NFL Week 6 QB Rankings: Aaron Rodgers is on the Rise

While football is a team sport, it’s crucial that you have a good quarterback. You could have the best roster in the league, but if you have the worst quarterback, you will likely still miss the playoffs. A quarterback can’t single handedly win you a Super Bowl, but they can single handedly tank your season.

As the 2026 season goes on, I’ve been going through and power ranking every single starting quarterback in the league to see who is playing the best ball. These rankings have no preseason bias whatsoever, it’s strictly based on how the quarterbacks have played this year, and the results have been quite shocking.

Here’s where all 32 NFL QBs stand through five weeks.

2026 Stats: 59.4%, 937 passing yards, 142 rushing yards, 5 TD, 7 INT

Justin Herbert hasn’t gotten a whole lot of help from his team, but he’s also just not playing well. He’s thrown for one touchdown in every single game he’s played this season, but he’s also thrown at least one pick in every single game. He has just two games with 200+ passing yards and is yet to top the 230 mark. He’s playing like the worst quarterback in football right now.

2026 Stats: 69.1%, 337 passing yards, 87 rushing yards, 2 TD, 3 INT

Jalon Daniels has played two bad defenses in his first two NFL games, and he still hasn’t played all that well. I’ll give him credit for beating Dallas, but 212 total yards and one touchdown is far from a great performance. Still, he’s managed to win a game, which is more than Baker Mayfield can say.

2026 Stats: 63.2%, 896 passing yards, 59 rushing yards, 5 total TD, 3 INT

Cam Ward is leading one of the worst offenses in NFL history. Everything the Titans do offensively feels like a struggle, and it’s largely because their quarterback just isn’t good. He doesn’t have the weapons the two guys above him have, though, so I’m cutting him a tiny bit more slack.

2026 Stats: 66%, 355 passing yards, 3 total TD, 1 INT

Case Keenum balled out against Philly, was benched for Tyson Bagent, and then was put in the game after Bagent struggled. He didn’t play well against Green Bay, though, throwing for 108 yards with a pick. I don’t think we’ll see another performance like the Philly game out of him before Caleb Williams returns.

2026 Stats: 68.3%, 662 passing yards, 93 rushing yards, 2 TD, 2 INT

Kyler Murray is still learning the Vikings’ offense, but he had his best game of the season against New Orleans, throwing for 229 yards and a touchdown with an 80 percent completion rate. If he can keep getting better, he’ll continue to rise up this list.

2026 Stats: 56.2%, 849 passing yards, 186 rushing yards, 4 total TD, 4 INT

Malik Willis has next to no weapons to work with, but I don’t think he’s been that bad. He had two picks against Cincinnati this week, but other than that, he’s taken care of the ball and has made some plays. I’m curious to see what he’ll look like with real weapons, but we might never get to see that if Miami cuts the cord after a year or two.

2026 Stats: 61.4%, 1,021 passing yards, 4 total TD, 4 INT

Daniel Jones has struggled coming off his torn Achilles. He can’t really run, which was one of his biggest strengths, and now that defenses don’t have to respect his legs, he looks like a well below average quarterback. We’ll see if he can get some movement back as the year progresses.

2026 Stats: 66.3%, 1,110 passing yards, 62 rushing yards, 10 total TD, 5 INT

Jacoby Brissett’s stats don’t look bad at all, but he’s not playing winning football. A lot of his stats come in garbage time, and with the weapons he has offensively, he should be doing more than he is.

2026 Stats: 59.9%, 942 passing yards, 7 total TD, 3 INT

Bo Nix has been very underwhelming this year. I never thought he was an elite quarterback, but he’s playing mediocre football despite having two very good receivers on the outside. With Sean Payton taking play calling duty back over, maybe his stats will get better.

2026 Stats: 64.3%, 755 passing yards, 7 TD, 5 INT

Sam Darnold played pretty well in his first two games back, but he struggled against San Fran, tossing two interceptions in the loss. I expect this game to be a one-off, but it wasn’t pretty.

