Who is the Greatest Philadelphia Eagles Preseason QB in Recent Memory?
We aim to answer the question, who is the Joe Montana of Matt McGloin's?
Tanner McKee is one of the best backup quarterbacks the Eagles have ever had. At least that’s how it feels when I watch him play every August. Only in Philadelphia do backup quarterbacks become legends. Trust me, I grew up on a steady diet of A.J. Feeleys with a side of Jeff Garcia. I reached nirvana through the arm of Nick Foles’ 2017 Super Bowl performance.
But for some reason, the 6’6” Stanford Slingshot (trademark pending) towers above a graveyard of Gardner Minshew’s and Matt McGloin’s. His calm and precision cut through second-stringers and vanilla coverages like a hot knife through butter.
But this begs a question that literally no one cares about. Is Tanner McKee the Greatest Philadelphia Eagles Preseason Quarterback in Recent Memory (or G.P.E.P.Q.B.R.M. for short)? When the lights are dimmest and the pressure is virtually non-existent, is Tanner the best we’ve seen spin the rock?
Now I’m no journalist, and I got a C in statistics in college, but I do have access to the internet and too much free time. So today, we’re going to answer that question.
The Rules
Here are the parameters of a truly useless exercise. We’re looking at “recent memory” as the past 15 years (back to 2010), which seems about right because I can barely remember what I had for breakfast this morning.
Since that time, 38 players have thrown a pass for the Eagles in a preseason game. In 2021, the NFL dropped the number of preseason games from 4 to 3, so the oldheads have a leg up here, but we’ll allow it.
Since so many quarterbacks have laced up for the Birds in short stints, we need to level the playing field by looking at quarterbacks who have played multiple preseason games. Tanner McKee has played in 7 preseason games (soon to be 8 on Saturday), so we’re setting our entry point at quarterbacks who have played at least 5 preseason games for the Eagles.
The Contenders
That brings us to 7 quarterbacks who’ve played at least 5 preseason games for the Philadelphia Eagles since 2010:
Nick Foles (13 preseason games)
Michael Vick (12 preseason games)
Matt Barkley (11 preseason games)
Mike Kafka (8 preseason games)
Tanner McKee (7 preseason games)
Mark Sanchez (6 preseason games)
Sam Bradford (5 preseason games)
Nailing down our irrelevant preseason QB GOAT requires a balance of arbitrary stats for context. For the sake of this argument, we’re looking at QB Rating, TDs, and Yards.
The Results
In a surprise twist, the quarterback with the top QB rating among our sample is none other than “Sammy Sleeves” Sam Bradford, with a rating of 104.0 through 5 games. For reference, our GOAT in waiting, Tanner McKee, sits 3rd on the list with a rating of 82.7.
As for touchdowns thrown, the leader in the clubhouse is none other than Well Endowed Nick at 8 TDs (and unfortunately 8 interceptions, but who’s counting) in 13 preseason games played. Tanner unfortunately sits last in our sample size here with 3 TDs.
Given the sheer volume of games played, it’s not surprising that Nick Foles leads the clubhouse in yards as well, with 1,299 yards in 13 games played. But interestingly enough, our boy Touchdown Tanner sits 3rd on our list with 999 yards despite playing the 3rd fewest games in our sample size.
Unfortunately, when looking at QB rating, TDs thrown, and yards thrown, it’s hard to definitively state that Tanner holds the title of Greatest Philadelphia Eagles Preseason Quarterback in Recent Memory, no matter how impressive he’s been.
But if not Tanner, then who is our Eagles preseason GOAT? In a Shyamalanian-style twist, when evaluating the stated metrics among our sample size, one name stands out. A not-so-obvious quarterback with a smaller sample size who no one thought would be the answer to this question.
That quarterback is none other…than the “USC Turnover Machine” MARK SANCHEZ!. Among our sample size, Mark Sanchez played the second fewest Eagles preseason games (at 6 games played) but has the 2nd highest QB Rating at 103.5 and the 2nd most TDs thrown at 5.
The cherry on top? Sanchez also has the highest yards per attempt at 8.05, is tied for the fewest interceptions in our sample size, and has the fewest sacks at only 1. In 2015, Sanchez painted his preseason masterpiece when he carved up the Packers' second and third stringers, going 13 of 19 for 150 yards and 2 TDs with a 127.1 QB Rating.
That is why I’m proud (and shocked) to give Mark Sanchez the title of the Greatest Philadelphia Eagles Preseason QB in Recent Memory.
Are these metrics flawed? Yes! Does this mean Mark Sanchez was actually good? Did you see the Butt Fumble? I give Touchdown Tanner (trademark also pending) two more games before he becomes our official G.P.E.P.Q.B.R.M.
Pieces of Eagles Preseason History No One Cares About:
Since 2010, only four Eagles quarterbacks have had a perfect QB rating of 158.3.
The first was Michael Vick against the Patriots in 2013 where he went 4/5 for 94 yards at 18(!) yards per attempt
The second was GJ Kinne in 2014 against the Jets at 3/3 for 39 yards at 13 yards per attempt and 1 TD
The third, Carson Wentz in 2017 against the Packers going 4/4 for 56 and 1 TD
And the fourth…none other than Jalen Hurts in 2022 against the Jets, going 6/6 for 80 yards at 13.3 yards per attempt and 1 TD
In 2018, months after the Birds claimed their first Super Bowl victory over Tom Brady, Nate Sudfeld outdueled Tom Brady in a preseason showdown in Foxboro by going 22/39 for 312 yards and 3 TDs. Granted, Tommy Boy went 19 of 26 for 172 yards at 2 TDs, but history is written by the winners (the Eagles lost this game by the way).
2015 was a season of preseason QB excellence. In the same Mark Sanchez game mentioned above, Sam Bradford went 10/10 for 121 yards and 3 TDs with a 156.7 rating. In Week four of that same preseason against the Jets, Tim Tebow went 11 of 17 for 189 yards, 2 TDs, and 32 yards rushing. Some would call this the greatest era of Eagles quarterback play. Those people would be very wrong.
In a week one preseason game against the Ravens in 2011, Mike Kafka outrushed rushing QB legends Michael Vick (2 attempts for 3 yards) and Vince Young (1 attempt for 2 yards) at 2 attempts for 24 yards lol
Gone But Definitely Forgotten:
Here are quarterbacks who suited up for the Eagles in the preseason that you forgot about and hopefully will never remember again. Cue the Sarah McLachlan music.
Will Grier
Reid Sinnett
Ian Book
Carson Strong
Clayton Thorson
Nick Mullens
Cody Kessler
Joe Callahan
Christian Hackenberg
Dane Evans
Matt McGloin
McLeod Bethel-Thompson
Dennis Dixon
Jerrod Johnson
Trent Edwards