We all know who the greatest New England Patriots quarterback of all-time is, but who rounds out the top 5 behind the GOAT?
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5. Tony Eason (1983 -1989)
Tony Eason played in 72 games for the New England Patriots with 49 starts before he moved on for two years with the New York Jets. He had a winning record in New England at 28-21, and he totaled 60 touchdowns. Unfortunately, Eason also threw 48 interceptions while he was with the Patriots. His best season came in 1985 as he made 10 starts in the regular season and 3 in the playoffs. He helped to get the Patriots to Super Bowl XX that year. In the Wild Card game against the Jets, Eason threw for just one score, but he didn’t turn the ball over. The same could be said about him in the Divisional round. In the AFC Championship game, he was even better though. New England took down the Miami Dolphins 31-14 behind 3 touchdowns from Eason. What makes it even more unbelievable though is that he had just 71 passing yards in the game. Miami’s Dan Marino threw for 248 yards and 2 touchdowns, but he was also intercepted twice and he fumbled once. Steve Grogan then returned for the Super Bowl, but the Patriots were blown out by the Chicago Bears.
4. Babe Parilli (1961 – 1967)
Babe Parilli was a backup for most of his career before he joined the Boston Patriots in 1961. He became the starter and he compiled a 44-32-7 record as their leader. In all of those games, Parilli had 132 touchdowns. He was a selected to the Pro Bowl in 1963, 1964, and 1966, with ’64 being his best season. That year, Babe threw for a career-high 3,465 yards with 31 touchdowns. Unfortunately, he also had a career-high with 27 interceptions, but he was still chosen as a First Team All-Pro player. Parilli also added 949 rushing yards in 94 career games with Boston.
If you’re looking for a modern-day equivalent for Babe Parilli, to get a better sense of how his career was, you can look at Ryan Fitzpatrick, Doug Williams, or Chad Pennington. They all put up similar career numbers to the Babe.
3. Steve Grogan (1975 -1990)
Steve Grogan was a New England Patriots quarterback for a long, long time. Injuries plagued his career, but he still started 135 games for New England. He had a 75-60 record and threw for 182 touchdowns, with a career-high of 28 in 1979 at age 26. Grogan has the second most touchdowns all-time in franchise history behind only Tom Brady. Grogan though, has the franchise record for interceptions at 208. Grogan’s Patriots made the playoffs just four times in his 16 seasons. He played in Super Bowl XX against the 1985 Bears, and he got wrecked. Grogan had a touchdown in the game, but he was sacked 4 times before Tony Eason took over.
Steve Grogan did not have enough talent around him, and if he did, he likely would have ranked higher on this list. He had potential and nearly delivered the first Super Bowl trophy for the franchise, but he continued to fall just short. Still, he was a solid QB leading the Patriots for 16 seasons, the longevity we haven’t seen in any other player aside from Tom Brady currently.
2. Drew Bledsoe (1993 – 2001)
Drew McQueen Bledsoe was THE man in New England from 1993 to 2001. He was the top pick in the 1993 draft out of Washington State University, and he immediately stepped in as the Patriots starter. He compiled a 63-60 record with the Patriots, but he helped to transform them. Bledsoe took the Patriots to the playoffs in just his second season, and in his fourth year, he got them all the way to the Super Bowl where they faced Brett Favre’s Green Bay Packers. In the ’96 playoffs, Bledsoe completed 59 passes for 595 yards and 3 touchdowns. He threw 7 interceptions though, with 4 of those coming in the Super Bowl. The Patriots lost that game 35-21 to Green Bay.
Bledsoe was the Patriots starter until a game against the Jets in 2001 where he was injured. In stepped Tom Brady, and the rest is history. Bledsoe had to play in the AFC Championship game that season though when Brady got hurt. Bledsoe had a touchdown and 102 yards in the game to help get New England back to the Super Bowl. Bledsoe earned a Super Bowl ring that year with New England, but the next season he was gone to lead the Buffalo Bills. Bledsoe is 2nd in wins, 2nd in yards, and 3rd in touchdowns in Patriots history. He was voted into the Patriots Hall of Fame in 2011 by the fans.
1. Tom Brady (2001 – Present)
It should not be a surprise that Tom Brady is the greatest quarterback in New England Patriots franchise history. He is also the greatest of all-time across the NFL, in my opinion. Brady is currently in his 18th overall year with the Patriots, but he wasn’t the starter in 2000 and he missed almost all of the 2008 season. Still, he is the franchise leader in touchdowns, yards, wins, completion percentage, and passer rating.
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Brady has a 189-54 record in the regular season, but he has played the equivalent of more than 2 more seasons in the playoffs with a 25-9 record when it counts. Through week 9 of the 2017 NFL season, Brady has 472 career regular season passing touchdowns, and he has 63 more in the playoffs. Of course, those playoff touchdowns have also helped the New England Patriots add 5 Super Bowl rings to their trophy case. He is a 12-time Pro Bowler and a 2-time NFL MVP. The first ballot Hall of Famer is the NFL leader in both regular season and playoff wins. He’s 4th in regular season passing yards, 4th in passing touchdowns, 3rd in passer rating, 2nd in game-winning drives, and 2nd in 4th quarter comebacks. Altogether, Tom Brady is simply the greatest quarterback of all-time.
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So, do you think the order of #5-#2 is right or did I get it wrong? Should someone else have made the list? Let me know what you think on Twitter @CandCFansided! I would love to hear all of your opinions on this Patriots QB list.