The NFL Hall Of Fame is a dream for every young football player including everyone in the NFL right now.
The NFL is this revolving door of talent where you see up-and-coming superstars rise to the heights or come back to earth and accept the reality that their best days are behind them. “What goes up must come down down”, has never been a truer statement than in the NFL.
Before this list gets started, please note: The 10 quarterbacks previewed here are still active in the league, so keep in mind that things may change, to the uptrend or the down, depending on how their careers continue. Here are five NFL quarterbacks who will be Hall of Famers and five NFL quarterbacks who won’t:
Thumbs UP: Hall of Fame: Jalen Hurts
Hurts is already making a case that he is one of the best young up-and-coming quarterbacks in the league by having an MVP-like season with the high-powered Philadelphia Eagles, leading them to Super Bowl 57, but coming up short against the Kansas City Chiefs. Hurts isn’t even in his prime as of yet and there is every expectation that he has the potential to lead the Eagles to possibly more Super Bowl appearances, more Pro Bowl selections during his developing career, and more winning seasons for the city of ‘Brotherly Love!’
Thumbs DOWN: Hall of Fame: Justin Fields
Fields had a respectable 2022 season where he completed 192 passes for 2,242 yards and threw 17 touchdowns. Fields also rushed for 1,143 yards on 160 carries and scored eight touchdowns. However, he threw 11 interceptions, fumbled the ball nine times, and was sacked 55 times. All of that while playing on that disastrous Chicago Bears franchise. There is still time for Fields to right the ship, but seeing how dysfunctional the Bears have been, it may be time for Fields to find a new home in a year or two as a reliable backup that will bolster his many talents on the field.
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Thumbs UP: Hall of Fame: Patrick Mahomes
Is this even a question? Mahomes has become the face of the NFL. There is every expectation that he will continue to rack up more Pro Bowl appearances, and potentially more Super Bowl Championships with the Kansas City Chiefs and dominate the league for years to come!
Thumbs DOWN: Hall of Fame: Geno Smith
Despite making the Pro Bowl once in the 2022 season, Geno Smith was a backup for a good portion of his career in the NFL. He started as the starting quarterback for the New York Jets in 2013 until he was punched by his then-teammate IK Enemkpali for an unpaid debt and replaced by journeyman Ryan Fitzpatrick for the 2015 and 2016 seasons. Smith also missed action due to a torn ACL in the 2016 season.
Smith then bounced around the league as a backup to Eli Manning and Philip Rivers on the New York Giants and Los Angeles Chargers respectively. Smith would join the Seattle Seahawks in 2019 as Russell Wilson’s backup before ultimately taking the starting role in 2022 when Wilson was traded to the Denver Broncos. Smith earned his way to the Pro Bowl in the 2022 season, led the Seahawks to a surprise playoff appearance, and won the AP Comeback Player of the Year for how he performed that season. Unfortunately, one great season is not enough to get you into Canton.
Thumbs UP: Hall of Fame: Joe Burrow
Despite missing a chuck of his rookie season in 2020 due to a torn ACL and MCL, Burrow has proven he’s a leader in the NFL by helping the Cincinnati Bengals win the AFC North back-to-back in 2021 and 2022 and led them to a Super Bowl 56 appearance. The Bengals may have lost 23-20 to the Los Angeles Rams, but Burrow and the Bengals will be playoff contenders for years to come under his leadership!
Thumbs DOWN: Hall of Fame: Daniel Jones
Even though Jones led the New York Giants to their first playoff appearance since the 2016 season and notched their first playoff win since the franchise won Super Bowl 46, Jones doesn’t have the stats to get himself into Canton. On top of that, the Giants have had one of the worst offensive lines in the league making pass attempts and running plays a lot harder for Jones, especially since strong defenses on the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles exist in the always competitive NFC East. Jones was sacked 45 times in 2020 and sacked 44 times in 2022 due to the weak offensive line that apparently can’t even stop a nosebleed.
Thumbs UP: Hall of Fame: Josh Allen
Josh Allen has truly brought change to the Buffalo Bills from being a laughable team in the NFL to making them a playoff powerhouse in the AFC East. Allen has helped the Bills reach the playoffs in four of his first five seasons with the franchise. Allen and the Bills did reach the 2020 AFC Championship game before getting knocked out by the defending Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs. Allen has had three seasons throwing over 4,000 passing yards, made the Pro Bowl twice, and still has a lot more to accomplish in the NFL. Will Allen lead the Bills to a Super Bowl appearance in the near future? The Bills just need to get the right pieces in the right places- in order to make that happen.
Thumbs DOWN: Hall of Fame: Ryan Tannehill
Similar to Geno Smith, Tannehill’s full potential wasn’t unlocked until he was traded out of the Miami Dolphins during the 2019 season to the Tennessee Titans. During his first season in the “Music City”, Tannehill led the Titans to the playoffs where they knocked off the New England Patriots in the Wildcard Round, and the Baltimore Ravens in the Divisional Round, and made it to the AFC Championship game before getting defeated by the eventual Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs.
Tannehill also made it to the Pro Bowl that season and won the Comeback Player of the Year award. Unfortunately, after the 2019 season on the high heights, Tannehill returned to Earth and has not had a similar season since. His time stuck on a mediocre Miami Dolphins team doesn’t help his case either- it may just be time to get out of South Beach.
Thumbs UP: Hall of Fame: Lamar Jackson
Jackson may only have two Pro Bowl appearances and one playoff win under his belt, but Jackson has done historic things in the NFL as a dual-threat quarterback. Jackson became the fastest quarterback in the NFL to reach 5,000 passing yards and 2,000 rushing yards in 2020, Jackson also became the youngest quarterback with the most wins under his belt under the age of 25 (35 wins at the time) and much more. Even though Jackson has dealt with nagging injuries during his tenure with the Ravens, there is still a lot more to earn for the young dual-threat quarterback for years to come.
Thumbs DOWN: Hall of Fame: Jimmy Garoppolo
Originally Garoppolo was drafted to be Tom Brady’s successor on the New England Patriots until he was traded to the San Francisco 49ers in the middle of the 2017 season. Garoppolo’s numbers were good during his time in the Bay Area due to good coaching under Kyle Shanahan. Garappolo does have two Super Bowl Championships under his belt, even though he was on the bench for those two appearances.
He did lead the 49ers to a Super Bowl 54 appearance in the 2019-20 season before ultimately losing that game 31-20 to Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. During his time in San Fran, Garoppolo had to be content with nagging injuries (A torn ACL in 2018, ankle sprains in 2020, and a broken foot in 2022) that truly hurt his potential in the Bay Area.
Garoppolo is now with the Las Vegas Raiders who are in a rebuild mode and will not be playoff contenders for some time, but who knows, Jimmy G could potentially help the Raiders reach the playoffs in the future with former offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels as his head coach. But it’s unknown at this point.
