The LA Chargers played three of the four best quarterbacks in the sport last season and somehow, their 2025 slate of quarterback opponents are much more difficult.
While the top of the rankings is not as loaded, the overall quality of quarterbacks the Chargers are playing is much better. This will undoubtedly have an impact on the Chargers' final record as the road is much tougher than a year before.
Ranking every quarterback the Chargers play in 2025:
14. Mason Rudolph/Will Howard, Pittsburgh Steelers
This is bound to change before the 2025 season actually starts, especially considering Aaron Rodgers' strong ties to the Steelers. However, if all else stays the same, the Steelers easily have the worst quarterback on the Chargers' schedule.
Mason Rudolph simply is not a starting-caliber quarterback and Will Howard is a mid-round rookie who is going to struggle in his first year in the league. Pittsburgh's quarterback situation has been bad in recent years and it may have reached a new low.
13. Anthony Richardson/Daniel Jones, Indianapolis Colts
It's not a good sign to be in a quarterback battle with Daniel Jones if you are a young quarterback trying to become a franchise cornerstone. The fact Jones even has a chance of starting against the Chargers should tell you all you need to know about Richardson.
Richardson is one of the most athletic quarterbacks in the sport and has moments where he looks like a legitimate game-breaker. However, the mistakes simply pile up too quickly and have all of Indianapolis questioning if Richardson is the guy.
12. Russell Wilson/Jaxson Dart, New York Giants
Russell Wilson is more likely to start against the Chargers if the Giants wnat to start the season with the veteran under center. Before long, Jaxson Dart will take over as the starter, it's just a matter of when, not if.
Either way, the Giants will either be starting a veteran who can't stick on a team for more than one year or a late-first-round quarterback in a pretty bad quarterback class. Neither option is particularly daunting for the Chargers.
11. Cam Ward, Tennessee Titans
This may seem unfair for the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft but with no NFL experience, this is the highest Ward can rank as a rookie. It doesn't help that Ward isn't entering a great situation, which will absolutely impact his development early on.
Whether or not Ward is a success will be determined by multiple years of play, not just his rookie season. It is worth noting, though, that Ward would have been picked much later if he came out of college a year earlier or a year later. Not every No. 1 overall pick is built the same way.
10. J.J. McCarthy, Minnesota Vikings
Jim Harbaugh would disagree with this ranking as he is a big J.J. McCarthy fan from their shared time at Michigan. While McCarthy may benefit in the long run from sitting out his rookie season with an injury, it's still impossible to rank him any higher than this spot with literally no NFL experience.
McCarthy was on track to start over Sam Darnold, who had a career resurgence thanks to Kevin O'Connell and the stacked Minnesota offense. If McCarthy experiences the same boost, he will surge up this list by the time he plays the Chargers.
9. Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins
Justin Herbert and Tua Tagovailoa will square off yet again and thankfully, there are no longer debates about which quarterback is better. The Miami Dolphins have come back down to Earth and everyone collectively agrees that Tua is fine as a point-and-shoot quarterback, but that's it.
If the Dolphins' offense is humming then Tua could put together a good game against the Chargers in this matchup. However, if the Chargers throw even the slightest ounce of adversity at Tua the house of cards will start to fall.
8. Geno Smith, Las Vegas Raiders
Raiders fans will disagree with this ranking but it doesn't matter what they think. Geno Smith is a fine quarterback who had a late-career resurgence to become a starter. However, he isn't a true franchise quarterback, and his peak window may have already been closed.
Smith turns 35 during the 2025 season and he is going from a team with weapons galore to a team without a true No. 1 wideout (although Brock Bowers helps make up for that). Quarterbacks love to regress once they are with the Raiders and Smith is a candidate to fall down this list.
7. Bo Nix, Denver Broncos
Bo Nix had an impressive rookie season for the Denver Broncos that was better than what Chargers fans were hoping for. While that seemingly indicates a very high ceiling for Nix, it's worth noting that he was one of the oldest rookie quarterbacks in league history.
That doesn't take away from what he did last season, but it shows that he is much closer to his ceiling than a younger quarterback who does the same thing. Nix is naturally talented and with Sean Payton, he is a quarterback Chargers fans can't sleep on.
6. C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans
C.J. Stroud is undoubtedly a good quarterback and the fact he even ranks this low on the list is telling of the quarterbacks the Chargers are playing in 2025. After a step back in his sophomore season, Stroud's third season will determine how high his ceiling actually is in the NFL.
Many reading this will disagree with the two quarterbacks ranked ahead of Stroud on this list but the numbers speak for themselves. Stroud's QBR dropped to 49.8 last season as he went from averaging 273.9 yards per game to 219.2 yards per game.
Stroud will undoubtedly climb this list if he returns to his rookie-season form.
5. Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars
Trevor Lawrence hasn't lived up to being the franchise-altering No. 1 overall pick that he was touted to be but he is still a good quarterback. Lawrence had a bad season for his standards in 2024 but by the numbers, he still narrowly edged out Stroud.
With a new offensive-minded head coach and a big-name weapon in Travis Hunter, there is no more time for excuses. If Lawrence is ever going to take the next step it has to come in 2025. If not, it's time for Jags fans to except he is a good, not great, quarterback.
4. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys
Am I higher on Dak Prescott than most around the league? Probably. But if Dak was putting up his numbers on a different team with the same weapons, he would get much more credit than he gets as the quarterback of America's Team.
Yes, there are concerns about his play in the playoffs. But let's not overlook that he was the runner-up for the MVP in 2023 with a 4,516-yard, 36-touchdown season. Prescott is on an "every-other-year" trend because of injuries and based on history, he will surpass 4,500 yards with 30+ touchdowns in 2025.
3. Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles
Put Jalen Hurts in a bad situation and he ranks much lower on this list. In terms of natural talent, Hurts is near the middle of the pack. However, that is not the reality we live in and even though Hurts benefits from his situation, we have to respect it.
Hurts does enough to win football games and that is all the Eagles need him to do. Hurts protects the football, plays an efficient game and allows the Eagles to lean into their strengths. Even if the counting stats are low, it's hard not to respect a quarterback who just completed over 70% of his passes with a passer rating over 100 in the NFL Playoffs.
2. Jayden Daniels, Washington Commanders
Jayden Daniels had a remarkable rookie season and has the "it" factor that jumps off the screen. Daniels is extermely dangerous as a dual-threat quarterback and should only get better with a year of NFL experience (and a trip to the NFC Championship) under his belt.
Daniels finished his rookie season with the fourth-best QBR, trailing just Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen and Joe Burrow. For comparison, his rookie-season QBR was eight points higher than Justin Herbert's 2020 QBR. It was 0.3 points lower than Herbert's best in 2021.
1. Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs
Patrick Mahomes will always top this list. Unfortunately, the Chargers have to play the best quarterback in the sport two times a year every year. Mahomes would have to take a massive step back to not be on this list yearly.
While Mahomes is the obvious No. 1, the rest of the top three is not as daunting as it was last year when the Chargers had to play Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, and Joe Burrow. However, the depth of the list is much better, which will have a tangible impact on the Bolts.