We had a very interesting Wild Card round last week. We had some drama, some hard fought battles and some not so enthralling football as well. One fact about last weekend’s games may have been lost in the mix, though. The four worst quarterbacks in the playoffs were all ousted (Brian Hoyer, A.J. McCarron, Teddy Bridgewater and Kirk Cousins). It’s hard to believe that was a coincidence. Before the Cousins apologists start throwing Redskins records at me, please understand that he was clearly one of the four-worst QBs in the tournament. However, now moving forward we have some great quarterbacks left to watch.

In this article I will be ranking every quarterback still remaining from worst to best. It’s important to note this is not who I would start in DFS leagues or who I believe will put up the best numbers or win the Super Bowl (or any game for that matter). This is simply a measurement of who I believe is the best option as a quarterback. I will not be taking matchups, weather or weapons into consideration, simply discussing which QBs are the best right now taking everything else into consideration.

8. Peyton Manning, Denver Broncos
Aside from the fact that Manning has been nothing short of a colossal disappointment in the playoffs throughout his career considering the standard he set in the regular season, he has been an unmitigated disaster this year. He has completed less than 60 percent of his passes and thrown nine touchdowns and 17 interceptions in 10 games, which is more like nine games when you consider he left and entered a game in the third quarter. He hasn’t thrown more touchdowns than interceptions in a game since September, which is an incredible stat. He has a complete lack of mobility and Mr. October’s noodle arm is no longer al dente.

Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak made the safe decision rolling with Peyton this week. If you lose with Manning on your bench it will raise a ton of eyebrows, but he does not deserve this start. Even if the Broncos advance, it will not be thanks to him. The guy can’t even hit an out anymore. His arm doesn’t compare to Alex Smith’s. Manning has had a great career, but that greatness is in the past tense now.

7. Alex Smith, Kansas City Chiefs
Smith is what he is. He’s far from great but well above average in today’s NFL full of lackluster quarterback play. If nothing else, he’s made it clear that the San Francisco 49ers did away with the wrong quarterback. Despite a lack of arm talent, Smith has become a modern day Chad Pennington with more athleticism. Once considered a massive bust as a first-round pick, he has done an excellent job resurrecting his career and becoming a respectable starting quarterback. While his lack of touchdown passes (20) can be excused due to his low interception total (7), Smith’s shortcomings are clear. He’s averaging just 7.42 yards per pass and hasn’t thrown for 200 yards since September. He’s not a game-breaker and isn’t erasing a huge deficit. Still, he is efficient, intelligent and athletic. Smith is the definition of a top-tier game manager.

6. Carson Palmer, Arizona Cardinals
Palmer has been nothing short of spectacular this season. He will likely finish second in the MVP voting or very close to it, and it’s well deserved. Nonetheless, I find him a bit tough to trust in the playoffs. It almost feels like something is destined to go wrong for the veteran. However, his No. 6 ranking is not at all an indictment of him, but a nod to the tremendous quarterbacks left in this tournament. I mean the guy has 4,671 yards, 35 touchdowns and just 11 interceptions this season. With all that said, he’s immobile, 36 years old, and his talented young weapons give him a big boost. We’ve seen him go through an up and down career and have numerous playoff disappointments for one reason or the other. Whether it be an injury or a bad interception, something always seems to go wrong when you need him most. Hopefully he can change that narrative this season. This ranking could change over the next few weeks.

5. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers
This is the one that is clearly going to raise the most eyebrows and infuriate people. Since people rarely comment about positive things, I’ll be expecting plenty of negative feedback. Still, I must say, I’m very disappointed in Rodgers this season. Last year I ranked him as the league’s best quarterback hands down and honestly believed it was Rodgers and a bunch of interchangeable cogs on the Green Bay offense.

Clearly I was wrong as were many other experts. I don’t want to hear the excuses either. Say what you will about the injuries, it’s no excuse. He still has Randall Cobb who heading into the season was considered a superstar in his own right and even a top 10 wideout by many. When Kelvin Benjamin tore his ACL, many wrote off Cam Newton. He managed to get it done with Ted Ginn as his No. 1 wideout. Sure Newton has Greg Olsen, nevertheless, heading into this season there’s no way anyone is taking Ginn, Olsen and Devin Funchess over Cobb and Davante Adams. Richard Rodgers also proved to be serviceable option at tight end. An even better example is Russell Wilson who made an MVP run with Doug Baldwin as his top option and his offensive line is horrific.

