“There’s no doubt that he’s one of the five best quarterbacks in the game…If they’re close in the fourth quarter, I’m going with Russell Wilson.” – Simms on No. 5 Russell Wilson
“We’re still talking about maybe the most dangerous weapon in football…He’s on a Hall of Fame arc.” – Simms on No. 6 Lamar Jackson
“I’m not sure if there’s anybody that has more of an effect on their team’s success on their offense than Kyler Murray.” – Simms on No. 7 Kyler Murray
Simms’ Top 40 QB Countdown Culminates with the Top Four on Monday, June 21
STAMFORD, Conn. – June 16, 2021 – NBC Sports’ Chris Simms continues to unveil his list of the top 40 quarterbacks in the NFL on the Chris Simms Unbuttoned podcast and “PFT Live” with the QBs ranked 5-8.
Beginning last month and culminating Monday, June 21 with his top four quarterbacks in the league, Simms will unveil his selections on each Chris Simms Unbuttoned episode and discuss his rankings on “PFT Live” with Mike Florio.
Simms, a third-round pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2003 NFL Draft who played eight NFL seasons, will also offer in-depth player breakdowns and rankings explanations throughout each week on Chris Simms Unbuttoned.
Simms’ quarterbacks ranked 5-40:
| 5. | Russell Wilson, Seattle | 23. | Ryan Fitzpatrick, Washington |
| 6. | Lamar Jackson, Baltimore | 24. | Taysom Hill, New Orleans |
| 7. | Kyler Murray, Arizona | 25. | Jameis Winston, New Orleans |
| 8. | Matthew Stafford, LA Rams | 26. | Daniel Jones, NY Giants |
| 9. | Dak Prescott, Dallas | 27. | Zach Wilson, NY Jets |
| 10. | Tom Brady, Tampa Bay | 28. | Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville |
| 11. | Justin Herbert, LA Chargers | 29. | Andy Dalton, Chicago |
| 12. | Ryan Tannehill, Tennessee | 30. | Mac Jones, New England |
| 13. | Baker Mayfield, Cleveland | 31. | Jared Goff, Detroit |
| 14. | Derek Carr, Las Vegas | 32. | Teddy Bridgewater, Denver |
| 15. | Matt Ryan, Atlanta | 33. | Drew Lock, Denver |
| 16. | Kirk Cousins, Minnesota | 34. | Tua Tagovailoa, Miami |
| 17. | Joe Burrow, Cincinnati | 35. | Tyrod Taylor, Houston |
| 18. | Carson Wentz, Indianapolis | 36. | Marcus Mariota, Las Vegas |
| 19. | Sam Darnold, Carolina | 37. | Kellen Mond, Minnesota |
| 20. | Cam Newton, New England | 38. | Trey Lance, San Francisco |
| 21. | Jimmy Garoppolo, San Francisco | 39. | Justin Fields, Chicago |
| 22. | Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh | 40. | Case Keenum, Cleveland |
The rankings will continue Monday, June 21 with numbers and 1-4 on the next episode of Chris Simms Unbuttoned.
The following are highlights from this week’s editions of Chris Simms Unbuttoned:
No. 8: Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams
Simms: “He’s on a team now, and everyone’s going to see what he’s really worthy of this year…He still has one of the greatest, game-changing arms in the history of the NFL and still one of the best game-changing, most explosive arms in the NFL right now at this moment. You can say what you want, but he does things with his right arm that very few people in this league can do. It’s in the echelon of (Patrick) Mahomes, (Aaron) Rodgers and Josh Allen. It’s those four if you just want to talk about crazy, gifted, unbelievable throws that nobody else on the planet can make. That’s what he does, and he makes them look so routine at times…Is he perfect? No, but I think a lot of the problems Matthew Stafford had were team-related, people around him-related, offensive scheme-related, and of course we’re in this era of just blaming one guy.”
No. 7: Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals
Simms: “Wow, where to start? I’m not sure if there’s anybody that has more of an effect on their team’s success on their offense than Kyler Murray. That’s a bold statement. Not saying he’s the best quarterback in football, but man, does he have a tremendous effect because of his God-given talents to what their team is…Arizona is the number seven team in football in running the ball? It’s because of one guy. Everything on their offense is predicated around the talents of this guy…He’s got a rocket for an arm and he’s cool and calm under pressure. He’s different that way.”
No. 6: Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens
Simms: “We’re still talking about maybe the most dangerous weapon in football in Lamar Jackson. The most dangerous weapon, maybe not the most dangerous pocket passing quarterback. First off, we know it’s still in the class of the greatest running quarterback we’ve ever seen. Even though last year was less than maybe some of the years before, it’s still phenomenal…The pressure he puts on you because of that skillset, you can’t qualify it or quantify it. It’s unbelievable what he does that way, and of course they’ve done a great job of putting people around him that help that out. But the other thing with Lamar Jackson, the stats won’t say it, but Lamar Jackson improved as a pocket passer last year…Every time I go back and watch it, the more and more confident I feel about that. He was better…He’s on a Hall of Fame arc.”
No. 5: Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks
Simms: “There’s no doubt that he’s one of the five best quarterbacks in the game…We’re talking about a guy here that is as clutch as they come in football. You can make a case he’s one of the best deep-ball throwers in football, and then added to that, we know he’s maybe the best – not the best, but towards the top of football – at extending plays and making plays outside the pocket. Russell Wilson is still amazing that way…He’s talented, he’s got great leadership, fortitude, there’s a presence on the field. He has one of those auras about him that when he gets the ball late in the game and they’re down, I just go, ‘They’re going to score.’ … You expect it. He’s one of those short-list guys…If they’re close in the fourth quarter, I’m going with Russell Wilson.”
To listen to the full player breakdowns on Chris Simms Unbuttoned, click here.
-NBC SPORTS-
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