Ranking NFL QB’s for 2026: 20-11 (Part Two)
The KPage Media 2026 NFL quarterback rankings roll on, and now things start getting interesting.
Part Two takes us from No. 20 through No. 11, where proven veterans, former top picks and some of the league’s fastest-rising young quarterbacks collide. This is the range where separating quarterbacks gets difficult — one breakout season could launch someone into the top 10, while one disappointing year could send another tumbling down the list.
Let the arguments begin.
20. Kyler Murray — Minnesota Vikings
2026 Projection: 3,780 yards | 25 TD | 11 INT
New city, new offense, same Kyler Murray experience.
There are going to be Sundays where Murray looks like one of the 10 most talented quarterbacks alive. He’ll escape something that should’ve been a 12-yard loss, run around for six seconds and somehow find Justin Jefferson 40 yards downfield.
Then two possessions later he’ll make a throw that has Vikings fans staring silently at their televisions.
But Minnesota might be exactly what Murray needed. Kevin O’Connell gets an incredibly talented quarterback who can create outside structure, and Murray gets to throw the football to Justin Jefferson.
That’s a pretty good arrangement.
We’re not ready to declare the Kyler Murray renaissance just yet, but if there’s a place for it to happen, Minnesota makes a whole lot of sense.
Why He’s Here: The talent has always been higher than No. 20. The consistency hasn’t. Minnesota gives Murray one of the best situations he’s ever had, and if he takes advantage of it, he won’t stay this low for long.
19. Trevor Lawrence — Jacksonville Jaguars
2026 Projection: 3,940 yards | 29 TD | 17 INT
We’re entering approximately Year 47 of waiting for the Trevor Lawrence breakout.
Okay, it’s not actually Year 47.
It just feels like it.
Lawrence remains one of the strangest quarterbacks to rank because all the ingredients are there.
Size? Yep.
Arm? Absolutely.
Athleticism? Check.
Former No. 1 pick pedigree? You know it.
And yet we’re still waiting for everything to come together for an entire season.
At some point, Lawrence has to stop being ranked based on what we think he could become and start climbing because of what he’s actually doing.
We still believe there’s a really good quarterback here.
But we’re done handing him a top-10 ranking because of potential.
Why He’s Here: We’re still waiting for Lawrence to become the quarterback everyone thought Jacksonville was drafting. He’s good enough to climb considerably higher, but at this point, potential alone can’t move him up the list.
18. Sam Darnold — Seattle Seahawks
2026 Projection: 3,870 yards | 27 TD | 12 INT
Remember when Sam Darnold was a punchline?
Yeah. That guy is gone.
Darnold has gone from seeing ghosts to becoming a starting quarterback on a Super Bowl winner, and we’re officially done treating every good Sam Darnold season like some sort of clerical error.
Is he elite? No.
Are we completely convinced the old Darnold will never randomly reappear for three quarters and throw a football directly to a linebacker?
Also no.
That’s the Sam Darnold tax.
But Seattle doesn’t need Superman. If Darnold protects the football, hits his shots and keeps the offense moving, there’s no reason he can’t put together another productive season.
Why He’s Here: Darnold has done enough to prove his career turnaround is real. We’re just not completely ready to trust him over the quarterbacks ahead of him, despite the Super Bowl.
17. Bo Nix — Denver Broncos
2026 Projection: 4,020 yards | 29 TD | 10 INT
Bo Nix might be the least exciting quarterback who’s quietly becoming really freaking good.
Nobody is spending Tuesday morning screaming about Bo Nix on television. Nobody is making a seven-minute montage of Bo Nix throws with dramatic music underneath it.
He just keeps playing good football.
And Sean Payton probably wouldn’t have it any other way.
Nix processes quickly, doesn’t need to turn every possession into backyard football and looks increasingly comfortable running Denver’s offense.
Now comes the important part: proving the progression is real.
We think it is.
Don’t be shocked if we’re having a completely different conversation about Nix by December.
Also, don’t be shocked if Denver looks like they could win the AFC or even the Super Bowl.
Why He’s Here: Nix keeps getting better, and his fit with Sean Payton makes this feel like it could be only the beginning. Another step forward could have him knocking on the door of the top 12.
16. Baker Mayfield — Tampa Bay Buccaneers
2026 Projection: 4,180 yards | 30 TD | 12 INT
Baker Mayfield refuses to go away.
And that’s a compliment.
Cleveland moved on. Carolina didn’t work. The Rams cameo happened. Then Tampa basically said, “Hey, want to play quarterback?” and Baker responded by resurrecting his entire career.
Now he’s not a comeback story anymore.
He’s just a good NFL quarterback.
The chaos will always be there. Baker is still capable of trying a throw that absolutely nobody asked him to attempt. But that same aggression is part of why Tampa Bay’s offense works.
He’s confident, he’s productive and he’s found a home.
The gunslinger, the trash talker, the BakeShow.
Why He’s Here: Baker has officially graduated from comeback story to re-established starter. He’s productive, aggressive and good enough to win with — but the occasional chaos keeps him just outside the next tier.
15. Jalen Hurts — Philadelphia Eagles
2026 Projection: 3,560 yards | 23 TD | 10 INT
Before Philadelphia comes after us: yes, we know.
