, odds on a sportsbook are not the same as how voters vote, and we’ll see how that shakes out soon enough.

But this idea that we’re supposed to just ignore who you played and where you play them is silly, especially when that’s going to be the focus of what we’re talking about in the postseason with seeding and home-field advantage.

The 2025 Jets are a historically-bad defense that has now allowed 32 touchdown passes while intercepting 0 passes in 16 games, a feat never seen before in NFL history. That means they were at 27-0 before Maye’s big game, and we know offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels is no stranger to pouring it on against the Jets at their lowest.

But let’s not forget Trevor Lawrence just had a historic game a few weeks ago against the Jets when he became the first quarterback to throw for 300 yards, 5 touchdowns, and rush for 50 yards and a touchdown. He didn’t score six straight touchdown drives like Maye did, but he also did his game without much of a running game to support him.

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – DECEMBER 21: Drake Maye #10 of the New England Patriots celebrates after a touchdown pass during the fourth quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on December 21, 2025 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images)

The Most Valuable Schedule for the Patriots has helped Maye a lot this year, and he can end things on another high note against the bland Dolphins at home on Sunday. Maybe even a No. 1 seed if the Broncos falter against the Chargers (not likely).

Or Maye could do what Tom Brady’s Patriots did in 2019 and blow that home finale to the Dolphins, dropping out of a first-round bye in the process. That led to the Patriots losing a home wild card game, Brady’s last with the team, to the Titans, who were coached by Mike Vrabel.

So, crazier things have happened. But we will get into things like easy schedules next week when we look at Fraud Alert Rating for the 2025 playoff field.

3. Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers

Week 17 rank: 9 (+6)

I’ve been pro-Brock Purdy since he came out of nowhere as Mr. Irrelevant in 2022. While people always belittle him because he plays in Kyle Shanahan’s system, Sunday night was a great example of how he’s different than Jimmy Garoppolo or your standard dropback passer. Purdy’s mobility and efficiency at hitting the throws down the field separates him from those other Shanahan quarterbacks.

A play like that is never being made by Jimmy G. Purdy has thrown 11 touchdowns and rushed for two more in just the last three games alone. If not for the turf toe injury, who knows, Purdy may be right back to trying to win MVP with league-best efficiency numbers like in 2023.

But as it stands, he can win one more home game against Seattle and get the No. 1 seed, and the 49ers won’t have to leave Levi’s Stadium the rest of the season through the Super Bowl. If there’s a quarterback who is getting hot at the right time and can lead his team on a run to the big game, it is Purdy right now. Let the discourse evolve.

Keep in mind, he did what he did on Sunday night against Chicago without George Kittle, Brandon Aiyuk, and obviously Deebo Samuel is with Washington now. Detractors always used his weapons against him, but even without them, he’s playing some of his best ball in four seasons right now.

4. Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills

Week 17 rank: 3 (-1)

Everyone has seen the 2-point conversion that Josh Allen whiffed on to an open Khalil Shakir in the end zone that lost the game, 13-12, for Buffalo. But that’s not even the most troublesome part of the game for me. For the second week in a row, Allen took an absolutely abysmal sack that knocked the Bills out of field goal range in a game where they were held scoreless for over 50 minutes at home.

Throw it away, don’t retreat backwards to make it worse. This is rookie Allen stuff, and we saw it last week in Cleveland on the play where he injured his foot. He looked pretty good on this careless scramble, but there were other parts in the game where the foot was visibly bothering him, but all of this was avoidable without taking incredibly stupid sacks.

Buffalo’s pass defense is certainly great enough to help this team win the Super Bowl this year even as a wild card now that their AFC East reign is over. But Allen is going to have to eliminate these horrible sacks, and the next time he is called upon to make a game-winning throw, he better deliver if he wants to live up to his status as a top elite quarterback.

5. Sam Darnold, Seattle Seahawks

Week 17 rank: 4 (-1)

Sam Darnold only averaged 5.4 yards per pass attempt in Carolina, his second lowest of the season, but he was fortunate to start all three touchdown drives inside the opponent 30 for a bit of a misleading 27-10 win.

It’s not the kind of game you’d like to see heading into Saturday’s big showdown for the No. 1 seed at San Francisco, a defense that held Darnold to 150 yards in Week 1. But we’ll see how Darnold fares against a defense that won’t have Nick Bosa or Fred Warner this time. It’s another huge test for him before the playoffs, and with Sunday’s win, he was able to join this exclusive company of multi-MVP quarterbacks after winning at least 13 games in back-to-back years (first to do so with different teams).

Yeah, quarterback position is in a very weird place in the NFL right now.

6. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys

Week 17 rank: 5 (-1)

Dak Prescott hit an 86-yard touchdown pass to KaVontae Turpin for the Cowboys’ longest pass play of the season against Washington. But there weren’t a ton of highlights outside of that play on Christmas day. The Cowboys will have a chance to finish 8-8-1 by beating the Giants, a most fitting record for the kind of season this team’s had.

7. Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers

Week 17 rank: 6 (-1)

After losing to Houston, it looks like the Chargers will rest Justin Herbert in Week 18 and get ready for their wild card game. It’s the right call as he deals with that hand surgery and he’s taken so many hits this year.

But Saturday’s game with Houston was disappointing in the sense that it felt like the Chargers reverted to the things they always do in big games. Herbert had a tipped ball at the goal line that was intercepted. Maybe he could have threw it a little softer, but that was still a catchable ball with an unlucky bounce for his only interception of the game against a defense that got him four times last postseason.

But Herbert had no chance on some of the 5 sacks he took in this game, and he still scored a touchdown on his final possession, which was aided by two penalties that wiped out two more sacks actually. But Cameron Dicker missed an extra point after missing a 40-yard field goal earlier in the game, so a usually reliable kicker cost them 4 points in a game they lost by, yep, 4 points.

Then the defense couldn’t get the ball back in the final 3:37 despite having four clock stoppages to use. So, it doesn’t set up great for the Chargers, a potential No. 7 seed, to run through the playoffs to get to the Super Bowl. But hopefully the kicker got his bad misses out of his system.

8. Caleb Williams, Chicago Bears

Week 17 rank: 10 (+2)

Caleb Williams was missing some wide receivers and his running game wasn’t dominant in San Francisco, but he still did a great job of hanging in there in a true shootout with a better team. He threw for 330 yards with a ton of production to his rookies in Colston Loveland and Luther Burden.

He had a crack from the 2-yard line to win the game at the end, but he wasn’t able to find a receiver and the Bears lost 42-38. But even in defeat, I feel better about Williams going forward. Very good game.

9. Jared Goff, Detroit Lions

Week 17 rank: 7 (-2)

Technically, it was another disastrous turnover day that ended Detroit’s 2025 season. The Lions were so good in that area all year with just 8 giveaways, but they turned it over 6 times against Minnesota’s defense on Christmas with Goff getting credit for three lost fumbles and two picks.

That’s how you end up losing to a team that has 3 net passing yards like the Vikings did. Just a brutal finish for what was a strong offense again despite the loss of Ben Johnson at coordinator. But like the Washington playoff loss that started this calendar year for Detroit, it was a turnover fest that eliminated the Lions from the postseason.

10. Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars

Week 17 rank: 17 (+7)

In reviewing more of Trevor Lawrence’s season, he is playing the best ball of his career. He didn’t quite keep up the 25-point streak on Sunday in Indy, but he still rushed for two touchdowns and helped the Jaguars to a 23-17 win as they look to lock down the AFC South for the first time since 2022.

It’s also set to be the second 13-win season in franchise history, and Lawrence has already thrown a career-high 26 touchdowns while rushing for 9 more.

11. Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals

Week 17 rank: 15 (+4)

Joe Burrow has rebounded well from his 24-0 shutout loss in Baltimore with back-to-back games of over 300 yards, multiple touchdowns, and no interceptions. He helped blow out the Cardinals on Sunday, but it’s all coming too late to matter for the Bengals this season. We’ll see if Sunday is his final game playing for coach Zac Taylor, or if they try to run this back one more time in 2026.

12. Bo Nix, Denver Broncos

Week 17 rank: 12 (0)

Bo Nix wasn’t very flashy against the Chiefs on Christmas, but he led a lot of long drives, something we’ve seen this team do recently against the Raiders in another low-possession game. But while Nix picked up his seventh game-winning drive, complete with Patrick Mahomes oddly smiling after his go-ahead touchdown, it’s most important to note he’s never had a bad game against Steve Spagnuolo’s defense.

That feels important in projecting how this division goes forward. The Chiefs are going to need to find some answers for Nix, because his drive engineering against them has been excellent for two years now.

13. C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans

Week 17 rank: 14 (+1)

It looked like C.J. Stroud was going to destroy the Chargers with two long touchdown passes in the first six minutes, but the offense did very little after that. They held on for the win after running out the clock after being aided by a big defensive penalty on third-and-long for the second week in a row. This time it was illegal contact too, so that was dicey.

But Stroud and the Texans escaped, and they’ll be in the playoffs for the third year in a row. They could be formidable too with this defense. Stroud just needs to convert some key third downs and hitting those deep balls on tape this late in the year should help out with how teams approach this offense.

