List of NFL quarterbacks who have posted a passer rating of zero
The National Football League has seen a quarterback passer rating of zero posted 148 times in either regular season or postseason play.[1]
To achieve a passer rating of zero in a game, a QB must have no touchdowns, complete no more than 30% of his pass attempts, average less than three yards per attempt, throw an interception on at least 9.5% of attempts and attempt at least ten passes.
Terry Bradshaw posted a zero rating on a record three occasions, while eight other QBs have two games of zero; Gary Keithley is the only QB ever to post zero ratings in two straight weeks (1973).
There have been three occasions where a starting QB, and his mid-game replacement, have both earned a zero rating in the same game: starter Joe Namath and replacement Richard Todd with the New York Jets (1976), starter Vince Evans and replacement Bob Avellini with the Chicago Bears (1981), and starter Terry Bradshaw and replacement Cliff Stoudt with the Pittsburgh Steelers (1982).
Only once have opposing QBs both posted a zero rating: Gary Keithley and the St. Louis Cardinals defeated Bob Lee and the Atlanta Falcons (1973). No starting QB with a passer rating of zero has won the game since Norm Snead in 1976.
Thirteen QBs who had a zero passer rating also earned a perfect (158.3) passer rating during their careers: Otto Graham, Johnny Unitas, Joe Namath, Terry Bradshaw, Len Dawson, Bob Griese, James Harris, Bob Lee, Scott Hunter, Dan Fouts, Craig Morton, Vince Evans, Rich Gannon, Eli Manning, and Peyton Manning.[2]
The Buffalo Bills have held opposing QBs to a zero passer rating more than any other franchise, having accomplished the feat eight times, as of 2021.
List
# | Quarterback | Date | Team | Opponent | Result | CMP | ATT | YDS | INT | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Otto Graham[3] | December 27, 1953 | Cleveland Browns | Detroit Lions | L 17–16 | 2 | 15 | 20 | 2 | NFL Championship Game. |
2 | King Hill[4] | October 2, 1960 | St. Louis Cardinals | New York Giants | L 35–14 | 3 | 13 | 25 | 2 | |
3 | John Brodie[5] | October 22, 1961 | San Francisco 49ers | Chicago Bears | L 31–0 | 3 | 10 | 23 | 2 | |
4 | Al Dorow[6] | September 9, 1962 | Buffalo Bills | Houston Oilers | L 28–23 | 4 | 17 | 44 | 3 | |
5 | John Hadl[7] | October 13, 1962 | San Diego Chargers | Buffalo Bills | L 35–10 | 2 | 12 | 17 | 2 | |
6 | Cotton Davidson[8] | October 14, 1962 | Oakland Raiders | Denver Broncos | L 23–6 | 2 | 10 | 22 | 1 | |
7 | Cotton Davidson[8] | November 18, 1962 | Oakland Raiders | Buffalo Bills | L 10–6 | 5 | 20 | 25 | 2 | Second career 0.0 game, second 0.0 game in the same season. |
8 | Bill Munson[9] | October 11, 1964 | Los Angeles Rams | Chicago Bears | L 38–17 | 4 | 15 | 42 | 4 | |
9 | Earl Morrall[10] | September 19, 1965 | New York Giants | Dallas Cowboys | L 31–2 | 6 | 21 | 63 | 2 | |
10 | Dick Wood[11] | September 19, 1965 | Oakland Raiders | San Diego Chargers | L 17–6 | 4 | 14 | 31 | 2 | |
11 | Jack Kemp[12] | December 5, 1965 | Buffalo Bills | Houston Oilers | W 29–18 | 2 | 10 | 25 | 1 | First to have a 0.0 rating but still win the game. |
12 | Dick Wood[11] | September 9, 1966 | Miami Dolphins | New York Jets | L 19–14 | 2 | 15 | 25 | 2 | Second career 0.0 game. |
13 | Joe Kapp[13] | October 15, 1967 | Minnesota Vikings | Green Bay Packers | W 10–7 | 2 | 11 | 25 | 2 | |
14 | Don Trull[14] | December 9, 1967 | Boston Patriots | Buffalo Bills | L 44–16 | 5 | 20 | 57 | 3 | |
15 | Bob Griese[15] | September 28, 1968 | Miami Dolphins | Kansas City Chiefs | L 48–3 | 2 | 17 | 24 | 2 | |
16 | Johnny Unitas[16] | October 20, 1968 | Baltimore Colts | Cleveland Browns | L 30–20 | 1 | 11 | 12 | 3 | |
17 | Virgil Carter[17] | October 12, 1969 | Chicago Bears | Minnesota Vikings | L 31–0 | 3 | 12 | 25 | 2 | |
18 | Rick Norton[18] | November 23, 1969 | Miami Dolphins | Houston Oilers | L 32–7 | 7 | 26 | 43 | 5 | |
19 | Billy Kilmer[19] | September 27, 1970 | New Orleans Saints | Minnesota Vikings | L 26–0 | 6 | 20 | 16 | 2 | |
