IN PROGRESS: The 10 Greatest Arm Talents in NFL History
The Top 10 Greatest Arm Talents in the NFL
Since the creation of the NFL, we’ve watched a plethora of unbelievable quarterbacks take the field.
Some of these passers were beyond exceptional in their ability not only to throw the ball an impressive distance, but also to dice up opposing defenses with surgical precision on a routine basis.
Our list of the greatest arm talents in NFL history shows the most extraordinary arm talent we have seen in the league to date.
10. Jay Cutler
Jay Culter at number 10 is the perfect way to start this list, as it is undoubtedly the most shocking to most NFL fans.
The former quarterback was consistently remembered for failing to reach his true potential at the professional level, whether due to a lack of effort or simply not being as good as expected.
Either way, you can never take away Cutler’s arm strength. He was known for having a rocket arm, having a recorded pass go for 69 yards. Some estimates suggest that Cutler might have been able to reach 70 or even 80 yards with a full throw, but that's more speculation than anything.
Regardless, he was well known for his ability to launch a football, and he knew it, too. Culter is famously cited for saying that he had a stronger arm than John Elway (who will also make an appearance on this list). Culter may not have turned out to be the quarterback many anticipated, though his strength was unique.
9. Brett Favre
Brett Favre was one of those quarterbacks who consistently aired it out, even when it wasn’t a good idea.
He had the utmost confidence in his arm talent and strength, and that showed. On occasion, it didn’t reflect well on him, considering that he threw 336 interceptions throughout his career. Favre didn’t care, though; he understood what he could do and took advantage.
He could launch a football over 70 yards down the field, throw across-the-body passes with intense velocity, and fling footballs through extremely tight windows in contest coverage. Not to mention how impressive it is that he put together a streak of 297 consecutive starts in the NFL.
His arm talent and strength held up over an extended period. Let’s say that he absolutely earned the right to be called a true gunslinger in the NFL.
8. Drew Brees
This has a chance to be the most controversial on the list.
Drew Brees deserves to be here due to his arm talent alone. He was never talked about as someone who could throw a football 70-80 yards down the field, nor was he described as having a cannon for an arm. However, Brees is arguably the most accurate passer that the NFL has ever seen.
Throughout his career, Brees completed 67.7 percent of his passes for 80,358 yards, 571 touchdowns and 243 interceptions. Brees also threw 5,000 passing yards in five separate seasons; nobody else has ever done that three times during their career.
Brees also has two other seasons above 4,800 yards, so nobody else is even close to him when it comes to airing it out. Say what you will about his arm strength, but his arm talent and accuracy tend to be wildly underrated for how great they were.
7. Matthew Stafford
Matthew Stafford undoubtedly has one of the most talented arms that we’ve seen.
This future Hall of Famer was among the first to take on extremely difficult throws downfield. For example, Stafford had really popularised the no-look pass, even though people might think someone like Patrick Mahomes could do it.
On top of that, he’s been talked about as having a strong arm since he entered the NFL. He’s been clocked throwing a football 70 yards, and it was on full display during the years that he partnered up with Calvin “Megatron” Johnson on the Detroit Lions.
What a combination of arm strength and physical catching those two showed back when they were together. Aside from that, Stafford has been excellent throughout his career statistically. His arm talent is demonstrated by the fact that he’s thrown 63,531 yards, 414 touchdowns and 193 interceptions up to this point in his ongoing career.
6. Dan Marino
Dan Marino is another highly recognisable name who deserves to be on this list.
It is easy to forget what somebody like Marino was able to do on a football field, especially if you’ve never watched him.
The Miami Dolphins quarterback was legendary as a passer, firing passes through tight windows and breaking records. He was the first quarterback in league history to ever throw for more than 5,000 passing yards in a single season, showing a level of arm talent that we’ve never seen before up until that point.
He was also estimated to throw a football over 70 yards down the field. Even with more quarterbacks able to do that these days, it is still a small number who can find themselves in this category. Never forget what Marino accomplished despite never winning a Super Bowl. His arm talent and strength were revolutionary back when he played.
5. Tom Brady
Tom Brady coming in at number five might be controversial, as he’s one of the hardest to rank when it comes to arm talent and strength.
The truth of the matter is that you can’t be as successful at the NFL level as Brady was throughout his career unless you have the talent necessary to make it happen.
Over the course of a very long career, Brady has completed 64 percent of his passes for 89,214 yards, 649 touchdowns and only 212 interceptions on the way to SEVEN Super Bowl victories. It doesn’t matter how far you can throw a football; if you’re talking about the most extraordinary arm talents that the league has ever seen, Brady’s numbers speak for themselves.
He’s been able to make any wide receiver around him look good, and he’s got almost every single passing record to show for it.