14. Aaron Rodgers, Pittsburgh Steelers

Week 17 rank: 13 (-1)

Having watched every Aaron Rodgers dropback this season, I have no doubt that Myles Garrett’s sack record was in his head the whole day, and it had a negative impact on the offense that should have been utilizing the running game, the backs in the passing game, and the tight ends.

Instead, Rodgers finished 8-of-21 passing to wide receivers like Marquez Valdes-Scanting, Adam Thielen, and Scotty Miller while D.K. Metcalf served the first half of his 2-game suspension. He challenged Denzel Ward, Cleveland’s top corner, on MVS in the end zone on the final three plays of a 13-6 loss that may cost the Steelers the AFC North and the playoffs altogether this year.

While there is truth to the Steelers usually accounting heavily for Garrett’s presence in past games, you could see Rodgers let go of some passes even earlier than usual for fear that #95 was sniffing a sack that would get replayed time and time again like the sack when Brett Favre helped Michael Strahan get the record in 2001. We know Rodgers is extra aware of things Favre did in his career and always tries to do the opposite.

When the Steelers played the Browns and Garrett earlier this season, Rodgers’ average time to throw was 2.73 seconds, his sixth highest of the season. On Sunday, it was 2.39 seconds, the fourth lowest. His use of play-action passing also dropped from 32.3% to 14.3% (second-lowest game this season) as they didn’t want him turning his back to the defense that often.

I think the focus on Garrett’s record came at the detriment of the offense, and I think it would have been better if Rodgers literally laid down early in the game for Garrett to make him pick up the sack record in the cheapest way possible. Just get it out of the way while humiliating him in a sense, then go on with playing focused offense and try to win this game and wrap up the division so you can rest next week. The fact they called three straight runs at midfield before punting with half a quarter to go in 10-6 game tells me they weren’t taking this game as seriously as they should.

But instead it was a very poor game for Rodgers, finishing with 6 points on 11 drives. He’ll have to make do without Metcalf again this Sunday night against Baltimore in what could be the final game of his career. He also won’t have tight end Darnell Washington, who broke his arm. This is why you don’t mess around with clinching games.

But I agree wholeheartedly with Garrett that his record was top priority in their minds.

15. Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles

Week 17 rank: 16 (+1)

It’s just comical at this point. Jalen Hurts is going to find his easy touchdown passes on short throws to Dallas Goedert, then he’s going to take the half off as he did in Buffalo, completing 0-of-7 passes in the second half. And yet, the Eagles still held on for the 13-12 win after the defense got the late stop.

Somehow, it’s the second time this season the Eagles didn’t complete a pass in a half and still won the game. To Hurts’ credit, DeVonta Smith dropped a ball in the third quarter, and the weather (freezing rain) stunk.

But if the Eagles keep playing defense like this, they’ve shown they can beat the Packers, Lions, and now Bills playing offensive this poorly. They also have shown they can put in one good half to beat the Rams (blocked field goal required too).

Hurts might be able to get by with another Super Bowl run as long as he is able to step up when the team needs him. Or not. Just go another half without completing a pass while someone like Sam Darnold throws a couple of picks your way.

16. Malik Willis, Green Bay Packers

Week 17 rank: N/A (Jordan Love was No. 8)

How much money did Malik Willis make himself on Saturday night in filling in for Jordan Love (concussion) against Baltimore? It was a sensational performance as he threw for 288 yards on 18-of-21 passing, and he was his own running game with 60 yards and two touchdowns.

It’s just a shame he left with an injury in the fourth quarter and we had to watch third-stringer Clayton Tune get intercepted on a tipped ball in the 41-24 loss. But Willis has come such a long way from the Tennessee rookie who couldn’t even pass for 100 yards in 2022.

Someone is going to give him a chance soon to be their starter, and we’ll see how much of this was his development, and how much was tied to Matt LaFleur just being a really good offensive coach. Hell, maybe someone can hire his brother Mike, the Rams’ offensive coordinator, to run an offense with Willis.

Maybe the Raiders can look at that route if they’re not thrilled with the 2026 rookie quarterback class.

17. Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Week 17 rank: 18 (+1)

Baker Mayfield didn’t have Tristan Wirfs at tackle in Miami, and that may have hampered the running game. But he had his wide receivers, and the Bucs were still stuck on 10 points in the final minute before Mike Evans caught a touchdown to make it 20-17. Too little too late as the Dolphins recovered the onside kick.

The Buccaneers are 1-7 since their bye week, meaning we might need a documentary about what the heck happened on that bye. What kind of bad voodoo did they get into?

