“AFC QB Dominance Over NFC with Aaron Rodgers”

If I asked you who the best quarterbacks in the NFL are, who are the first names to come up? Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Joe Burrow, and maybe Justin Herbert.

What do all four have in common? They play in the AFC.

Let’s extend that list a bit. Jalen Hurts, Tua Tagovailoa, Lamar Jackson, Aaron Rodgers. Hey, we found one in the NFC.

The quarterback pendulum was already swung pretty heavily towards the AFC last season. Now you’re moving an established quality veteran over to that side as well.

No, I’m not talking about Jimmy G. I’m referring to Metro Detroit’s favorite quarterback of all-time Rodgers.

I know you all hate him. But he is a good player. Not the four-time MVP caliber he once was, but he’s still pretty good. Four MVPs is second most of all-time, did you guys know that?

NFC Outlook is Bleak

But Rodgers isn’t the issue here. It’s that the NFC needs some good young quarterbacks on their side, and it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen quickly.

Even if you look at this year’s NFL Draft, most mock drafts have anywhere form 3-4 quarterbacks going in the top 10. But only one would go to the NFC with Carolina holding the first pick. So, the AFC would get three lottery tickets to the NFC’s one. Not great odds.

Maybe Jackson will sign or get traded to an NFC team. That would certainly help. We could view that as a trade between he and Rodgers. With the NFC side winning that skirmish.

But that’s only one guy. The conference needs more than that with what they already have.

Kirk Cousins is already 34 years old. Plus, he’s not very good. Matt Stafford is 35. And with his back injury history he may not have many years left. If any of those are any good too.

Geno Smith had one good season after a lifetime supply of being a backup. I’ll wait to see if he can do it again. How confident are we in Dak Prescott or Kyler Murray? And I can’t give Brock Purdy too many flowers after half a season.

I can’t believe I’m saying this, but the NFC’s second-best quarterback is likely Lions own Jared Goff. He had a good season in 2022. Some around here even said elite caliber. The Lions have provided him with a good offensive line and a quality run game. But Goff also made plays when he had to and limited the turnovers.

But let’s not forget, before the season, most fans wanted to draft a new quarterback. If he takes a step back this year, will that be the case again?

What it All Means

This could end up not meaning much in terms of winning a Super Bowl. The NFC and AFC have split the last six titles. Of course, Mahomes and Tom Brady have won four of the last five. Brady’s obviously gone and Mahomes is in the AFC. But could Aaron Rodgers make the jump and win it in his first year with the New York Jets?

Having an elite quarterback isn’t a requirement to win a Super Bowl. See Nick Foles in 2018 for your example. But it’s usually a starting point to win one.

There’s a reason the Chiefs are the favorites to win it all again next year. Per Draft Kings, the next four favorites are the 49ers, Bills, Eagles and Bengals. Three of those teams have elite quarterbacks.

We’ll see what Jackson and whoever the Panthers take at No. 1 do in the near future. But unless the NFC steps up its QB1 game, it may be a while before they win the Lombardi Trophy.