2026 Stats: 57.8%, 933 passing yards, 107 rushing yards, 9 total TD, 3 INT

Jalen Hurts is the king of making his stats look better than he is. I wouldn’t say he’s looked very good the last two weeks, but he still has 350 yards of offense and three touchdowns with no picks during that span. He is not a good quarterback unless he has 4+ seconds to throw the ball, and even then he’s not all that.

2026 Stats: 78%, 264 passing yards, 36 rushing yards, 3 TD, 0 INT

Tyler Huntley continues to prove why he’s one of the best backup QBs in football. He was forced to start on Sunday night and threw for 201 yards and two touchdowns with no picks while rushing for 20 yards and a score. He did everything Baltimore needed him to do.

2026 Stats: 57.6%, 805 passing yards, 42 rushing yards, 6 TD, 3 INT

When you have Jameis Winston starting games, you have to live with turnovers, but you know you’re going to get some big games out of him. Over the past two weeks, Winston has thrown to picks, but he’s also racked up 576 passing yards and six passing touchdowns while leading New York to a 1-0-1 record. Not bad considering how awful he looked in his first two games.

2026 Stats: 60.5%, 459 passing yards, 203 rushing yards, 5 total TD, 0 INT

Jayden Daniels returned from injury and looked pretty good. He only threw for 199 yards, but he added 103 yards and two touchdowns on just nine carries and nearly won the Commanders the game. He did make a very questionable decision late that cost Washington a chance to win with a field goal, though, so that certainly effects his ranking.

2026 Stats: 65.6%, 1,228 passing yards, 161 rushing yards, 9 total TD, 7 INT

Drake Maye had one of the worst starts to a season we’ve ever seen, but has since bounced back with over 700 yards and eight touchdowns with one interceptions over his last two games. He’s rapidly climbing up this list, but we can’t forget how bad he was the first three weeks.

2026 Stats: 67.5%, 719 passing yards, 3 TD, 1 INT

Michael Penix is the most 230-yard, one-touchdown QB in football. Through three weeks, he’s thrown for between 223 and 256 yards and has one touchdown in every single game. He’s not an elevator, but he can manage an offense efficiently.

2026 Stats: 69.4%, 1,084 passing yards, 43 rushing yards, 6 TD, 0 INT

Geno Smith is playing mistake-free football, but he’s also not elevating this offense. He has good weapons, but only has six touchdowns in five games. He needs to do more, but he’s not losing them any games, which is a good thing.

2026 Stats: 64.3%, 1,402 passing yards, 71 rushing yards, 7 total TD, 0 INT

C.J. Stroud is playing very similar to Smith. He has more yards, but both of them are avoiding turnovers while running the offense efficiently enough. If Houston wants to go from 0-4 to the playoffs, they need Stroud to take the next step.

2026 Stats: 64.2%, 1,010 passing yards, 167 rushing yards, 7 TD, 2 INT

Deshaun Watson has played much better than most people were expecting. He’s not balling out and throwing for 300 yards every game, but he’s keep Cleveland in games and then making big plays late. His fourth down blunder was pretty bad last week, but from Week 2 to Week 4, he led a game winning drive in every game.

2026 Stats: 66.8%, 1,299 passing yards, 72 rushing yards, 10 TD, 5 INT

I feel bad for Tyler Shough. He’s a fantastic quarterback, but he has one of the worst offensive lines in football, a horrible run game and a coach that doesn’t know how to game plan. Give him 2.5-3 seconds in the pocket and he’d be a top-10 QB every week.

2026 Stats: 60.5%, 1,408 passing yards, 10 TD, 3 INT

Jordan Love has many of the same issues as Tyler Shough. He doesn’t have an offensive line or run game to lean on, so he has to do it all himself, and he’s playing really well right now. I’d like to see what he could be doing with a competent OL and run game.

2026 Stats: 59.8%, 1,234 passing yards, 10 TD, 4 INT

Aaron Rodgers started the year with one touchdown in two games, but has now thrown three touchdown passes in three consecutive games. He has turned the ball over four times already, which is very uncharacteristic, but he’s doing a great job leading this offense recently.

