5/15/2020 football Edit

Two NC State QBs make PFF All-Decade Top 101

Justin H. Williams • TheWolfpackCentral

Staff Writer

Pro Football Focus, a leading football analysis site, released its All-Decade Top 101 list Thursday comprised of the best NFL players from the 2010s.

Only eight quarterbacks made the cut, but Wolfpack fans won't be surprised to learn that two of them played college football at NC State.

Former Wolfpack quarterbacks Russell Wilson and Philip Rivers were included on the list and made NC State the only school to produce two of the top eight quarterbacks of the last decade according to PFF.

Philip Rivers spent 16 seasons with the Chargers franchise before signing a one-year deal with the Colts this offseason (Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)

Here was how the eight quarterbacks finished overall in the final rankings:

1. Tom Brady (Michigan)

3. Drew Bress (Purdue)

6. Aaron Rodgers (California)

18. Peyton Manning (Tennessee)

32. Matt Ryan (Boston College)

33. Russell Wilson (NC State/Wisconsin)

37. Ben Roethlisberger (Miami of Ohio)

64. Philip Rivers (NC State)

Super Bowl Champion Russell Wilson finished No. 33 on PFF's All-Decade Top 101 list — Super Bowl Champion Russell Wilson finished No. 33 on PFF's All-Decade Top-101 list (Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports)

Here is what PFF had to say about Wilson:

Somehow, Russell Wilson has never earned an MVP vote since he has been in the league, and yet few quarterbacks have achieved more with as many things working against them (at least on the offensive side of the ball). Only Patrick Mahomes has a higher big-time throw rate than Wilson over the past decade, and obviously, Mahomes has only had to do it for a little over two seasons. Wilson has an incredible ability to make big plays without having a high rate of errors to offset those, and he brings a threat with his legs that few other quarterbacks have. He has been one of the most valuable players in the game over any span of time and one of the best quarterbacks in football.

And here is what was said about Rivers:

Rounding out the bottom half of the second-tier of quarterbacks, Rivers has had a few ups and downs throughout his career, but he had six top-10 finishes during the decade. Even when it doesn’t look pretty, Rivers has the anticipation and feel to mitigate a decrease in arm strength, and he remains productive at all levels of the field. Even more impressively, Rivers played behind one of the worst pass-blocking offensive lines for the better part of the decade, yet he still stood in there and made big-time throws at a high level. The big criticism for Rivers is the lack of postseason success, but he’s one of the most underrated regular-season quarterbacks in NFL history and clearly one of the top eight signal-callers during the 2010s.

Pack Pros Philip Rivers and Russell Wilson shake hands after a game between the Chargers and Seahawks (USA Today Sports)

Wilson led the Seattle Seahawks to the playoffs and an 11-5 record last season. In his eighth season in the NFL, Wilson threw for 4,110 yards including 31 touchdowns with only five interceptions (a career-low). The dual-threat quarterback added 342 yards on the ground and three rushing touchdowns last season. The Seahawks made it to the NFC Divisional round before losing to the Green Bay Packers 28-23 at Lambeau Field.

Rivers, an eight-time Pro Bowler, threw for 4,615 yards last season. He threw for 23 touchdowns but added 20 interceptions and the Chargers missed the playoffs with a 5-11 record. Rivers completed a 16-year run with the Chargers franchise, formerly the San Diego Chargers, before signing a one-year, $25 million contract with the Indianapolis Colts this offseason.