On Monday’s episode of The Audible, a discussion about Arkansas quarterback KJ Jefferson led us to come up with our “QB Tiers” heading into the 2023 season. While we had a few disagreements, ultimately our lists were close enough to combine them into a consensus version.

Heisman winner Caleb Williams is the obvious top pick, but there are a lot of talented and experienced quarterbacks coming back this year. This is by no means a complete list of every qualified FBS quarterback, but we hit the majority of Power 5 returnees as well as the top Group of 5 players.

Our main criteria for inclusion: at least one full season as the team’s primary QB.

Tier 1

Caleb Williams, USC

Stew: I know Caleb and Drake Maye are being grouped together in the early 2024 NFL Draft talk, but Caleb is in a tier to himself. He produced nearly 5,000 yards of offense, 42 touchdowns and just five interceptions last year. I put him among the elite of the elite to come through college recently — i.e., the Trevor Lawrence and Joe Burrow class.

Bruce: NFL QB coaches I spoke to this spring are higher on him than they were on Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud. Williams is thick and strong, and his ability to extend plays and make off-platform throws is ridiculous. He’s in a great system to showcase his talent, and having Kliff Kingsbury around in the meetings, helping out in game-planning is only going to make him that much more dangerous.