This list highlights the top 50 National Football League (NFL) quarterbacks with the highest career regular season passing yards, the NFL playoff passing yards leaders with at least 2,500 yards, and the historical progression of regular season record holders.
Tom Brady holds both the regular season record with 89,214 passing yards and the playoff record with 13,400 yards.
In American football, passing, along with running (also known as rushing), are the two main methods of advancing the ball down the field. Passes are typically attempted by the quarterback, but any offensive player can attempt a pass if they are behind the line of scrimmage.
To qualify as a passing play, the ball must initially move forward after leaving the passer’s hands; if it moves laterally or backward, it is considered a running play. The passing yards recorded by each quarterback are a key statistic in football games.
NFL Passing Yards Leaders List
Below is a list of the all-time leading passers in NFL history.
| Rank | Player | Yards | Games | Passing TDs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tom Brady | 89,214 | 335 | 649 |
| 2 | Drew Brees | 80,358 | 287 | 571 |
| 3 | Peyton Manning | 71,940 | 266 | 539 |
| 4 | Brett Favre | 71,838 | 302 | 508 |
| 5 | Ben Roethlisberger | 64,088 | 249 | 418 |
| 6 | Philip Rivers | 63,440 | 244 | 421 |
| 7 | Dan Marino | 61,361 | 242 | 420 |
| 8 | Matt Ryan | 62,792 | 234 | 381 |
| 9 | Eli Manning | 57,023 | 236 | 366 |
| 10 | Aaron Rodgers | 56,231 | 230 | 475 |
| 11 | John Elway | 51,475 | 234 | 300 |
| 12 | Warren Moon | 49,325 | 208 | 291 |
| 13 | Fran Tarkenton | 47,003 | 246 | 342 |
| 14 | Carson Palmer | 46,247 | 182 | 294 |
| 15 | Vinny Testaverde | 46,233 | 233 | 275 |
| 16 | Drew Bledsoe | 44,611 | 194 | 251 |
| 17 | Matthew Stafford | 43,021 | 182 | 282 |
| 18 | Dan Fouts | 43,040 | 181 | 254 |
| 19 | Joe Flacco | 42,320 | 183 | 232 |
| 20 | Kerry Collins | 40,922 | 198 | 208 |
| 21 | Russell Wilson | 40,583 | 182 | 308 |
| 22 | Johnny Unitas | 40,239 | 211 | 290 |
| 23 | Donovan McNabb | 37,276 | 167 | 234 |
| 24 | Jim Kelly | 35,467 | 160 | 237 |
| 25 | Alex Smith | 35,650 | 174 | 199 |
| 26 | Boomer Esiason | 37,920 | 187 | 247 |
| 27 | Sonny Jurgensen | 32,224 | 218 | 255 |
| 28 | Steve Young | 33,124 | 169 | 232 |
| 29 | Norm Van Brocklin | 23,611 | 140 | 173 |
| 30 | Troy Aikman | 32,942 | 165 | 165 |
This NFL total passing yards leaders list will be updated following the end of each NFL season.
Check out a list of the all-time leading NFL rushing leaders.
