The heart of your offense is your quarterback. He’s the only player who can single-handedly create victories and losses. Sometimes, having your quarterback dial in to compete at the highest level is key to creating victories. These are the 10 best regular season single-game NFL QB performances of all time.
Do you still remember the legendary performances of these NFL QBs?
10. Sid Luckman vs. the New York Giants — Nov. 14, 1943
Luckman set the precedent for what a great game looks like under center. Before the Super Bowl era, Luckman created an air raid offense before coaches and players knew what that was. The Chicago Daily Tribune wrote that Luckman surpassed 400 yards in the first seven touchdown game in NFL history, setting the mark for greatness.
9. Y.A. Tittle vs. the Washington Redskins — Sep. 28, 1962
Tittle threw his seven-touchdown game, the first of the Super Bowl era, in a blowout win against the Redskins. It was actually the Redskins who struck first before Tittle’s Giants locked in to outpace Washington with a flurry of points through the air. Tittle would go on to have a Hall of Fame career but would never have another regular season game quite like this one.
8. Patrick Mahomes vs. the Pittsburgh Steelers — Sep. 16, 2018
A future Hall of Famer, Mahomes burst onto the scene in 2018 in his first season as a full-time starter with a six-touchdown game against Ben Rothlisberger’s Pittsburgh Steelers in a 42-37 victory. Mahomes threw more touchdowns than incompletions, going 23/28 and six touchdowns with 326 yards to pair and a perfect 154.8 quarterback rating. Mahomes found a number of targets, throwing touchdown passes to Travis Kelce, Tyreek Hill, Chris Conley, Kareem Hunt, and Demarcus Robinson.
7. Peyton Manning vs. the Baltimore Ravens — Sep. 5, 2013
The Sheriff rode into town in 2013 not knowing he was going to join an exclusive club — the seven touchdowns in a single game club for NFL QBs. Manning threw for 462 yards and seven scores in a week one 49-27 blowout win against the Joe Flacco-led Ravens. Manning spread out the love, giving Demaryius Thomas, Wes Welker, and Julius Thomas two scores each en route to a great year for the orange and white.
6. Michael Vick vs. the Washington Redskins — Nov. 15, 2010
After a two-year prison stint, Michael Vick got a second chance at the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles. This game highlighted the crux of his comeback story. Vick led the Eagles to a 59-28 victory over the Skins to show that he still had it in him. Vick completed 20/28 with a quarterback rating of 150.7. He averaged 11.9 yards per completion, throwing for 333 yards and four touchdowns. While his career wasn’t necessarily brought back to its full glory, Vick was given a second shot at life and this game made it all worth it.
5. Eli Manning vs. the New Orleans Saints — Nov. 1, 2015
In terms of exciting, high-scoring regular season games, this game is second all-time only to the infamous Rams-Chiefs showdown in 2018. Manning had the best regular season game of his career, throwing for 350 yards and six touchdowns against a Saints defensive that lacked in the secondary. Manning teamed up with star receiver Odell Beckham Jr. in the prime of his career for a game that ended in over 100 total points. In the end, it wasn’t enough to outlast the boys in the black and gold, however.
4. Drew Brees vs. the New York Giants — Nov. 1, 2015
On the other side of 2015’s best matchup, Drew Brees led the New Orleans Saints to an incredible win against Eli Manning’s Giants. Throwing for 505 yards and seven touchdowns in a single game was enough for the Brees led Saints to outlast the Giants by a score of 52-49. Unlike Manning, Brees spread the ball out all across his receiving corps, throwing touchdowns to Benjamin Watson, Marques Colston, Brandin Cooks, Willie Snead, and C.J. Spiller.
3. Nick Foles vs. the Oakland Raiders — Nov. 3, 2013
Foles’ first stint with the Philadelphia Eagles is highlighted by this dominant 49-20 victory against the Oakland Raiders in a game where he threw more touchdowns than incompletions. The star QB joined the exclusive seven touchdowns in a single-game club (an NFL-tying record) while throwing 22/28 for 406 yards and a quarterback rating of 98.4. This game likely extended the longevity of Foles’ career, leading him to eventually go on to become a Super Bowl MVP for the Eagles.
2. Tom Brady vs. the Tennessee Titans — Oct. 18, 2009
The best regular season game of the greatest of all time’s career came in a blowout victory over the 0-6 Tennessee Titans in 2009. Brady only threw five incompletions, completing 29 of 35 for 380 yards and six touchdowns. He would’ve gone even further, but the starting Patriot was pulled for backup quarterback Brian Hoyer before the game was over. Even Hoyer went on to complete 9/11 for 52 yards. The Titans? Not a single point.
1. Drew Brees vs. the Indianapolis Colts — Dec. 16, 2019
Brees’ performance against the Colts is historic in more ways than one. The New Orleans Saints quarterback broke longtime Colts quarterback Peyton Manning’s all-time touchdown record in a dominating fashion. Along with throwing for four touchdowns, Brees also broke the single game completion percentage record, only throwing one incompletion on 30 passing attempts. Brees finished the game with a 148.9 quarterback rating, four scores and 307 yards. Throwing 29/30 has literally never been done before and is a feat we will likely never see again.
