Jacksonville Jaguars: Top 10 Quarterbacks in franchise history

Dec 15, 2013; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Former Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Mark Brunell speaks with Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan in the second quarter of their game against the Buffalo Bills at EverBank Field. Brunell was inducted into the “Pride of the Jaguars” during halftime ceremonies. Mandatory Credit: Phil Sears-USA TODAY Sports

Number 2. Mark Brunell

That’s right – I don’t think Mark Brunell is the best quarterback in franchise history. Remember, I can use whatever criteria I want for this list and this is my infallible conclusion.

When you take a step back and look at Mark Brunell’s numbers, he really wasn’t a prolific quarterback. Yes, it was a different time in the NFL compared to the current game and looking at the box score alone isn’t enough, but Brunell was never one of the best quarterbacks in the league during his tenure in Jacksonville.

If you had to guess what Brunell’s best statistical season looked like, I suspect you’d throw out something like 30 TDs, 10-15 INTs and 4,000+ yards.

He never got close to that.

Brunell’s best overall statistical year came in 1997 when he threw for 18 TDs, 7 INTs and 3281 yards. Here are Brunell’s total statistics during his tenure with the Jaguars.

[table id=57 /]

Brunell never threw for more than 20 touchdowns, a feat even more shocking when you consider he was throwing to Jimmy Smith and Keenan McCardell while standing behind one of the better offensive lines in the NFL.

All that said, I don’t want this to seem like I’m bashing Mark. Brunell was a very good quarterback and he led the Jaguars to a lot of exciting wins, including two playoff runs in 1996 and 1999 that ended in the AFC championship.

The Jaguars had trouble finding a suitable replacement after he was sent to the Washington Redskins in 2004 and subsequently his legend has grown each season…

Until now, thanks the emergence of the number 1 guy on our list.

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