20 | Don Gault[20] | October 3, 1970 | Cleveland Browns | Pittsburgh Steelers | W 15–7 | 1 | 16 | 44 | 2 | Only career NFL start, last career NFL game played (won game). Worst completion percentage (6.3%) on this list. |
21 | Mike Taliaferro[21] | October 11, 1970 | Boston Patriots | Kansas City Chiefs | L 23–10 | 3 | 12 | 30 | 4 | |
22 | Rick Arrington[22] | October 25, 1970 | Philadelphia Eagles | Green Bay Packers | L 30–17 | 3 | 10 | 16 | 3 | |
23 | Terry Hanratty[23] | November 15, 1970 | Pittsburgh Steelers | Kansas City Chiefs | L 31–14 | 3 | 12 | 35 | 2 | |
24 | Len Dawson[24] | November 22, 1970 | Kansas City Chiefs | St. Louis Cardinals | T 6–6 | 4 | 14 | 38 | 2 | |
25 | Terry Bradshaw[25] | December 13, 1970 | Pittsburgh Steelers | Atlanta Falcons | L 27–16 | 3 | 12 | 30 | 2 | |
26 | Kent Nix[26] | October 3, 1971 | Chicago Bears | Los Angeles Rams | L 17–3 | 5 | 23 | 60 | 3 | |
27 | Bobby Douglass[27] | November 21, 1971 | Chicago Bears | Detroit Lions | L 28–3 | 6 | 26 | 68 | 4 | |
28 | John Hadl[28] | November 28, 1971 | San Diego Chargers | Cincinnati Bengals | L 31–0 | 5 | 18 | 49 | 4 | Second career 0.0 game. |
29 | Gary Cuozzo[29] | December 11, 1971 | Minnesota Vikings | Detroit Lions | W 29–10 | 4 | 15 | 21 | 2 | |
30 | Greg Landry[30] | September 24, 1972 | Detroit Lions | Minnesota Vikings | L 34–10 | 3 | 15 | 39 | 3 | |
31 | Dan Pastorini[31] | October 9, 1972 | Houston Oilers | Oakland Raiders | L 34–0 | 3 | 21 | 31 | 4 | |
32 | Scott Hunter[32] | October 28, 1973 | Green Bay Packers | Detroit Lions | L 34–0 | 1 | 10 | −4 | 1 | |
33 | Randy Johnson[33] | November 4, 1973 | New York Giants | Oakland Raiders | L 42–0 | 2 | 12 | 15 | 2 | |
34 | Bob Lee[34] | December 9, 1973 | Atlanta Falcons | St. Louis Cardinals | L 32–10 | 3 | 16 | 27 | 2 | Had perfect 158.3 game earlier in season; both starting QBs (Keithley) had a 0.0 passer rating in the game. |
35 | Gary Keithley | December 9, 1973 | St. Louis Cardinals | Atlanta Falcons | W 32–10 | 2 | 10 | 9 | 1 | First career start; both starting QBs (Lee) had a 0.0 passer rating in the game. |
36 | Gary Keithley[35] | December 16, 1973 | St. Louis Cardinals | Dallas Cowboys | L 30–3 | 6 | 20 | 30 | 2 | Second career 0.0 game, second career start, only QB with 0.0 two weeks in a row. |
37 | Joe Namath[36] | September 29, 1974 | New York Jets | Buffalo Bills | L 16–12 | 2 | 18 | 33 | 3 | |
38 | Archie Manning[37] | November 25, 1974 | New Orleans Saints | Pittsburgh Steelers | L 28–7 | 2 | 10 | 9 | 3 | Part of the only two father–son combinations on this list. |
39 | James Harris[38] | September 21, 1975 | Los Angeles Rams | Dallas Cowboys | L 18–7 | 1 | 10 | 5 | 3 | |
40 | Dan Fouts[39] | October 5, 1975 | San Diego Chargers | Oakland Raiders | L 6–0 | 3 | 13 | 29 | 2 | |
41 | Kim McQuilken[40] | November 9, 1975 | Atlanta Falcons | Minnesota Vikings | L 38–0 | 5 | 26 | 43 | 5 | |
42 | Terry Bradshaw[41] | December 20, 1975 | Pittsburgh Steelers | Los Angeles Rams | L 10–3 | 3 | 10 | 28 | 1 | Second career 0.0 game. |
43 | Lynn Dickey[42] | September 26, 1976 | Green Bay Packers | Cincinnati Bengals | L 28–7 | 5 | 20 | 45 | 2 | |
44 | Ron Jaworski[43] | October 24, 1976 | Los Angeles Rams | New Orleans Saints | W 16–10 | 3 | 11 | 15 | 2 | |
45 | Norm Snead[44] | November 14, 1976 | New York Giants | Washington Redskins | W 12–9 | 3 | 14 | 26 | 2 | Second career 0.0 game; last starting QB to win game despite lowest passer rating. |
46 | Gary Marangi[45] | November 21, 1976 | Buffalo Bills | San Diego Chargers | L 34–13 | 8 | 30 | 83 | 3 | Most attempts by a player posting a 0.0 rating.[46] |
47 | Joe Namath[47] | December 12, 1976 | New York Jets | Cincinnati Bengals | L 42–3 | 4 | 15 | 20 | 4 | Second career 0.0 game, first time that a starter and replacement (Todd) both had a 0.0 rating in same game. |
48 | Richard Todd[48] | December 12, 1976 | New York Jets | Cincinnati Bengals | L 42–3 | 3 | 13 | 23 | 2 | First time that a starter (Namath) and replacement both had a 0.0 passer rating in the same game. |
49 | Jim Plunkett[49] | September 19, 1977 | San Francisco 49ers | Pittsburgh Steelers | L 27–0 | 3 | 13 | 30 | 2 | |
