Waiting on drafting a quarterback is one of the top formulas for success in fantasy football re-draft leagues. But fantasy managers need to identify the quarterback tiers before deploying that strategy.
Knowing the quarterback tiers inside and out is an essential to choosing exactly when to stop the wait and grab a QB1.
It’s rather easy to know the top quarterback tier. It gets tricky, though, the deeper down the quarterback rankings managers go.
We’re here to help. Let’s take a look at the quarterback tiers and rankings for standard re-draft leagues entering 2025 training camp.
Tier 1
1. Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens
2. Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills
3. Jayden Daniels, Washington Commanders
4. Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles
The tiers in this article are based primarily on the Fantasy Pros expert opinions. As previously mentioned, the top tier is the easiest to identify.
If I were to differ at all from the experts, I’d place Jackson in a tier all by himself. With Jackson coming off his first season featuring 4,000 passing yards along with 915 rushing yards and 41 passing touchdowns, I’d be justify.
The question is will Jackson be able to repeat it? There’s nothing to suggest that he can’t.
Fantasy managers who want a top quarterback should aim for Jackson. If they don’t land the Ravens signal-caller, they could “settle” for Allen, Daniels or Hurts. All four quarterback finished with similar fantasy point totals last season.
Unsurprisingly, they are the top dual-threat signal-callers in the league.
Should managers not land one of the top four quarterbacks in the first three rounds, I’d suggest waiting until the beginning of the fifth to target the next group of signal callers.
Tier 2
5. Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals
6. Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs
7. Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
If we were placing quarterbacks into tiers for fantasy leagues with six-point passing touchdowns, then Burrow belongs in the top tier. He’s the best non-running quarterback for any fantasy format.
Mahomes has been more “clutch” than an MVP candidate quarterback the past two years. In 2024, he threw for a career-low 3,928 passing yards. But Mahomes is still Mahomes, and he could offer draft value coming off a “down” campaign.
Mayfield lost his offensive coordinator this past offseason. But the Buccaneers’ impressive offensive ensemble is back for Mayfield to have another very productive season.
Tier 3
8. Bo Nix, Denver Broncos
9. Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals
10. Justin Fields, New York Jets
The biggest difference between my tiers and the tiers from Fantasy Pros is my third tier is only the remaining quarterbacks in the top 10.
Nix, Murray and Fields aren’t elite passers, which is why they fail to crack the top 5. But they have tremendous upside as runners, and that makes them reliable fantasy starters in 12-team standard leagues.
Tier 4
11. Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers
12. Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers
13. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys
14. Jared Goff, Detroit Lions
15. Caleb Williams, Chicago Bears
The theme of this tier is upside with risk. All five quarterbacks, in one way or another, could be a top fantasy performer any given week. The question going into 2025 is how consistent will they be.
None of them have the running upside to make up for when they may have a dud passing game.
Prescott has the most upside and could be a great grab in the middle rounds of re-draft leagues. He seems to alternate good and bad seasons, and it’s his turn to have a good year.
Fantasy Pros has Williams rated higher than the No. 15 quarterback for standard re-draft leagues. But a theme of my quarterback list is not overrating young, unproven signal-callers.
Williams struggled during his rookie season. I’m not trusting him until every other top 15 quarterback is off the board.
Tier 5
16. Jordan Love, Green Bay Packers
17. C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans
18. Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars
19. Drake Maye, New England Patriots
20. Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams
21. J.J. McCarthy, Minnesota Vikings
22. Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins
Similar to Williams, I’m not trusting Maye and McCarthy until most of the other options in this tier are unavailable. McCarthy is ahead of Tagovailoa on my quarterback rankings because Tagovailoa comes with his own risk due to injuries.
Love and Stoud are the clear-cut options in this tier. Love’s overall numbers were down, but he averaged 8 yards per pass and still tossed 25 touchdowns last season.
Stroud experienced a sophomore slump in 2024, but he is a bounce back candidate this fall with the addition of a couple rookie receivers. Lawrence is a bounce back candidate as well.
Tier 6
23. Michael Penix Jr., Atlanta Falcons
24. Bryce Young, Carolina Panthers
25. Geno Smith, Las Vegas Raiders
26. Sam Darnold, Seattle Seahawks
27. Aaron Rodgers, Pittsburgh Steelers
28. Cam Ward, Tennessee Titans
29. Russell Wilson, New York Giants
30. Joe Flacco, Cleveland Browns
31. Anthony Richardson Sr. Indianapolis Colts
32. Tyler Shough, New Orleans Saints
Excluding managers in two-quarterback leagues, at this point in the quarterback rankings, it’s about identifying upside and sleeper potential.
Penix sits at the top of this tier because he is both a sleeper and has upside. Penix looked great in Atlanta’s season finale last year. So did Young, who actually led the Panthers to a Week 18 victory in Atlanta.
The other quarterbacks I’d have my eye on in this group are Rodgers, Ward and Flacco.
Everyone is counting out Rodgers because he’s four years removed from his last MVP. That’s more than fair. But in a better offensive system and another year removed from his Achilles injury, Rodgers may be just efficient enough to be a quality QB2.
Flacco could have value due to volume. The Browns don’t figure to win a lot of games, and they might lose by a lot sometimes. If that happens and Flacco starts, he could cash in with garbage time opportunities because he’s not afraid to sling it.
Ward has potential upside as the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft.
Tier 7
33. Jaxson Dart, Giants
34. Daniel Jones, Colts
35. Shedeur Sanders, Browns
36. Jalen Milroe, Seahawks
37. Kirk Cousins, Falcons
38. Jameis Winston, Giants
39. Spencer Rattler, Saints
40. Mason Rudolph, Steelers
41. Kenny Pickett, Browns
These are the top backup quarterbacks in the league to keep an eye on. If given the opportunity, they could be fantasy relevant for a short period of time. It’s not likely, but a couple of these quarterbacks (Dart, Sanders, Milroe) could be the next rookie sensation.
That may come in hand during bye weeks and/or in two-quarterback formats.