The narrative on Rodgers suddenly goes from “He’s the best QB in the league, where’s his spot in history?” to “Is he as good as guys like Wilson and Newton?” Jordy Nelson is a very good player, but he shouldn’t impact an “elite” quarterback to this extent.

4. Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers
What can you say about what Newton has done this season? He has been incredible. After signing his big extension, he has more than live up to his Super Man nickname. Both Newton and the Panthers were pretty much written off after Benjamin tore his ACL and all Cam did was win 15 games and likely add an MVP to his award case. He accounted for 4,473 yards and 45 touchdowns and maybe more impressively was only picked off 10 times. The only reason he’s not higher is the fact he just doesn’t have the big-game experience or the track record of the top three quarterbacks. A deep playoff run could really skyrocket Newton’s value even higher than he already has. This guy may be scary next season with KB back and Funchess having a full season under his belt. Anyone who is a football fan should be rooting for this guy; no player in NFL is more exciting to watch right now.

3. Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks
Wilson got off to a slow start this year, however, he went on an all-time great run in the second half of the season. After losing Marshawn Lynch and Jimmy Graham everything was all on Wilson and boy did he ever step up to the plate. For the season, Wilson completed 68.1 percent of his passes and racked up 4,024 passing yards with 34 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He added an additional 553 yards and a TD on the ground all while dealing with an atrocious offensive line and missing key weapons. Still, I am yet to get to the real eye-popping stats. Over the last seven weeks of the season, his numbers were just stupid. He threw for 1,906 yards, 24 touchdowns and just one interception. He also punched one in on the ground. Take his hot streak and mix in the fact that he’s been to two-straight Super Bowls and has a ring on his finger, he edges out Newton for the three spot.

2. Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers
Last year I did an article on the QB tiers. Rodgers sat alone on top and Big Ben was one of only two quarterbacks on tier two. What can you say about this guy? He’s an elite talent and as tough as they come as he once again proved last week. Roethlisberger is one of the most underappreciated and underrated quarterbacks of all-time. He’s well on his way to Canton, has two titles and has been to the big game three times. Yet, he seems to go somewhat overlooked.

He played in only 12 games this season and exited early twice, and still managed to throw for 3,938 yards and 21 touchdowns, all while playing through injury pretty much all season. This comes on the heels of 4,952 yard, 32 touchdown, nine interception season. While he does have the best wide receiver in the business in Antonio Brown, look how much Brown struggled without him. Big Ben has all the intangibles, elite arm talent, rare big game experience and is a top playmaker. It’s time we stop overlooking Roethlisberger and marvel at his abilities and accomplishments.

1. Tom Brady, New England Patriots
First and foremost, for all the people who make these three excuses: 1. He’s a cheater. 2. He’s a crybaby. 3. He needed Adam Vinatieri to win three Super Bowls, you’re an idiot. Now that that’s out of the way, Brady is the greatest quarterback of all-time. Even if you’re not of fan of him (which I’m not), you have to appreciate greatness. No quarterback is more accomplished and what he and the Patriots have done during the salary cap era is one of the most impressive accomplishments in modern day American team sports. The only thing close is the Atlanta Braves’ run in the 90’s and 2000’s, but they don’t have the rings.

The one argument that baffles me is when someone says Joe Montana is better because he is 4-0 in the Super Bowl while Brady is 4-2. What those people are literally saying is that Brady would somehow be a better quarterback if instead of winning four more playoff games and two conference titles, he lost in the second round of the playoffs. That’s the most asinine thing I’ve ever heard. And for those “Spygate” and all the other “Gate” related complaints, let’s not forget Jerry Rice had stickum on his gloves, which is a bigger advantage than putting a camera in the middle of the end zone instead of the side of the field.

Brady has done it with an interchangeable supporting cast. Yes, Randy Moss was great for a short period with Brady and Rob Gronkowski is a freak of nature, but guys like Deion Branch, Troy Brown, and Brandon LaFell are nothing special. Julian Edelman is a 5-foot-10 quarterback from Kent State and Wes Welker was a glorified return man the Dolphins cast aside. This was just another ho-hum MVP caliber season for Brady. At the age of 38 he threw for 4,770 yards, 36 touchdowns and seven interceptions, all while dealing with a ton of injuries to his top linemen, running backs and pass-catchers. The guy has four rings, three Super Bowl MVP’s, two league MVP’s and a countless amount of records. He has the wins, the hardware and the numbers. Brady is the best in the game now and the best ever. There’s no one I would trust more for a playoff run. How could you?