Justin Herbert put any talks of a sophomore slump to bed as he went out and set multiple franchise records in 2021. While the Chargers ultimately missed the playoffs with one of the worst defenses in the league, Herbert finished with 5,014 passing yards, 38 passing touchdowns and a 65.9 completion percentage.
Herbert's second season proved that his rookie season was not a fluke and he really is one of the best quarterbacks in all of the NFL. While the Chargers' success limited him from being in the MVP talk this season, Herbert is an early candidate to win the award next season.
We here at Bolt Beat come together and rank all 32 starting quarterbacks before a season begins and all 32 starting quarterbacks after a season ends. Three contributors and I ranked the quarterbacks 32-1 to come up with a consensus ranking and let me tell you, Justin Herbert is pretty high.
Let's dive into it.
32. Sam Darnold, Carolina Panthers
- Average ranking: 31.25
- Highest ranking: 30
- Preseason ranking: 29
Sam Darnold is a really bad quarterback. While things started off on a decent note for Darnold and the Carolina Panthers, it all went down relatively quickly to the point where Cam Newton was actually playing quarterback again for the Panthers. Darnold returned and looked just as bad as we remembered him, making Carolina look extremely foolish for trading a second-round pick for him.
31. Daniel Jones, New York Giants
- Average ranking: 30.75
- Highest ranking: 30
- Preseason ranking: 32
Daniel Jones was able to move up one on this list just because Darnold was so bad! In all honesty, Giants fans should be upset that Jones got hurt this season as the front office is going to convince itself that the Giants were only as bad as they were because he got hurt. If he played the entire year, it probably would have been enough to show them that this guy is not very good compared to his peers.
30. Zach Wilson, New York Jets
- Average ranking: 29.5
- Highest ranking: 28
- Preseason ranking: 27
There was some hope that Zach Wilson could be better than some of the worst quarterbacks in the NFL before this season and those hopes were dashed as Wilson played really poorly. I will say, there is something there. There is no guarantee that he finds it but there is a world in which he is a slow developer, like Josh Allen.
29. Taysom Hill, New Orleans Saints
- Average ranking: 29.5
- Highest ranking: 27
- Preseason ranking: N/A
If it is a smaller injury like in Jones' case then we still include him as the starter, plus, it is very obvious that he is going to start in New York next season. Hill, on the other hand, became the starter once he got healthy after Jameis Winston tore his ACL. With Winston being a free agent this offseason, Hill very well could be the starting QB in New Orleans in 2022.