The Best Quarterback for Every AFC West Team

Jul 30, 20242 min read

There have been several great quarterbacks throughout the history of the NFL. Most QBs have had their share of highlight moments, dream seasons, and dominant performances.

This is the fourth installment of every NFL team's best quarterback by division, now with the AFC West.

Denver Broncos Best Quarterback: John Elway

There should be no doubt who the Broncos' all-time quarterback is: former Stanford star John Elway. Elway threw 300 touchdown passes and for more than 51,000 yards. Elway also led Denver to 5 Super Bowls, winning back-to-back ones in 1997 and 1998. He was selected to 9 Pro Bowls and led 35 comeback wins in his career.

Elway had a rifle arm and could scramble out of trouble when necessary. He is the only player in NFL history to pass for 3,000 or more yards and rush for 200 or more yards in seven straight seasons. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2004.

Kansas City Chiefs: Patrick Mahomes

It takes a lot to unseat a legend like Len Dawson, but Patrick Mahomes has 3 Super Bowl wins, 3 Super Bowl MVPs and 2 regular-season MVPs in only 6 seasons as a starter.

Barring catastrophic injury, it’s clear he’s on his way to becoming maybe the greatest quarterback ever.

Las Vegas Raiders: Ken Stabler

Nicknamed “The Snake,” Ken Stabler won a Super Bowl, 1974 NFL MVP and twice led the NFL in touchdown passes.

He was a brand of old-school cool that epitomized the 1970s Oakland Raiders. Stabler led the Raiders to a win in Super Bowl 11, the team's first championship. He also holds the Raiders' record for wins, yards and touchdown passes.

Stabler was one of the most accurate passers of the '70s and specialized in last-minute comebacks. He took over as the starter in Oakland in 1973; the Raiders reached the playoffs in each of his 7 seasons at the helm. Stabler died in 2015 of colon cancer. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame posthumously in 2016.

Los Angeles Chargers: Dan Fouts

Stan Humphries led the Chargers to their only Super Bowl appearance, but there is no doubt that the best quarterback in Chargers' history is Dan Fouts. Fouts led the great Chargers' passing attack of the early 1980s, known as "Air Coryell" after the coach who invented it, Don Coryell.

Fouts led the NFL in passing yards for 4 straight seasons from 1979-1982. The Oregon alum holds nearly every significant Chargers' passing mark. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993.