2025 NO. 1 OVERALL PICK CAM WARD (TITANS) AND FREE AGENT ACQUISITIONS RUSSELL WILSON (GIANTS) AND JUSTIN FIELDS (JETS) HEADLINE EPISODE 2 OF CHRIS SIMMS' QUARTERBACK COUNTDOWN, NOW ON 'CHRIS SIMMS UNBUTTONED' AND 'PRO FOOTBALL TALK'
Simms' QB Countdown Continues Today with Next Four Tiers - 'Young Mysteries,' 'Clock's Ticking,' 'Still on the Pot,' and 'Ready Rookie' - and Culminates with the Top Five QBs on Monday, June 9; In-Depth Breakdowns for Each Ranking Weekly on Chris Simms Unbuttoned Podcast
'I don't think there's a system out there that Cam Ward can't run. I don't have any worries about his limitations in the NFL.' – Simms on Titans' Cam Ward
'This is his last chance to be a starter in the NFL. I'm not sold.' – Simms on New York Giants' Russell Wilson
'I think he fits exactly how Kevin O'Connell and the Vikings want to play.' – Simms on Vikings' J.J. McCarthy
STAMFORD, Conn. – May 21, 2025 – NBC Sports' Chris Simms continues his list of the top quarterbacks in the NFL on the Chris Simms Unbuttoned podcast and on 'PFT Live' today, headlined by 2025 NFL Draft No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward of the Titans, 10-time Pro Bowler Russell Wilson of the Giants, and 2021 first round pick Justin Fields of the Jets.
This year's countdown features a new format, with Simms focusing on tiers and groups of quarterbacks as opposed to specific numeric rankings until the later rounds. Continuing the countdown, Simms unveiled his quarterbacks ranked in the next four tiers today, with QBs in the 'Young Mysteries,' 'Clock's Ticking,' 'Still on the Pot,' and 'Ready Rookie' tiers.
Continuing today and culminating Monday, June 19 with his top five quarterbacks, Simms will unveil a group of quarterbacks on each Chris Simms Unbuttoned episode and discuss his rankings on 'PFT Live' with Mike Florio.
Simms, a third-round pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2003 NFL Draft who played eight NFL seasons, will also offer in-depth player breakdowns and rankings explanations throughout each week on Chris Simms Unbuttoned.
Simms has had success in projecting college quarterbacks – including naming Jayden Daniels, who was named AP's 2024 Offensive Rookie of the Year following a season that saw him lead the Washington Commanders to the NFC Championship Game, as his No. 2 QB prospect in 2024. Additionally, Simms named C.J. Stroud, who was named AP's 2023 Offensive Rookie of the Year, as his top QB prospect in 2023, Patrick Mahomes as his most exciting prospect in 2017, Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen as his top-two QBs in 2018, and Justin Herbert as his No. 2 QB in 2020.
The rankings will continue next Wednesday, May 28, on the next episode of Chris Simms Unbuttoned.
The following are highlights from this week's edition of Chris Simms Unbuttoned:
Ready Rookie
Cam Ward, Tennessee Titans
'I don't think there's a system out there that Cam Ward can't run. I don't really see many weaknesses with his game. You're starting to hear from (Titans head coach) Brian Callahan that they think they can do anything with this guy…The way he played at Miami, the way he sees the field, the decisions he makes, I don't have any worries about his limitations in the NFL. He's as good as you're going to see throwing on the run, in the same category as Lamar [Jackson], [Patrick] Mahomes, Josh Allen, Caleb Williams. He can throw any ball you want. He's got a great, natural feel. I'm really excited to watch him play this year and I think he'll be the best rookie quarterback in this class.'
Still on the Pot
Daniel Jones, Indianapolis Colts
'I think a little more of Daniel Jones than the public does. I don't know if he was ever the No. 6 pick in the [2019] NFL Draft, but also the hate swung too far. His physical abilities are better than people realize and the decision-making is better than people realize…Is he perfect? No. He doesn't take advantage of things that are the big, explosive plays down the field. Those, to me, are the issues. But where I'll always defend him is that every quarterback who's come in to play for the Giants the last few years, they can't last more than 10 plays before they're knocked out of the game – and there he was, taking shots and hanging in there. I still think there's untapped potential here.'
Justin Fields, New York Jets
'I'm not giving up on Justin Fields. I don't think it's ever going to look as pretty as we want it to look. There are some 'wow' moments, but there are still too many throws that are missed, although he's gotten better at it every year. He's a pretty good decision-maker and, of course, we know the athleticism and what he brings to the table there…You hope that the Jets can formulate the offense around him. He's not going to lead the NFL in QB rating, but you're going to hope that he takes care of the ball, makes some explosive plays with his arm, and makes a handful of runs that are extremely dangerous that help out the team.'
Clock's Ticking
Russell Wilson, New York Giants
'This is his last chance to be a starter in the NFL. I'm not sold. He is the starter, but for how long? … When, by all due accounts, we know [Giants head coach] Brian Daboll likes [rookie QB] Jaxson Dart, and that's never a great thing for the old veteran quarterback. Certainly, Russell Wilson, the one thing you like is the deep ball throwing and he's played a lot of big-game football. He's not going to make major mistakes more times than not. It's just not always apparent to the people watching on TV and you don't get to see the whole field that way. I think that's what you see here again.'
Young Mysteries
Bryce Young, Carolina Panthers
'I'm going to keep fighting and I'm going to show everybody that they're wrong. Bryce Young took some steps in the right direction last year. He wasn't good early on and again, there's still some parts of his game as far as being comfortable in the pocket, maybe getting the ball out of his hands quicker than he should just because he doesn't want to take a hit or feeling pressure and letting it affect his decision that you certainly saw that can affect him, especially earlier in the year. But when he got back in when [Panthers QB] Andy Dalton got a little banged up, you saw a totally different guy. The biggest thing that jumped out to me is what I just said - comfort in the pocket. I think early in the year he'd have been like, 'I've got to get the ball out. It's already been two seconds.' I saw more understanding of his offense and defense.'
J.J. McCarthy, Minnesota Vikings
'I have more confidence in his ability to translate to the NFL than I do Bryce Young. Physical ability is a cool ability. I've seen that in college. He had to make more NFL-type throws than Bryce Young did. He's played an NFL-style game in college [at Michigan] under [former Michigan/current Chargers head coach] Jim Harbaugh. Again, it's not always easy to play for a guy that's like, 'Hey, you might go the series with barely throwing the football and then we come back another series and we want you to go five-for-five even though you're in no rhythm at all. But now we want you to make five big-time throws because we're losing.' That's not easy to play quarterback that way. I think he fits exactly how [Viking head coach] Kevin O'Connell and the Vikings want to play.'
To listen to the full player breakdowns on Chris Simms Unbuttoned, click here.
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