Alas, there’s still a chance to win the division that involves beating the Panthers at home on Saturday and getting the Falcons to lose to the Saints on Sunday. At this point, Bryce Young leading another game-winning drive to end Mayfield’s season on Saturday is an expected outcome as this team was the one that loaded up on close wins early then have done nothing but regress despite getting healthier.

One of the weirdest seasons we’ve ever seen.

18. Philip Rivers, Indianapolis Colts

Week 17 rank: 19 (+1)

It sounds like the Colts are going to start Riley Leonard in their season finale against Houston, so 44-year-old Philip Rivers will be spared having to face that Texans defense in his final NFL game.

Maybe his final game. You never know with this guy. But what an effort to even give it a try, and they were competitive in all three games with some of the best teams in the league this year (Seahawks, 49ers, Jaguars). He threw at least one touchdown in each game. Only one interception in each game too. He took 5 sacks, so he wasn’t entirely afraid to take a hit. His passing success rate (43.3%) was a career low but not far off from his 2012 season (44.1%).

It was a stunning experiment, and he came so close to pulling off that upset against the Seahawks that could have been monumental for the Colts. Instead, they’ll miss the playoffs and likely go from 8-2 to 8-9. But it’s a wild season you’ll never forget.

19. Tyler Shough, New Orleans Saints

Week 17 rank: 22 (+3)

He’s obviously not playing good teams, but Tyler Shough continues to put up yards, points, big plays, and key scoring drives in a fourth-straight win for the Saints. He outplayed No. 1 pick Cam Ward in Tennessee, throwing for 333 yards, 2 touchdowns, and leading his third game-winning drive.

Shough has shot up to the favorite to win Offensive Rookie of the Year, and after such a weakened field this year, I think he can win it as long as he plays well in his last game against an Atlanta defense that just forced Matthew Stafford into his worst game.

20. Kirk Cousins, Atlanta Falcons

Week 17 rank: 23 (+3)

I see people starting to say that the Falcons (7-9) would have won the NFC South had Kirk Cousins started all year instead of Michael Penix Jr. Maybe there’s some truth to that, but that probably says more about his mastery of the Buccaneers’ defense and the state of the NFC South than anything.

Cousins was a solid game manager in the upset win over the Rams on Monday night. Bijan Robinson carried the load, including the game-winning field goal drive where Cousins had little to do. But it’s another win for the veteran, who is now 6-1 on Monday Night Football since 2020 after starting 0-9 in such games in his career.

21. Bryce Young, Carolina Panthers

Week 17 rank: 20 (-1)

Yeah, I might be out on Bryce Young for good again. You know it’s bad when he runs the ball 9 times for 27 yards, and that’s still a better average (scored a touchdown too) than his 40 net passing yards on 26 dropbacks against the Seattle defense.

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA – DECEMBER 28: Bryce Young #9 of the Carolina Panthers warms up during the first half of the football game Seahawks at Bank of America Stadium on December 28, 2025 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by David Jensen/Getty Images)

It’s a miracle this wasn’t a blowout sooner with the lack of production from the Carolina passing game. Young will have to be way better against the Buccaneers in Saturday’s somewhat-a-division-title game.

22. Jaxson Dart, New York Giants

Week 17 rank: 24 (+2)

After that night the Giants upset Philadelphia with Jaxson Dart and Cam Skattebo running wild, people would have thought you were crazy if you said the Giants wouldn’t win another game until the Raiders after Christmas.

But it’s true, it happened, and they finally ended the 9-game slide with Dart sliding into the end zone for two more touchdown runs. He probably wishes he could play the Raiders every week, but now that gives Las Vegas a great shot at the No. 1 pick, which the Giants could have wrapped up with a loss.

But it’s not like the Giants need to draft a quarterback in the first round with Dart in town.

23. Cam Ward, Tennessee Titans

Week 17 rank: 25 (+2)

Cam Ward had some good moments in the 34-26 loss against Tyler Shough and the Saints. Ward has quietly thrown just one interception in the last eight games, but he’s got to control his fumbles better. He had a play in this game where Chase Young just stole the ball from him and returned it for a big touchdown to help turn the tide for New Orleans.

24. Jacoby Brissett, Arizona Cardinals

Week 17 rank: 21 (-3)

Yeah, it’s gotten very old by now. The Cardinals either get blown out like they did Sunday in Cincinnati, or they keep it close and lose on the last drive. Either way, they lose and Jacoby Brissett usually throws for over 200 yards and a couple of touchdowns.

He did so again here, but he was down 30 points for nearly the entire fourth quarter before he finally found Trey McBride for a second score on the day of another big loss.

