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Throughout the storied history of the NFL, there have been remarkable quarterbacks who, despite their exceptional talents and achievements, never claimed the prestigious title of MVP.
Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, and Tom Brady have all won at least three MVPs, further cementing their place among the all-time greats. However, not every legendary quarterback has hoisted the award, which can be viewed as a major hindrance to their overall body of work.
It's time to rank the top 10 QBs to never win the greatest individual award in professional football, and some of the names on this list might come as a surprise.
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#10. Matthew Stafford: Detroit Lions, Los Angeles Rams
Career Stats: 191 starts, 89-101-1 record, 52,082 passing yards, 333 passing touchdowns, 169 interceptions, 1,250 rushing yards, 15 rush TDs
Accolades: 1x Pro Bowl, 1x Super Bowl Champion -- Not Yet Eligible for Hall of Fame
Stafford, along with Calvin Johnson, were the two bright spots of a mediocre decade of football for the Detroit Lions. Stafford stacked seven 4,000-plus-yard passing seasons and even a 5,000-yard season in his 12 years with the Lions, but the team's success held him back from being close to an MVP.
It was also surprising to see he has only been selected to one Pro Bowl, but it makes sense given the lack of national attention the struggling franchise got while he was there. If Stafford plays a few more years, he'll etch his name near the top of all passing statistics, but this late in his career, it's unlikely he'll ever add an MVP to his career resume.
#9. Donovan McNabb: Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Redskins, Minnesota Vikings
Career Stats: 161 starts, 98-61-1 record, 37,276 passing yards, 234 passing touchdowns, 117 interceptions, 3,459 rushing yards, 29 rush TDs
Accolades: 6x Pro Bowl
McNabb reached five conference championship games, but reached just one Super Bowl, and never had enough individual success to earn the regular season MVP title. He's one of the most underrated signal-callers in NFL history, but it doesn't come as a surprise that he never won the award.
For the large part of his career, he was "good" or "great", but never truly elite.
#8. Fran Tarkenton: Minnesota Vikings, New York Giants
Career Stats: 246 starts, 126-114-6 record, 47,003 passing yards, 342 passing touchdowns, 266 interceptions, 3,674 rushing yards, 32 rush TDs
Accolades: 1x MVP, 9x Pro Bowl, 2x All-Pro, 1x passing yards leader, 1x passing touchdowns leader -- Hall of Fame
Tarkenton is also one of the best quarterbacks to never win a Super Bowl, so he just missed out on two of the most significant achievements and player can earn in their NFL career.
He was the Vikings' franchise player for nearly two decades and unfortunately, is often forgotten about by modern NFL fans. If he had an MVP or Super Bowl, he'd be viewed in a greater light.
#7. Philip Rivers: San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers, Indianapolis Colts
Career Stats: 240 starts, 134-106 record, 63,440 passing yards, 421 passing touchdowns, 209 interceptions, 601 rushing yards, three rush TDs
Accolades: 8x Pro Bowl, 1x passing yards leader, 1x passing touchdowns leader -- Not Yet Eligible for Hall of Fame
Rivers had a spectacular career in over a decade with the Chargers but ultimately lived in the shadow of Eli Manning and Ben Roethlisberger from his same draft class (2004). Playing in the same conference as Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, he never achieved high-level postseason success and never earned All-Pro or MVP honors.
It'll be interesting to see if Rivers gets into the Hall of Fame, but a lack of an MVP trophy certainly won't help his cause.
#6. Eli Manning: New York Giants
Career Stats: 234 starts, 117-117 record, 57,023 passing yards, 366 passing touchdowns, 244 interceptions, 567 rushing yards, seven rush TDs
Accolades: 4x Pro Bowl, 2x Super Bowl Champion, 2x Super Bowl MVP -- Not Yet Eligible for Hall of Fame
Manning will always be remembered for his legendary Super Bowl runs in 2007 and 2011, defeating Tom Brady and the New England Patriots on the big stage in both instances. However, he was largely mediocre for much of his regular season career.
