It was time to put Tom Brady in a tier of his own because no quarterback has come close to matching his season.
Of the rest of the pack, the Cardinals and Panthers established themselves as the class of the NFC. It’s only right that their QBs shined and the rankings note that.
Cincinnati’s Andy Dalton had a prime-time audience to authenticate his great start to the season, but he, like the rest of his team, fell on his face.
WATCH:
Tier I
1. Tom Brady, Patriots (1)
It says something about a QB when you expect a fourth-quarter comeback. Brady finally knocked off his kryptonite in the Giants with another stellar 300-plus yard performance.
Tier II
2. Aaron Rodgers, Packers (2)
This is one game where the stat line is deceiving. The Lions kept Rodgers out of the end zone until the fourth quarter and he needed 61 passes to get to 333 passing yards. Rodgers and the Packers have been struggling lately. He didn’t drop a spot, but he did drop out of Tier I.
3. Carson Palmer, Cardinals (7)
Palmer went into the lion’s den and tamed the Seahawks. He torched the once-feared Legion of Boom for 363 passing yards and three touchdowns.
4. Philip Rivers, Chargers (3)
Bye week.
5. Cam Newton, Panthers (8)
Continue to dance on them, Cam. Newton has done the most with little talent in the receiving core outside of Greg Olsen. If we remove the stats, he’s the most valuable player to his team. With the stats, Newton just completed more than 80 percent of his passes.
Tier III
6. Derek Carr, Raiders (6)
Carr threw for more than 300 yards but was schooled by a stout Vikings defense intent on keeping the Raiders out of the end zone consistently.
7. Drew Brees, Saints (5)
Brees had a mediocre game after his last two performances combined for 900 yards and 10 touchdowns. Brees is almost to score 40 points to win with New Orleans’ porous defense.
8. Andy Dalton, Bengals (4)
Abysmal game for Dalton against a bad Texans’ defense. This was playoff Dalton and Bengals, that’s never good. Alarming, but maybe it was just one game.
9. Eli Manning, Giants (10)
Little brother Manning didn’t have a great completion rating, but he went toe to toe with Brady. Manning made some big throws, but settling for a late field goal allowed Brady to complete the comeback.
10. Matt Ryan, Falcons (9)
Bye week.
WATCH:
Peyton Manning Watch (30)
It’s clear Manning wasn’t healthy. He added four more interceptions for a NFL-leading 17 interceptions compared to only nine touchdowns. Yikes. Congrats on the passing record. Get well soon, Peyton.
Caught my eye: Jay Cutler, Bears
Cutler gave the Bears new life. He completed 79 percent of his passes and threw three touchdown passes in a blowout win. He’s been great in November.
Bringing up the rear: Nick Foles, Rams
Foles is our first back-to-back cellar dweller. He just got benched for former Houston Cougars QB Case Keenum. The Rams just need a competent QB.
Cameron Wolfe: cwolfe@denverpost.com or
