Tom Brady leads NFL all-time passing yard leaders
NFL all-time passing yard leaders: Will anyone ever catch Brady? originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
Tom Brady continues to push off Father Time.
Despite being 45 years old, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback eclipsed 4,000 yards passing for the sixth consecutive season in 2022. He ranked third in the NFL with 4,694 yards, trailing only Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert.
Brady isn’t chasing anyone on the NFL’s all-time passing list, he’s just continuously increasing the record. After supplanting Drew Brees for the top spot in October 2021, Brady is now nearly 9,000 yards clear of the former New Orleans Saints QB at 89,214.
Should Brady come back for a 24th season in 2023, he’ll be in line to become the first signal caller to reach the 90,000-yard milestone.
So what does the rest of the all-time passing leaderboard look like?
Who are the NFL’s all-time passing leaders?
Peyton Manning (71,940 yards), Brett Favre (71,838) and Ben Roethlisberger (64,088) round out the top five behind Brady and Brees.
The first active player other than Brady comes in at No. 7 with Matt Ryan (62,792 yards), followed by Aaron Rodgers at No. 9 (59,055), Matthew Stafford at No. 11 (52,082) and Joe Flacco at No. 19 (42,320). Those four quarterbacks could continue to climb up the list, but none have a realistic shot at catching Brady.
Among notable active players further down the list are Patrick Mahomes in 84th (24,241 yards), Josh Allen in 126th (18,397) and Justin Herbert in 168th (14,089). Suffice to say, it will be a while before we see a name other than Tom Brady at the No. 1 spot.
Here’s a full look at the top 20 all-time passing leaders (active players in bold):
Tom Brady: 89,214
Drew Brees: 80,358
Peyton Manning: 71,940
Brett Favre: 71,838
Ben Roethlisberger: 64,088
Philip Rivers: 63,440
Matt Ryan: 62,792
Dan Marino: 61,361
Aaron Rodgers: 59,055
Eli Manning: 57,023
Matthew Stafford: 52,082
John Elway: 51,475
Warren Moon: 49,325
Fran Tarkenton: 47,003
Carson Palmer: 46,247
Vinny Testaverde: 46,233
Drew Bledsoe: 44,611
Dan Fouts: 43,040
Joe Flacco: 42,320
Kerry Collins: 40,922
Who has the most touchdown passes in NFL history?
Surprise, surprise: Brady also owns the record in this category.
And just like passing yards, Brady bested Brees’ previous record mark (571). After throwing 25 TDs in 2022, Brady is up to 649 for his career.
Here’s a look at the top 10 all-time leaders in passing touchdowns (active players in bold):
Tom Brady: 649
Drew Brees: 571
Peyton Manning: 539
Brett Favre: 508
Aaron Rodgers: 475
Philip Rivers: 421
Dan Marino: 420
Ben Roethlisberger: 418
Matt Ryan: 381
Eli Manning: 366
What QB has the most 5,000-yard seasons?
Brees still owns this record over Brady.
No quarterback has put together more seasons with 5,000-plus passing yards than Brees with five. Brady and Patrick Mahomes are the only other QBs to achieve the rare feat multiple times, each doing so twice. Mahomes just had his second 5,000-yard season, throwing for 5,250 in 2022.
Dan Marino, Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Jameis Winston, Matthew Stafford and Justin Herbert reached the 5,000-yard mark once.