There is no bigger stage for a quarterback than the Super Bowl. Sure, it is also a moment of awe and wonder for everyone else on an NFL team, but the fame and recognition that comes with being a Super Bowl quarterback is unmatched in the American sports landscape.
First and foremost, it is this position’s time to shine. Provided you don’t completely come apart at the seams, if you’re a starting quarterback in a Super Bowl, you likely become a legend for life. Full stop.
This got me thinking, as the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers get ready to square off at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Sunday…
Who are the most memorable Super Bowl starting quarterbacks this century? Who are the game’s titans who introduced themselves to roughly 100 million people every February?
Let’s break down the top Super Bowl quarterbacks of the 21st century, with an obvious selection at the top.
11
Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers (Super Bowl 40, Super Bowl 43, Super Bowl 45)
Record: 2-1
Roethlisberger was a complete non-factor in his first Super Bowl, throwing for 123 yards in a snoozefest of a win over the Seattle Seahawks in 2005. When the Steelers returned to face the Arizona Cardinals in 2008, Roethlisberger was arguably the best player on the field. In the closing moments, he led an eight-play, 78-yard game-winning drive capped by one of the finest throws I’ve ever seen on a football field. Shoutout to Santonio Holmes.
As a native Chicagoan, we don’t need to talk too much about how Roethlisberger played in Super Bowl 45 against the Green Bay Packers in defeat. Let’s just say, I was underwhelmed.
10
Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons (Super Bowl 51)
Record: 0-1
I could write 28 different things about what was supposed to be the pinnacle for the Falcons franchise and Ryan. Instead, I’ll whittle it down to three:
- Ryan was good but not great against the New England Patriots.
- Nonetheless, he remains probably the best quarterback the Falcons have ever rostered.
- It is very amusing the Falcons ever considered hiring Bill Belichick as their head coach, considering he was the architect of their greatest misery.
9
Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks (Super Bowl 48, Super Bowl 49)
Record: 1-1
Fun fact: Before Wilson became the subject of one of the most lopsided trades in NFL history, he was actually a competent, difference-making quarterback. Shocking, I know.
Wilson didn’t have to do much in a shellacking of the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl 48. And even despite a backbreaking, game-ending pick in Super Bowl 49 against the Patriots, I thought Wilson was otherwise sublime. We’d remember his game differently if Malcolm Butler never jumped a basic slant pattern at the goal line.
8
Colin Kaepernick, San Francisco 49ers (Super Bowl 47)
Record: 0-1
Kaepernick took over as the 49ers’ starter midseason in 2012, and the team never looked back. Even despite a slow start in the Super Bowl against the Baltimore Ravens, Kaepernick positively dazzled with more than 360 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns. If the 49ers don’t inexplicably rely on red-zone fades at the end of the game, Kaepernick probably finishes with a well-deserved ring.
7
Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs (Super Bowl 54, Super Bowl 55, Super Bowl 57, Super Bowl 58)
Record: 2-1 (currently)
Mahomes’ Super Bowl record is obviously incomplete since he hasn’t played the fourth game yet. That said, I want to remind anyone gasping here that this is about sterling individual performance — not reputation in the league — and I don’t think Mahomes has been particularly special in any of his Super Bowl appearances thus far.
In 2020, the 49ers mostly had him bottled up until a late deep bomb to Tyreek Hill. In 2021, a relentless onslaught of Tampa Bay Buccaneers pass rushers made Mahomes’ life hell on every single snap. In 2023 — arguably his best Super Bowl performance considering he was playing on a high-ankle sprain — Mahomes still threw for just 182 yards and averaged 6.7 yards per pass attempt. Yuck.
Perhaps Mahomes plays better against a shoddy San Francisco secondary on Sunday. And if he does, it probably shoots him to the top of the list.
6
Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints (Super Bowl 44)
Record: 1-0
We shouldn’t let Brees’ performance in Super Bowl 44 get lost in the annals of history. Against the juggernaut Indianapolis Colts, Brees was essentially perfect, completing more than 82 percent of his passes, throwing two touchdowns and out-dueling the great Peyton Manning at his peak. He was dialed in, utterly unflappable. This Super Bowl remains the finest moment in Saints history, and it’s expressly because of how masterful Brees was.
5
Nick Foles, Philadelphia Eagles (Super Bowl 52)
Record: 1-0
The rare backup quarterback to win a Super Bowl, Foles did not look like a guy who was second-string to Carson Wentz in the big game. The veteran threw for more than 370 yards and three scores to supplant the legendary Tom Brady, of all people, for a championship. Sometimes, I still can’t believe this happened.
With the “Philly Special,” Foles also helped give us one of the more iconic plays in NFL lore. Encore, encore!
4
Eli Manning, New York Giants (Super Bowl 42, Super Bowl 46)
Record: 2-0
Manning deserves his flowers as the only quarterback to beat Tom Brady in the Super Bowl twice. He’s also one of two people (hey, David Tyree!) who are most responsible for preventing the Patriots from finishing a 19-0 season and being recognized as the greatest team of all time. With his two separate (and kind of random?) Super Bowl runs that both came with wild-card caliber Giants teams, Manning has an arguable case as the finest playoff riser in NFL history.
3
Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers (Super Bowl 45)
Record: 1-0
There is a cruel (but really funny) irony in knowing that Super Bowl 45 was Rodgers’ only Super Bowl win. He was a player everyone thought would be playing for the Lombardi Trophy for a decade-plus. While that never came to fruition, there’s no denying how exceptional Rodgers was on the NFL’s biggest stage. The Steelers simply had no answer for the then-Packers’ talisman, who dropped dimes to Greg Jennings and Jordy Nelson like it was no one’s business all night long. I would personally count it as one of the best quarterback performances ever in a Super Bowl.
2
Kurt Warner, Los Angeles Rams/Arizona Cardinals (Super Bowl 34, Super Bowl 36, Super Bowl 43)
Record: 1-2
Perhaps the ultimate underdog story, it is mind-boggling that Warner went from stocking shelves (or so the folk tale goes) to becoming a quarterback who started three separate Super Bowls. While he only won one of them with the 1999 Rams, he is still one of the most prolific passers ever seen in the big game. His average passing yard output was 385, and his average yards per pass attempt was 8.7. Put another way: Warner’s usual Super Bowl production was equivalent to a quarterback throwing more than 6,500 yards in a 17-game season. That’s pretty good, I’d say.
If not for some better luck in close losses (and the final person on this list), Warner might have a case as the best Super Bowl quarterback in decades.
1
Tom Brady, New England Patriots/Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Super Bowl 36, Super Bowl 38, Super Bowl 39, Super Bowl 42, Super Bowl 46, Super Bowl 49, Super Bowl 51, Super Bowl 52, Super Bowl 53, Super Bowl 55)
Record: 7-3
No one has appeared in more Super Bowls. No one has won more Super Bowls. Few have ever won a Super Bowl with two separate organizations. There was no debate here.
Brady was the undisputed king of the NFL for the duration of his 23-year career. Heck, he’s probably the undisputed king of the entire league’s history. Even though a certain Kansas City Chiefs superstar might make a run at Brady’s crown in the future, he’s still a long way off. That speaks volumes about Brady’s tremendous success in February and otherwise.