Jalen Hurts is really good.
He wins. He’s dangerous with his legs. He’s nearly impossible to stop around the goal line. And when Philadelphia’s offense is rolling, Hurts can make life absolutely miserable for a defense.
But we’re ranking quarterbacks, not offenses.
That’s where Hurts slides a little.
The rushing production and Philadelphia’s overall offensive machine make him incredibly valuable, but as a pure passer, we’re taking several guys ahead of him.
This isn’t “Jalen Hurts stinks.”
It’s “Jalen Hurts is the 15th-best quarterback in a league with a ridiculous amount of quarterback talent.”
Everybody relax.
Hurts proved he can lead a team to a high scoring output. He also has proved they can go an entire half, multiple times, not scoring or even looking dangerous on offense.
Why He’s Here: Hurts is one of the NFL’s most valuable quarterbacks, but we’re separating quarterback play from team success. His legs and leadership are elite weapons; as a pure passer, we have 14 quarterbacks ahead of him.
14. Brock Purdy — San Francisco 49ers
2026 Projection: 4,060 yards | 28 TD | 11 INT
At some point we’re going to have to stop arguing about whether Brock Purdy is good.
He’s good.
Is Kyle Shanahan helping him? Of course.
Breaking news: NFL coaches are supposed to help their quarterbacks.
Purdy anticipates throws, gets the football out, operates the middle of the field extremely well and has consistently shown he’s more than just some seventh-round lottery ticket who wandered into the perfect situation.
Does he have Josh Allen’s arm? No.
Can he run around like Lamar Jackson? Definitely not.
Can he quarterback a really good football team and win a lot of games?
Yep.
That’s kind of important.
Why He’s Here: The “it’s just the system” argument has gotten old. Purdy has consistently played winning football and deserves credit for it. No. 14 reflects a very good quarterback surrounded by some seriously talented competition.
13. C.J. Stroud — Houston Texans
2026 Projection: 4,140 yards | 29 TD | 9 INT
The C.J. Stroud conversation has gotten weird.
His rookie year was so good that everybody immediately wanted to put him in the elite quarterback club. People were talking MVP level stuff.
Then things got a little more difficult and suddenly people started jumping off the bandwagon.
Jumping off fast.
Maybe everybody needs to calm down.
Stroud still has everything you want from a franchise quarterback. He’s accurate, composed, willing to attack downfield and already has stretches where he looks completely in control of an NFL offense.
We’re betting on the talent.
A big year puts Stroud right back into the top-10 conversation. Maybe even top-5.
Why He’s Here: We’ve already seen what Stroud’s ceiling looks like. Now we need to see it consistently. If the rookie-year version returns for an entire season, No. 13 will look way too low.
12. Jordan Love — Green Bay Packers
2026 Projection: 4,210 yards | 31 TD | 11 INT
Green Bay can’t keep getting away with this.
Brett Favre.
Aaron Rodgers.
And now Jordan Love might actually be good too?
Come on.
Love isn’t Rodgers, and nobody should be asking him to be. But the arm talent is obvious, he’s comfortable attacking tight windows and he’s shown enough that Green Bay can legitimately believe it has another long-term answer at quarterback.
There will still be a couple “Jordan, what exactly did you see there?” interceptions.
That’s part of the package.
But we’ll happily live with those when the package also includes 30-plus touchdowns and a whole bunch of ridiculous throws.
Why He’s Here: Love has the arm talent and production to crack the top 10. What separates him from that group right now is consistency. Clean up the unnecessary mistakes and he’s right there.
11. Caleb Williams — Chicago Bears
2026 Projection: 4,320 yards | 32 TD | 10 INT
Here we go.
This is the year Caleb Williams stops being discussed primarily as a former No. 1 pick and starts being discussed as one of the best quarterbacks in football.
The talent has never been the question.
The arm angles are absurd. The creativity is absurd. Some of the throws are absurd.
Occasionally the decision-making is also absurd — just in the opposite direction.
But that’s young-quarterback stuff.
If Williams takes the next step playing within structure while keeping the improvisational stuff that makes him special, Chicago has something scary.
Last season was the tip of the iceberg for Williams. I think we see another sizeable leap forward this season and maybe even have the Bears as a surprising contender down the stretch.
We’re putting him at No. 11 now. Despite every fiber of my being wanting to put him higher.
By the end of the season?
He might make us look conservative.
Why He’s Here: This ranking is partly about what Williams already is and partly about where we think he’s going. He’s sitting directly outside the top 10 because the talent is undeniable — and 2026 could be the season he kicks the door down.
Next Up: The Top 10
And just like that, we’re down to 10.
If Nos. 20 through 11 were difficult to separate, the top 10 is where things really get uncomfortable.
We’ve got MVPs. Super Bowl champions. Young quarterbacks already threatening to take over the league. And a couple of rankings that are almost guaranteed to make somebody angry.
Is Drake Maye already among the NFL’s elite? How high can Jayden Daniels climb? Where does Matthew Stafford belong among the league’s younger stars? And when we get all the way to No. 1, does anybody have enough to knock Patrick Mahomes off the throne?
Those answers are coming.
Next up: KPage Media’s Top 10 Quarterbacks entering the 2026 NFL season.
And trust us — this is where fanbases get really upset.
