- A detailed look behind PFF’s grading: PFF 0-100 grades are derived from a detailed -2 to +2 grading scale applied to every player on every play.
- Critical insight: Play-level data can help distinguish routine execution from elite playmaking, bringing the full range of quarterback performance into clearer focus.
- Subscribe to PFF+: Get access to player grades, PFF Premium Stats, fantasy football rankings, all of the PFF fantasy draft research tools and more!
PFF is globally recognized for its football data, and at the heart of that reputation are player grades. When most people hear “PFF Grades,” they think of the 0–100 scale that’s become a fixture in football analysis over the past decade.
When properly interpreted, these grades serve as a valuable tool used daily by teams, coaches, agents, analysts and fans to evaluate on-field performance. Coaches utilize them to inform game plans, players gain an objective view of their play over time, and fans rely on them to fuel debates and deepen their understanding of the game.
I’m entering my 11th season grading for PFF and my third leading our grading team. And over that time, one thing has become increasingly clear: while the 0–100 grade scale is widely recognized, the foundation beneath it — the play-by-play grading system that evaluates every player on every play using a -2 to +2 scale — has largely been overlooked. As a result, a lot of the key context behind what the grades actually mean gets lost in translation.
So, here’s a quick peek behind the curtain (with more to come down the road), followed by a look at how this applies to NFL quarterbacks from the 2024 season.
At the core of our play-by-play grading system is a “zero” — the grade awarded when a player does exactly what’s expected on a given play. From there, a player can earn positive or negative grades in 0.5-point increments, depending on how much their performance exceeds or falls short of expectations. It’s a straightforward but powerful framework that drives every PFF grade you see.
So, let’s take quarterbacks as an example. When we apply this scale more broadly, here’s how it plays out:
It’s first-and-10, and the quarterback completes a three-yard slant route. In that scenario, the QB receives a 0 grade, regardless of what happens after the pass is caught. Whether the receiver is tackled immediately, breaks off a big gain or fumbles the ball, the quarterback’s grade remains unchanged because he simply executed the play as designed.
It’s first-and-10 again, and the quarterback delivers an on-time, accurate throw to a hitch route, hitting the receiver in stride as he settles into a soft spot in zone coverage for an 11-yard gain through the air. That throw will almost certainly earn a +0.5 grade from our graders, regardless of whether the receiver is tackled immediately, picks up extra yardage or even drops the pass. The grade reflects the quality of the throw, not the outcome after the ball leaves the quarterback’s hand.
Now let’s say it’s second-and-5, and the quarterback targets an out route toward the sideline, but the throw sails high and out of bounds. It’s not a dangerous pass and isn’t at risk of being intercepted, but it’s also uncatchable for the receiver. In this case, the quarterback will typically receive a -0.5 grade, the first level below expectation in our system.
Now imagine the same scenario, but instead of sailing the ball out of bounds, the quarterback overthrows the receiver and leaves the pass in play, putting it in range for a crashing safety to potentially make a play on the ball or even intercept it. That type of miss poses a greater risk and falls further below the expected standard, resulting in a more significant downgrade, typically a -1 or worse.
These play-by-play grades form the foundation of our entire grading system. With that in mind, let’s shift to the 2024 NFL season and take a closer look at quarterbacks, specifically through the lens of positive grade rate, which measures how often a QB earns a grade above zero on a per-play basis.
Top 10 quarterbacks in positively graded pass-play rate (2024, regular season only)
When you first see that list, I’m guessing your initial reaction is one of two things: either “there’s no way that represents the top 10 quarterbacks from the 2024 season,” or “that doesn’t come close to matching the 0–100 overall grades.”
If either of those was your first thought, you’re absolutely right. There’s so much more that goes into playing quarterback — and into the process that produces the 0–100 grade — than simply how often a player performs above expectation on a given play.
Positively graded play rate certainly holds value on its own, but it doesn’t account for how often a player is receiving negative play-by-play grades. Trevor Lawrence, for example, posted the sixth-highest negatively graded play rate in 2024. It also doesn’t capture the weight of quarterbacks who consistently deliver big-time plays, such as Josh Allen, whose 7.3% rate of earning a +1.0 grade or better was roughly 1.5 percentage points higher than that of any other quarterback last season.
Now, let’s take that positive grade rate one step further by applying weights to each level of positive grade. By scaling the data to emphasize higher-end plays more heavily, we can better distinguish between routine execution and elite-level playmaking. This distinction helps us differentiate, for example, between an 11-yard hitch into a soft zone and a 30-yard sideline strike with pinpoint accuracy against tight coverage — both are positives, but not all positives are created equal.
Top 10 quarterbacks in weighted positively graded pass-play rate (2024, regular season only)
Notice how the picture starts to become a little clearer?
This still isn’t the whole picture, as we haven’t yet factored in negative grade rate. And if we apply the same weighted approach to negative plays, we see some revealing results: Anthony Richardson had the worst weighted negative grade rate among quarterbacks, Jameis Winston was fourth-worst and Brock Purdy ranked 15th.
Even with this additional context, PFF’s play-by-play grades offer a clearer and more effective lens for analyzing football performance.
So, how does all of this tie back to the 0–100 overall grade you see on our site and across the football world? It’s derived directly from these play-by-play evaluations — a snap-by-snap assessment of every player’s performance. What gives that final number meaning isn’t just how often a player exceeds expectations, but also the magnitude of those positive plays, the frequency and severity of mistakes and the broader context in which each play occurs.
Understanding the “why” behind each raw grade transforms that 0–100 score into a more complete and objective reflection of on-field performance.
Click here to access each quarterback’s full 0–100 overall grade, and use the interactive tool below to explore their play-by-play evaluations in greater detail.