50 | Randy Hedberg[50] | October 23, 1977 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Green Bay Packers | L 13–0 | 3 | 13 | 18 | 2 | Did not start. |
51 | Randy Hedberg[51] | December 4, 1977 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Chicago Bears | L 10–0 | 4 | 15 | 36 | 2 | Second career 0.0 game and second in the season; last game played in NFL; only post-merger QB to post a 0.0 season rating with 90+ attempts. |
52 | Craig Morton[52] | January 15, 1978 | Denver Broncos | Dallas Cowboys | L 27–10 | 4 | 15 | 39 | 4 | Super Bowl XII, removed from the game in the third quarter. |
53 | Joe Ferguson[53] | September 3, 1978 | Buffalo Bills | Pittsburgh Steelers | L 28–17 | 3 | 10 | 20 | 1 | |
54 | Dan Pastorini[54] | September 9, 1979 | Houston Oilers | Pittsburgh Steelers | L 38–7 | 4 | 16 | 16 | 3 | Second career 0.0 game. |
55 | Mike Livingston[55] | September 9, 1979 | Kansas City Chiefs | Cleveland Browns | L 27–24 | 2 | 10 | 26 | 1 | |
56 | Vince Evans[56] | November 22, 1981 | Chicago Bears | Detroit Lions | L 23–7 | 4 | 19 | 21 | 2 | Second time that a starter and replacement (Avellini) both had a 0.0 passer rating in the same game. |
57 | Bob Avellini[57] | November 22, 1981 | Chicago Bears | Detroit Lions | L 23–7 | 3 | 10 | 20 | 1 | Second time that a starter (Evans) and replacement both had a 0.0 passer rating in the same game. |
58 | Terry Bradshaw[58] | December 12, 1982 | Pittsburgh Steelers | Buffalo Bills | L 13–0 | 2 | 13 | 3 | 2 | Third career 0.0 game, third time that a starter and replacement (Stoudt) both had a 0.0 passer rating in the same game. |
59 | Cliff Stoudt[59] | December 12, 1982 | Pittsburgh Steelers | Buffalo Bills | L 13–0 | 2 | 10 | 29 | 1 | Third time that a starter (Bradshaw) and replacement both had a 0.0 passer rating in the same game. |
60 | Warren Moon[60] | November 10, 1985 | Houston Oilers | Buffalo Bills | L 20–0 | 3 | 14 | 22 | 3 | |
61 | Gary Hogeboom[61] | November 17, 1985 | Dallas Cowboys | Chicago Bears | L 44–0 | 6 | 22 | 60 | 3 | Did not start. |
62 | Warren Moon[62] | November 30, 1986 | Houston Oilers | Cleveland Browns | L 13–10 | 5 | 23 | 68 | 4 | Second career 0.0 game. |
63 | Dave Wilson[63] | January 3, 1988 | New Orleans Saints | Minnesota Vikings | L 44–10 | 2 | 12 | 20 | 2 | NFC Wild Card game, did not start. |
64 | Mike Tomczak[64] | September 18, 1988 | Chicago Bears | Minnesota Vikings | L 31–7 | 3 | 12 | 28 | 2 | |
65 | Jeff Kemp[65] | September 25, 1988 | Seattle Seahawks | San Francisco 49ers | L 38–7 | 1 | 12 | 6 | 3 | |
66 | Bubby Brister[66] | October 2, 1988 | Pittsburgh Steelers | Cleveland Browns | L 23–9 | 4 | 14 | 28 | 2 | |
67 | Brent Pease[67] | October 9, 1988 | Houston Oilers | Kansas City Chiefs | W 7–6 | 3 | 14 | 26 | 3 | |
68 | Rich Gannon[68] | December 16, 1990 | Minnesota Vikings | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 26–13 | 2 | 10 | 8 | 1 | |
69 | Pat Ryan[69] | September 30, 1991 | Philadelphia Eagles | Washington Redskins | L 23–0 | 4 | 14 | 24 | 3 | Did not start. |
70 | Todd Marinovich[70] | November 8, 1992 | Los Angeles Raiders | Philadelphia Eagles | L 31–10 | 3 | 10 | 25 | 3 | Last career NFL game played. |
71 | Tommy Maddox[71] | October 15, 1995 | New York Giants | Philadelphia Eagles | L 17–14 | 6 | 23 | 49 | 3 | 0.0 passer rating for the season. |
72 | Dave Brown[72] | December 1, 1996 | New York Giants | Philadelphia Eagles | L 24–0 | 3 | 11 | 31 | 2 | |
73 | Kent Graham[73] | October 12, 1997 | Arizona Cardinals | New York Giants | L 27–13 | 4 | 14 | 40 | 2 | |
74 | Tony Graziani[74] | October 26, 1997 | Atlanta Falcons | Carolina Panthers | L 21–12 | 4 | 18 | 24 | 2 | First career start. |
75 | Trent Dilfer[75] | December 14, 1997 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | New York Jets | L 31–0 | 2 | 15 | 38 | 2 | |
76 | Ryan Leaf[76] | September 20, 1998 | San Diego Chargers | Kansas City Chiefs | L 23–7 | 1 | 15 | 4 | 2 | |
77 | Scott Mitchell[77] | October 15, 2000 | Cincinnati Bengals | Pittsburgh Steelers | L 15–0 | 4 | 16 | 39 | 2 | |
78 | Anthony Wright[78] | December 25, 2000 | Dallas Cowboys | Tennessee Titans | L 31–0 | 5 | 20 | 35 | 2 | |