2026 Stats: 67.2%, 1,381 passing yards, 66 rushing yards, 9 TD, 3 INT

Dak Prescott hasn’t put up the big touchdown numbers we’re used to seeing from him, but he’s made some big time throws this season and has Dallas’s offense humming along quite nicely. Thursday night was an ugly game, but I don’t put a ton of stock into TNF losses, because short weeks are always tough. He’ll bounce back in a big way.

2026 Stats: 64.4%, 1,472 passing yards, 9 passing TD, 6 INT

This was a vintage Matthew Stafford performance. Last year, 300+ yards and 3+ touchdowns was the norm for Stafford, but the start of this year was a bit rough for the reigning MVP. With Puka Nacua healthy and Davante Adams playing some of the best ball of his career, Stafford looks like he’s settled into this new year. He should keep climbing this list every week.

2026 Stats: 67.1%, 1,174 passing yards, 59 rushing yards, 10 TD, 3 INT

Trevor Lawrence’s numbers don’t blow you away or anything, but he’s doing exactly what he needs to do to win. He’s completing over two thirds of his passes, he’s keeping the chains moving, and when Jacksonville needs points, he usually delivered. He’s had multiple touchdowns in three of Jacksonville’s four wins this season, so he’s getting the job done.

2026 Stats: 65.1%, 1,269 passing yards, 12 TD, 4 INT

Kirk Cousins has cooled off a bit since his hot start, but he’s still playing some solid football. His 12 touchdown passes rank second in the NFL, and he has a 3-to-1 TD to INT ratio with just one pick in his last three games. We’ll see how long he can keep this up.

2026 Stats: 62.3%, 1,268 passing yards, 10 total TD, 2 INT

Bryce Young was on a bye this past week and a couple QBs jumped him after big weeks, but he’s still a clear top-10 QB in football right now. Outside of the Browns game, when Carolina has needed him to make plays, he’s delivered, which is something he hasn’t always done in the past. He’s taken a massive step forward this season.

2026 Stats: 71.4%, 1,361 passing yards, 48 rushing yards, 12 total TD, 3 INT

After a quiet Week 1, Joe Burrow has been playing very well. In three of his last four games, he’s thrown multiple touchdowns with no interceptions, and on top of that, he’s completed over 70 percent of his passes in four games this year. It’s took a couple weeks for him to really get going, but he’s playing extremely well right now.

2026 Stats: 65.9%, 1,249 passing yards, 239 rushing yards, 15 total TD, 4 INT

Josh Allen really hasn’t played all that great the past three weeks, but he still looks like one of the best quarterbacks in football. He can make almost every throw on the field, and it feels like every time Buffalo needs a big first down, Allen delivers with his legs. He’s the best dual-threat QB in football.

2026 Stats: 67%, 1,485 passing yards, 13 total TD, 0 INT

Jared Goff is second in the league with 12 touchdown passes, but he’s also the only quarterback with 7+ touchdowns that hasn’t thrown a pick yet. The next-closest QB with the most touchdowns and no interceptions is Geno Smith, who has six scores. He’s playing clean, mistake-free football right now.

2026 Stats: 64.1%, 1,037 passing yards, 41 rushing yards, 10 total TD, 2 INT

Patrick Mahomes was on a bye this week, but he maintains his top-three ranking. He’s been one of the best quarterbacks in the league this year, and it’s no mistake that his numbers have gone back up now that he has an elite running back. The Chiefs got Kenneth Walker to help Mahomes get back to his MVP-level of play, and it’s working.

2026 Stats: 69%, 1,196 passing yards, 128 rushing yards, 14 total TD, 2 INT

Brock Purdy has been the best quarterback in football through five weeks. He’s averaging over 250 total yards per game and nearly three touchdowns per game while turning the ball over just twice. He has been elite this year and should be the front runner for MVP.

This article first appeared on EssentiallySports and was syndicated with permission.

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