Towards the back end of his career, we didn’t get to see him take many shots down the field, but he was always accurate when he did. Every single time he dropped back to pass the football, it felt like somebody was wide open. And the reason for that is that he could throw people open with ease.
Combining high-level intellect on the football field with an insane processing ability and elite arm talent gets you a resume that no other player may ever pass.
4. John Elway
John Elway had one of the most powerful arms that we’ve ever seen in the league.
Elway was great at taking deep shots down the field, but he lands so high on this list because of how hard he threw with the elite accuracy he maintained.
It was reported that Elway had thrown passes somewhere between 60 and 65 miles per hour during practice. These were the types of throws that his receivers were getting during the course of a game. To prepare for this, these wideouts had to set up the Jugs machine in Denver to throw footballs at 70 miles per hour in the hopes of matching Elway's velocity.
This type of power isn’t only shown during 50-plus-yard throws down the field. It gets displayed in those intermediate routes somewhere between 10 and 20 yards. For his velocity and power alone, Elway deserves to be number four. However, his accuracy and vision certainly help him when discussing arm talent as a whole.
3. Josh Allen
Josh Allen was one of the new-age quarterbacks who came into the league with unbelievable arm strength.
We’ve seen many passers these days be able to toss a football farther than ever before, but with Allen, it looks ten times easier.
The Buffalo Bills quarterback put on a show at his Pro Day in college, slinging a pass a whopping 80 yards down the field. He’s continued to grow and develop, making his arm talent even more dangerous.
Now, with him being able to read defenses at a much better level, Allen can dice up any opponent that is lined up across from him. And the absolute last thing that you want to do against him is let a receiver get behind you. It doesn’t matter how far away they are from Allen; he can throw almost the length of the gridiron. His arm strength is so well-known that he’s been given a perfect 99 rating in this category when it comes to the hit video game franchise Madden.
Of course, Madden isn’t the end-all when it comes to assessing a player's talent; it’s just a nice added touch when talking about Allen’s recognition as a guy with a cannon for an arm. Significant arm strength also accounts for zipping footballs through tight windows, and Allen can do that.
Former quarterback-turned-analyst Dan Orlovsky said he thinks Allen is the strongest passer in the league right now and specifically noted Allen’s ability to fire passes to his receivers that nobody else can even get a hand on.
2. Aaron Rodgers
It should come as no surprise to see Aaron Rodgers land very high up on this list.
The legendary Green Bay Packers quarterback (who has also played for other teams throughout his career) has consistently been touted as one of the most physically gifted passers the league has seen.
Throughout the past two decades, many have seen players like Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees and Rodgers compete for supremacy. During that time, Brady has dominated in the Super Bowl, which has propelled him to the top of people's overall quarterback rankings.
However, Rodgers was consistently ranked number two due to his passing skills. Don’t just take my word for this, either; the GOAT himself, Tom Brady, has admitted that Rodgers is the “greatest passer of the football the league’s ever seen”. It should be commonly understood that one of the most successful quarterbacks of all time, Tom Brady, would know a thing or two about arm talent at the professional level.
Throughout his career, Rodgers has been consistently accurate, which helps him throw very few interceptions.
Over the course of his career, he’s completed over 65 percent of his pass attempts for 525 touchdowns compared to only 123 interceptions. You rarely see Rodgers ever put the ball in a bad position, and that’s a testament to how he can manipulate passing lanes.
Similar to other quarterbacks on this list, Rodgers can fling a football through multiple defenders, fire back-shoulder fades, hit targets in stride and drop a pass right into a receiver's hands on a deep shot like it’s just a simple flick of the wrist.
1. Patrick Mahomes
Patrick Mahomes has an infuriating mix of both arm talent and strength. Not only is he able to power football across nearly an entire field, but he’s ridiculously accurate on top of that, making throws that 99 percent of the NFL can’t.
Speaking of his arm strength, Mahomes made headlines initially as a draft prospect. During a pre-draft workout, he splashed onto the scene by creating an unbelievable 83-yard pass down the field. Most teams need to get near midfield even to think about attempting Hail Mary passes into the end zone these days. If you have Mahomes on your team, you can genuinely get away with setting up for one of these throws at around a team's own 30-yard line.
Now, Mahomes doesn’t fall into that category of NFL passers who can throw the ball far but not on target. The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback can complete essentially any throw he wants at any time. The improvisation and off angle throws that he makes at various arm angles are something we’ve never really seen before. There’s arm talent, and then there’s Patrick Mahomes.
As much as NFL fans joke around about how commentators use him as the standard of great throws, it isn’t for no reason. It can genuinely feel like he makes his own magic after watching a couple of these ridiculous throws.