79 | Randy Fasani[79] | October 27, 2002 | Carolina Panthers | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 12–9 | 5 | 18 | 46 | 3 | Only career NFL start. |
80 | Tim Hasselbeck[80] | December 14, 2003 | Washington Redskins | Dallas Cowboys | L 27–0 | 6 | 26 | 56 | 4 | |
81 | Jeff Garcia[81] | September 19, 2004 | Cleveland Browns | Dallas Cowboys | L 19–12 | 8 | 27 | 71 | 3 | |
82 | Eli Manning[82] | December 12, 2004 | New York Giants | Baltimore Ravens | L 37–14 | 4 | 18 | 27 | 2 | Removed from the game in the fourth quarter. Father Archie Manning, and brother Peyton Manning also had 0.0 passer ratings in games. |
83 | Joey Harrington[83] | December 17, 2006 | Miami Dolphins | Buffalo Bills | L 21–0 | 5 | 17 | 20 | 2 | |
84 | Rex Grossman[84] | December 31, 2006 | Chicago Bears | Green Bay Packers | L 26–7 | 2 | 12 | 33 | 3 | Did not play in the second half. |
85 | Chris Redman[85] | December 16, 2007 | Atlanta Falcons | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 37–3 | 4 | 15 | 34 | 2 | |
86 | Peyton Manning[86] | November 15, 2015 | Denver Broncos | Kansas City Chiefs | L 29–13 | 5 | 20 | 35 | 4 | Removed from the game in the third quarter. Father Archie Manning, and brother Eli Manning also had 0.0 passer rating games. Also broke the passing yards record during the game. |
87 | Nathan Peterman[87] | September 9, 2018 | Buffalo Bills | Baltimore Ravens | L 47–3 | 5 | 18 | 24 | 2 | Removed from the game in the third quarter. Replacement (Josh Allen) would have a perfect 158.3 game in 2023. |
88 | Ryan Finley[88] | November 22, 2020 | Cincinnati Bengals | Washington Football Team | L 20–9 | 3 | 10 | 30 | 1 | Did not start game. Replaced starter Joe Burrow in third quarter after Burrow sustained a knee injury. |
89 | Brandon Allen[89] | January 3, 2021 | Cincinnati Bengals | Baltimore Ravens | L 38–3 | 6 | 21 | 48 | 2 | |
90 | P. J. Walker[90] | November 6, 2022 | Carolina Panthers | Cincinnati Bengals | L 42–21 | 3 | 10 | 9 | 2 | Removed from the game at halftime. |
References
- "Passer ratings of 0.0, min. 10 attempts, ordered by date". pro-football-reference.com. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
- "Big Ben's 'Perfect' Day Breaks Tie With Peyton Manning, Kurt Warner". SteelersDepot.com. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
- "Otto Graham Gamelogs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "King Hill Gamelogs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "John Brodie Gamelogs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Al Dorow Gamelogs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "John Hadl Gamelogs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Cotton Davidson Gamelogs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Bill Munson Gamelogs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Earl Morrall Gamelogs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Dick Wood Gamelogs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Jack Kemp Gamelogs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Joe Kapp Gamelogs", Pro-Football- Reference.com
- "Don Trull Gamelogs", Pro-Football- Reference.com
- "Bob Griese Gamelogs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Johnny Unitas Gamelogs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Virgil Carter Gamelogs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Rick Norton", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Billy Kilmer: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Don Gault: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Mike Taliaferro: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Rick Arrington: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Terry Hanratty: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Len Dawson: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Terry Bradshaw: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Kent Nix: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Bobby Douglass: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "John Hadl: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Gary