Quarterbacks: Class of 1983 vs. Class of 2004

by Mario Granata
History.  When examining the NFL and its rich history there are comparisons that are made all the time in regards to different eras.  When people think about the 1983 Draft Class, the quarterbacks from that class are often at the forefront as the best class to produce signal callers in the NFL.  However, taking a closer look at the numbers the class of 2004 holds some weight as a rival to 1983.

For the sake of debate, the following statistics will showcase only the first round quarterback selections for each draft.  Further examination will only focus on 3 from each draft: John Elway, Jim Kelly and Dan Marino of 1983 and Eli Manning, Philip Rivers and Ben Roethlisberger of 2004.  (I am sure that people won’t mind that I left out Ken O’Brien, Todd Blackledge and JP Losman whom were also selected in the first round of each draft.)

When people talk or debate the greatest quarterbacks of all time, Elway, Marino and sometimes Kelly will come up.  These three combined for 396 wins, 234 losses over 44 combined seasons in the NFL.  Also during that span, they threw 957 touchdowns, 653 interceptions and 148,303 yards (or 84 miles if you are scoring at home.)  When one looks at average per season, the numbers are very interesting.

Class of 1983:
Games: 14.3
Wins: 9
Losses: 5.3
Yards: 3370.5
TDs: 22
Ints: 15

Looking at the 33 combined seasons for the Class of 2004, Manning, Rivers and Roethlisberger seem to be on a very similar path.  They have accounted for 285 wins, 184 losses, throwing for 762 touchdowns and 438 interceptions and 115,467 yards (65.6 miles of yardage.)  Where the comparison lies is in the average per season.

Class of 2004:
Games: 14.2
Wins: 8.6
Losses: 5.6
Yards: 3499
TDs: 23
Ints: 13 

IF the 1983 Class is considered the greatest quarterback class in NFL history, 2004 isn’t very far behind them, if they are at all.  The one glaring separation are the Super Bowls that accompany each class. 

Class of 1983:
10 Super Bowls, 2 Wins

Class of 2004:
5 Super Bowls, 4 Wins

Why both of these classes are among the top are the Super Bowls that they were able to lead their teams too.  The Class of 1983 represented the AFC 10 times in 17 seasons.  Likewise, over both conferences, the Class of 2004 has had 5 representatives in 11 seasons. 

So which draft class can hang their hat on being the best ever?  We will let you decide.