Where Justin Herbert Ranks Among Oregon Ducks NFL Alumni at Quarterback

Dan Fouts is the greatest Oregon quarterbacks to ever play in the NFL. Fouts played for the Ducks from 1969 through 1972. He was selected in the third round of the 1973 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers and spent his entire professional career there until retiring following the 1987 season. 

In his time with the Chargers, Fouts was a six-time Pro Bowler, NFL Offensive Player of the Year in 1982, made four All-Pro teams, was the NFL’s passing yards leading for four seasons, and the NFL’s passing touchdown leader twice. 

Fouts totaled 43,040 passing yards and 254 touchdown passes for his career. He was elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993. 

2. Norm Van Brocklin

There are two former Oregon Ducks quarterbacks in the Pro Football Hall of Fame; Dan Fouts and Norm Van Brocklin. 

Norm Van Brocklin played for the Ducks from 1946 through 1948. He was selected in the fourth round of the 1949 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams following his All-American season with Oregon in 1948. In the NFL, he was a nine-time Pro Bowler, league MVP in 1960, and a two-time NFL Champion. 

It wasn’t the passing league it is now, but Van Brocklin still managed to total 23,611 passing yards and 173 passing touchdowns in his career from 1949 though 1960 with the Rams and Philadelphia Eagles. He was elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971. 

Herbert may have the better "raw talent" here, but it is hard to argue for Van Brocklin being lower with his Hall of Fame resume.

3. Justin Herbert

Justin Herbert was selected by the Los Angeles Chargers with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. This was coming off of Herbert helping lead the Ducks to a Rose Bowl visitor over the Wisconsin Badgers. 

Herbert has been widely considered to be a top 5-10 quarterback in the NFL since his rookie season. In his five seasons in the NFL, Herbert has totaled 4,539 passing yards, 137 passing touchdowns, and 45 interceptions. He has added another 1,217 rushing yards and 13 rushing touchdowns. 

Herbert’s overall record as a starter in the regular season is 41-38 and 0-2 in the playoffs. If Herbert can continue this regular season success and have it translate to some playoff wins, he will threaten the top two quarterbacks currently ranked above him. For now, No. 3 is where he should be. 

Newer Era Duck Quarterbacks

There are a couple other Oregon quarterbacks that have found success in the NFL in recent times. One would be Marcus Mariota . Mariota was a Heisman trophy winner in 2014 and led the Ducks to a National Championship game appearance before being selected No. 2 overall in the 2015 NFL Draft by the Tennessee Titans.

Mariota never became the franchise quarterback the Titans had hoped, but he still engineered them to multiple playoff appearances and a playoff victory in his time as a starting quarterback there from 2015 up until 2019. Mariota has bounced around the league since leaving Tennessee; from the Las Vegas Raiders, Atlanta Falcons, Philadelphia Eagles, and now the Washington Commanders. For the most part since 2019, he has been a spot starter and a backup. 

The most recent Oregon quarterbacks to earn a starting quarterback position is Bo Nix . Nix was selected No. 12 overall by the Denver Broncos in the 2024 NFL Draft. After a slow start to his rookie season in 2024, Nix settled in. He was a big reason for the Broncos snapping their nine-year playoff drought and winning 10 games. 

Nix and the Broncos aim to take another step forward this season.