Manning surely doesn't mind trading in regular season success for Super Bowl rings, but as great of a career as he had, he never came close to winning MVP like his brother Peyton, who won five.
#5. Troy Aikman: Dallas Cowboys
Career Stats: 165 starts, 94-71 record, 32,942 passing yards, 165 passing touchdowns, 141 interceptions, 1,016 rushing yards, nine rush TDs
Accolades: 6x Pro Bowl, 3x Super Bowl Champion, 1x Super Bowl MVP -- Hall Of Fame
There are a ton of conflicting opinions on Aikman by modern NFL fans because he largely played a secondary role to his running back Emmitt Smith and wide receiver Michael Irvin during the Dallas Cowboys' dynasty.
His passing numbers are far from impressive, but he was one of the faces of America's Team during its best run of success, so a lack of an MVP is somewhat notable.
#4. Warren Moon: Houston Oilers, Minnesota Vikings, Seattle Seahawks, Kansas City Chiefs
Career Stats: 203 starts, 102-101 record, 49,425 passing yards, 291 passing touchdowns, 233 interceptions, 1,736 rushing yards, 22 rush TDs
Accolades: 9x Pro Bowl, 1x All-Pro, 2x passing yards leader, 1x passing touchdowns leader -- Hall of Fame
Moon was a prolific passer for his time (1984-2000) and is another player on the list who could never win a Super Bowl, but led the league in passing and won Offensive Player of the Year in 1990, meaning he was awfully close to taking home the MVP award instead of Joe Montana. He was right there in the conversation, but Montana, despite having far fewer passing yards and touchdowns, won the award thanks to the 49ers' 14-1 record. Looking back, it should have been Moon's to win.
#3. Russell Wilson: Seattle Seahawks, Denver Broncos
Career Stats: 173 starts, 108-64-1 record, 40,583 passing yards, 308 passing touchdowns, 98 interceptions, 4,966 rushing yards, 26 rush TDs
Accolades: 9x Pro Bowl, 1x All-Pro, 1x Super Bowl Champion -- Not Yet Eligible for Hall of Fame
Before Wilson's first year with the Denver Broncos, all he did was win with the Seattle Seahawks. The dual-threat QB was immediately productive as a rookie and holds the NFL record for most wins in a quarterback's first nine seasons (94).
Shockingly, Wilson has never received an MVP vote through 11 years in the NFL.
#2. Ben Roethlisberger: Pittsburgh Steelers
Career Stats: 247 starts, 165-81-1 record, 64,088 passing yards, 418 passing touchdowns, 211 interceptions, 1,373 rushing yards, 20 rush TDs
Accolades: 6x Pro Bowl, 2x passing yards leader, 2x Super Bowl Champion -- Not Yet Eligible for Hall of Fame
Big Ben posted a 13-0 regular season record as a rookie, setting the stage for a win-filled career as the Steelers' franchise QB. In 17 seasons in which Roethlisberger played in at least three games, he posted just one losing record (7-8 in 2006).
He sits near the top of all career passing stats and won two of his three Super Bowl appearances, but failed to take home an MVP.
#1. Drew Brees: San Diego Chargers, New Orleans Saints
Career Stats: 286 starts, 172-114 record, 80,358 passing yards, 571 passing touchdowns, 234 interceptions, 752 rushing yards, 25 rush TDs
Accolades: 13x Pro Bowl, 5x All-Pro, 7x passing yards leader, 1x Super Bowl Champion, 1x Super Bowl MVP -- Not Yet Eligible for Hall of Fame
Among all players at all positions, Brees never winning an MVP is the most shocking. Despite leading the NFL in passing yards seven times, being named to five All-Pro teams, and winning the Offensive Player of the Year twice, the former Charger and Saint never got the honor.
He's just behind Tom Brady in career passing yards and touchdowns and is sure to be a first-ballot Hall-Of-Famer, but his team's success during his high-volume passing seasons prevented him from winning the award. His best chance was in 2011 when he passed for 5,476 yards, 46 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions, but Aaron Rodgers posted a 45-6 touchdown-to-interception ratio to take the MVP home.
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