Cuozzo: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Greg Landry: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Dan Pastorini – Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Scott Hunter: Game Logs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Randy Johnson: Game Logs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Bob Lee: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Gary Keithley: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Joe Namath: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Archie Manning: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "James Harris: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Dan Fouts: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Kim McQuilken Career Game Logs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Terry Bradshaw: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Lynn Dickey: Game Logs", Pro-Football- Reference.com
- "Ron Jaworski: Game Logs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Norm Snead: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Gary Marangi: Game Logs", pro-football-reference.com
- "Passer ratings of 0.0, ordered by number of attempts". stathead.com. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
- "Joe Namath: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Richard Todd: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Jim Plunkett: Game Logs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Randy Hedberg: Game Logs", Pro Football Reference
- "Randy Hedberg: Game Logs", Pro Football Reference
- "Craig Morton: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Joe Ferguson: Game Logs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Dan Pastorini: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Mike Livingston: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Vince Evans: Game Logs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Bob Avellini: Game Logs", Pro-Football- Reference.com
- "Terry Bradshaw: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Cliff Stoudt: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Warren Moon: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Gary Hogeboom: Game Logs", Pro-Football-Reference
- "Warren Moon: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Dave Wilson: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Mike Tomczak: Game Logs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Jeff Kemp: Game Logs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Bubby Brister: Game Logs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Brent Pease: Game Logs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Rich Gannon: Game Logs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Pat Ryan: Game Logs", Pro-Football-Reference.com
- "Todd Marinovich: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Tommy Maddox: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Dave Brown: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Kent Graham: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Tony Graziani: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Trent Dilfer: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Ryan Leaf: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Scott Mitchell: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Anthony Wright: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Randy Fasani: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Tim Hasselbeck: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Jeff Garcia: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Eli Manning: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Joey Harrington: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Rex Grossman: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Chris Redman: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Peyton Manning: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Nathan Peterman: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Ryan Finley: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "Brandon Allen: Game Logs", NFL.com
- "P. J. Walker: Game Logs", NFL.com