The Under 30 Club: Which NFL Quarterbacks will be Dominating Headlines for the Nest 10 Years

With the retirement of Brett Favre this past week the National Football League waved goodbye to an icon. Favre was a unique player that accomplished many things that very few guys will ever get a chance to copy as well as some things that may never be done again in football. He will be missed on the field and I for one wish him the best.

Just as much, it probably will not be too long before we will also be waving so long to the likes Tom Brady and Peyton Manning, two of the league's other elite quarterbacks. Both of them have been around the block a bit and continue to play great football but nobody expects them to be around forever. Not only have they both reached and possibly surpassed the prime years of their respective careers, but both of them continue to be the main target of some of the most feared defenders in the National Football League. I can only imagine that retirement sounds mighty fine when it is 10° out, you are on the road in Pittsburgh, Baltimore,or New York, and guys ten years younger than you are trying to make names for themselves.

So as these future Hall of Famers move into the twilight of their careers and contemplate retirement as players new gunslingers are waiting in the wings to become the next great quarterback. In recent years we have seen several teams use their first round draft picks on the top QB talent coming out of college and the results have been extraordinary. Rookie passing records have been repeatedly broken as well as some all-time benchmarks by some of the NFL's youngest passers. So at the moment it appears that the future of the NFL will be in good hands.

With that in mind I have compiled a list of the top QB's that will be gracing our television screens and making pro-bowls for the next 10 years. A few guys one might expect to see here, such as Mike Vick, Tony Romo, and Eli Manning, did not make the list. This could be for a number of reasons and it is definitely not a knock on their abilities on the field. For the most part I just do not foresee the three of them taking snaps in 2020. They might even be lucky to still be taking snaps as starters in 2015.

The Top QB's Under the Age of 30:

1. Aaron Rodgers (27), Green Bay Packers - Possibly the coolest pure passer in the game. Rodgers has great pocket-presence with the ability to feel pressure and spin away from defenders. He never gets rattled and his accuracy is as good as it gets. The man completed 87% of his passes in the divisional playoff slaughtering of the Falcons last week and he continues to lead one the NFL's youngest rosters on and off the field.
2. Philip Rivers (29), San Diego Chargers - Rivers led the best offense in the NFL in 2010 and he continues to improve as a player each year. He can make all the throws and looks the part in every way. The biggest downside is the fact that his team continues to underachieve as whole, which might reflect negatively on Rivers' leadership abilities.
3. Ben Roethlisberger (28), Pittsburgh Steelers - Roethlisberger fits the Steelers' profile for a QB as he is tough as nails and does not make many mistakes. At 28 years old he already has two Super Bowl rings and is the only player on this list with even one Lombardi trophy on his resume. Do not be surprised if he ends his career with a couple more.
4. Joe Flacco (26), Baltimore Ravens - With already four playoff wins under his belt it looks as if we will be hearing Flacco's name for a while. He is big, tough, smart, and possesses a nice feel for the game. He was seventh in the league in QB rating in 2010 and if he keeps improving he could become one of the all-time greats.
5. Matt Ryan (25), Atlanta Falcons - Ryan has only lost three home games in his career but is 0-2 in playoff games. He is the best player on the Falcon's roster and made an immediate impact as a rookie three years ago, completing his first NFL pass for an 80 yard touchdown and turning the team into a playoff contender.
6. Matt Schaub (29), Houston Texans - The biggest knock on Schaub is his inability to get his team into the playoffs. Although he has put up some monster numbers he just cannot seem to get his team over the top ever since being traded from Atlanta in 2007 for two second round picks. If the defense can get it together Schaub could make a house-hold name out of himself.
7. Jay Cutler(27), Chicago Bears - Cutler has been under the microscope ever since being picked 11th in the 2006 draft by the Denver Broncos. At times he feels like an interception waiting to happen but statistically he has been solid throughout much his career. In 2010, Cutler finished the regular season 16th in the league in passing and as I write this they are preparing for an NFC championship game at home this weekend against the Packers. He is the team's best offensive player and if they improve the personnel surrounding him his numbers will improve.
8. Josh Freeman (23), Tampa Bay Buccaneers - The Bucs selected Freeman 18th overall in the 2009 draft and he finished his rookie season with three wins in eight starts. In 2010 he improved tremendously, finishing sixth in the league in passing and leading one of the youngest teams in the league to a 10-6 finish. He has shown the ability to win games with his arm and he has several notable fourth quarter comebacks that have drawn the attention of everybody around the league. In the end he should go down as the best Buccaneer passer ever and if the team keeps hitting on their draft picks this should be a team to watch for a long time. He is young, big (6'5" 250 lbs.), and hungry to get better.
9. Mark Sanchez (24), New York Jets - I know that I will get criticized for this one as Sanchez just won his fourth playoff game in his two-year career, which is definitely something to brag about. However, his numbers are near the bottom of NFL rankings. The wins are more of a testament to the defense and running game than Sanchez' ability as a QB. Nevertheless, he will be one worth watching in the future as there is no reason to think that he won't get better with experience.
10. Matt Cassel (28), Kansas City Chiefs - Cassel has had an interesting road to being a starting NFL QB as he never started a game in college and initially was given a chance when Tom Brady went down with an injury in 2008. After his performance that season, Cassel became a hot commodity on the free agent market for teams looking for a starter. In 2010 he finished the regular season eighth in the league in passing and won an AFC West division championship. The Chiefs got thumped by Baltimore in the first round of the playoffs though and Cassel looked awful. Of all the guys on this list he might have the shortest leash.
11. Honorable Mention: Sam Bradford (23), St Louis Rams - After being selected number one overall by the Rams in last April's draft, Bradford helped the team be more competitive in 2010 and they were one win away from a playoff berth. He finished 25th in passing but has brought a bunch of hope to a struggling franchise.