25. Tyler Huntley, Baltimore Ravens

Week 17 rank: N/A (Lamar Jackson was No. 11)

It must be nice to hand the ball off to Derrick Henry when he’s having a night like he did in Green Bay with over 200 yards and four touchdowns. But Tyler Huntley was an excellent game manager in a must-win game to extend Baltimore’s season at least another week.

The fact is if the Ravens had started him all along when Lamar Jackson injured his hamstring instead of trying Cooper Rush, maybe the Ravens are already winning the AFC North. But Huntley did his job on Saturday, and we’ll see if he has to do it again in Pittsburgh to win the division or if Lamar will return.

26. Quinn Ewers, Miami Dolphins

Week 17 rank: 28 (+2)

Quinn Ewers got his first NFL win against the struggling Buccaneers after throwing a couple of touchdown passes to Dolphins not named Jaylen Waddle or Darren Waller, so good for the rookie. He’s probably not going to be someone the team realistically views as starting in Week 1 of the 2026 season should they move on officially from Tua Tagovailoa, but these late-season starts should give him more opportunities down the road either in Miami or elsewhere.

27. Geno Smith, Las Vegas Raiders

Week 17 rank: 29 (+2)

With two more interceptions against the Giants, Geno Smith has thrown his most picks (17) since his rookie season when he had 21 for the 2013 Jets. But I’m not sure the Raiders are too mad with the performance, another one where he took a beating and Kenny Pickett had to finish the game. After all, the Raiders lost and are a step closer to securing the No. 1 pick in the 2026 draft.

A draft pick that could likely replace Geno at quarterback in 2026 as this just hasn’t worked out ever since his fool’s gold success in Week 1 against the Patriots.

28. Shedeur Sanders, Cleveland Browns

Week 17 rank: 30 (+2)

If we were judging Shedeur Sanders by the first 10 minutes against Pittsburgh, then he looked great, showing poise to move around and find open receivers even if his touchdown had blown coverage on Harold Fannin Jr.

But for the rest of the game, Sanders really struggled, throwing two picks that had his father Deion cringing in his cowboy hat, and he was fortunate the Cleveland defense came to play and shut down the Steelers in a 13-6 win. Sanders has tossed seven interceptions in the last three games, so he has a lot of work to do in the offseason.

29. Josh Johnson, Washington Commanders

Week 17 rank: N/A (Marcus Mariota was No. 27)

Everyone knows Josh Johnson has played for a ton of teams, but few probably remember he was a fifth-round pick in 2008, so he is 39 years old. He got just his 10th NFL start on Christmas against Dallas, and he’s now 1-9 as a starter after a 30-23 loss that was close because of some big runs and YAC plays from Deebo Samuel.

Johnson didn’t necessarily do anything terrible, but it’s hard to get up for a game like this when your team has been eliminated.

30. Chris Oladokun, Kansas City Chiefs

Week 17 rank: N/A (Gardner Minshew was No. 31)

Chris Oladokun has been on and off with the Chiefs’ practice squad every year since 2022. He got his first NFL start against Denver, and it went about as poorly as you’d expect. Andy Reid used to be great at getting the backup ready to play, but whether it’s just a sign of how miserable the Chiefs are having been eliminated so early or the Denver defense, but Oladokun passed for just 66 yards on 22 attempts.

Remember, Patrick Mahomes has thrown for at least 150 yards in every full start of his career, so the Chiefs just don’t have an offense right now. The good news is that draft pick keeps getting higher and they can help the Raiders not secure the No. 1 seed with a Vegas win in Week 18.

31. Max Brosmer, Minnesota Vikings

Week 17 rank: N/A (J.J. McCarthy was No. 26)

Bah, humbug! We were so close to seeing some history on Christmas when Max Brosmer had negative net passing yards late in the win against Detroit before he completed a pass to Justin Jefferson to help Minnesota finish the game with 3 net passing yards (they lost 48 yards on his 7 sacks).

It would have been the first time since the 2006 Texans beat the Raiders with -5 net passing yards that a team won a game with negative net passing yards. But what an insane way for the Lions to be eliminated from the playoffs.

32. Brady Cook, New York Jets

Week 17 rank: 32 (0)

It’s actually staggering the Jets are still letting Brady Cook throw 30 passes every week instead of just putting Breece Hall in the Wildcat. Anything to do better than a quarterback who has averaged 5.4 yards per attempt or worse in all four appearances.

The good news for Jets fans: One more game until the offseason.

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Photo of Scott Kacsmar Scott Kacsmar31/12/2025 - 02:58 pm