Whether you're watching the NFL for entertainment value or you're hunting for hidden fantasy prospects, you likely spend a good part of the experience eyeing the quarterbacks. It is the most important position on the field, after all, and arguably the biggest position in pro sports.
But there's a serious difference between a great or good quarterback and one who's truly fascinating. The emphasis on the position has created some real characters, not to mention the situation they're in, both team- and playing-wise. Here are the five most fascinating NFL QBs heading into 2024, along with a rundown on what makes them so intriguing.
Aaron Rodgers is the ultimate embattled NFL quarterback
Remember back when Aaron Rodgers was kind of normal? Seems like a long time ago, doesn't it? He used to be Mr. Discount Double-Check, wearing product-based championship belts and doing the usual quarterback advertising promos while competing for champioships on an almost annual basis.
Not anymore. Now Rodgers is a mysterious NFL figure who goes off on retreats and supports his personal stance as an anti-vaccine guy, and he became the New York Jets international man of mystery this spring when he skipped out on the Jets' OTAs and went to Egypt.
Embattled coach Robert Saleh is used to reacting as if this kind of thing is normal, mostly because he knows his job on the line and it depends largely on how Rodgers performs.
And that's the most fascinating thing of all about Rodgers--if he performs well, millions of Jets fans will get to see something they haven't in years, which is their team in the playoffs as a threat to make a deep run. If he gets hurt or underperforms, though, the Jets will likely clean house and start over. Again.
Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles
Hurts took the league by storm when he came out of Ohio State as the ultimate double-threat quarterback, taking the Eagles to the Super Bowl and giving Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs all they could handle.
Then the injuries began to add up, and the reality of being a running quarterback in the NFL began to add up. Suddenly Hurts wasn't on the same page with his coach, Nick Sirianni, and Sirianni is scrambling after a late-season collapse led to a first-round playoff loss to the Bucs. Which has us all wondering: just who is the real Jaylen Hurts?
Anthony Richardson, Indianapolis Colts
Speaking of running quarterbacks, Richardson entered the NFL as the ultimate physical specimen, a monster of a man who looked like he could be the next Cam Newton once he learned the position and improved his accuracy.
That was then, this is now. Richardson quickly wrecked his shoulder in a violent collision, leaving the Colts in the hands of Gardner Minshew, who nearly led them to the playoffs. Now Richardson is back, and everyone is wondering if he can somehow manage to stay healthy given his physical running style so he can get to work on those accuracy issues.
Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers
If you paid a visit to the ultimate quarterback factory and designed your perfect guy, it would be Justin Herbert. That was the theory when he came out of Oregon with a cannon for an arm, and Herbert proved to be the ultimate gunslinger in his first two seasons with the Chargers.
There was one problem with this perfect quarterback scenario--the Chargers are the Chargers, and they didn't win. That wasn't necessarily Herbert's fault, of course, which is why LA went and hired Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh to right the ship and remove the term "Chargering" from the NFL lexicon.
But the offense still looked slow and stodgy in the preseason, so it will be interesting to see if Herbert can energize things some when he reenters the picture and help the Bolts compete against Patrick Mahomes and company.
Kirk Cousins, Atlanta Falcons
Quarterbacks make a lot of money if they're good these days, and for the most part they earn it. But Cousins has taken this formula to the ultimate extreme, to the point where he's become The Guy Who Always Gets Paid, even if his teams always finish around the .500 mark and he never quite gets them over the top.
This year his situation is especially fascinating. The Falcons paid him the usual small fortune even though Cousins is coming off an Achilles tear, and shortly after that they drafted his replacement, Washington Huskies phenom Michael Penix. It's one of the most confusing quarterback situations we've had in years, and that's really saying something, so its up near the top of the charts on the fascination scale as well.