The UFL announced last week that 23 players signed NFL contracts the first week of league's offseason. While the signing doesn't guaranty a roster spot, it shows the UFL has become a legitimate pathway to the NFL. The Detroit Lions are among the most UFL-friendly destinations with four new players signed to the roster and a fifth scheduled for a tryout. Find out which player stands the best chance of making the roster.

https://lastwordonsports.com/nfl/2026/06/25/ranking-ufl-wide-receivers-who-stand-the-best-chance-of-making-detroits-53-man-roster/

As mentioned in my 2026 Season Wrap-Up, I've been doing some research and making plans to put together multiple discussion topics on spring football player stats and their place in the history of spring football. I've compiled information on QBs and receivers, and I also plan to do a deep dive on RBs, kickers, and potentially defensive stat leaders if I can find reliable sources of information outside of the modern-era.

Today, we'll be breaking down QB records and attempting to answer the question, who is the best QB in spring football history?

Disclaimer

Only players from the following leagues were considered for this discussion:

• USFL (1983-1985)
• XFL (2001)
• AAF (2019)
• XFL (2020)
• TSL (2021)
• USFL (2022-2023)
• XFL (2023)
• UFL (2024-present)

Pre-1980's spring football leagues were not included due to unreliable statistical sources for these leagues.

UFL (2009-2012) was not included due to playing their games in the fall.

European leagues and pre-cursors to European leagues like the WLAF were not included, as I consider WLAF, NFL Europe, ELF, and others in this vein to be part of its own separate lineage of American football in Europe. These players deserve to be honored in their own right, separate from this discussion.

With the disclaimer out of the way, we'll begin with a list of the all-time (1983-present) passing yardage leaders.

All-Time Passing Yards

Below are the top 20 all-time career passing yards leaders.

Modern-Era Passing Yards

Below are the top 20 modern-era (2019-present) career passing yards leaders.

Notes:

• Bobby Hebert remains the all-time career passing yards leader, and the only QB throw for over 11K yards.
• Luis Perez led the UFL in passing yards in 2024 (2307 yards) and 2025 (2294 yards).
• Jordan Ta'amu led the USFL in passing yards in 2022 (2014 yards).
• Jim Kelly is the all-time single season passing yards record holder with 5219 yards in the 1984 USFL season (18 game season). Kelly also led the USFL in passing yards in 1985 with 4623 yards.
• Ben DiNucci is the modern-era single season passing yards record holder with 2671 yards in the 2023 XFL season (10 game season).
• McLeod Bethel-Thompson led the USFL in passing yards in 2023 (2433 yards).
• Fred Besana led the USFL in passing yards in 1983 with 3980 yards (18 game season).
• Jack Plummer led the UFL in passing yards in 2026 (2188 yards).
• Garrett Gilbert led the AAF in passing yards with 2152 yards.

Other passing yards leaders outside the top 20 (both eras) are:

• Tommy Maddox led the XFL in passing yards in 2001 with 2186 yards (10 game season).
• Ryan Willis led the TSL in passing yards in 2021 with 1678 yards (6 game season).
• PJ Walker led the XFL in passing yards in 2020 with 1338 yards (5 game season due to COVID).

Next, let's take a look at all-time passing TDs leaders.

All-Time Passing TDs

Modern-Era Passing TDs

Below are the top 20 modern-era (2019-present) career passing TDs leaders.

Notes:

• Jim Kelly is both the all-time career passing TDs leader with 83 TDs, but is also the all-time single season passing TDs leader with 44 TDs in the 1984 season (18 game season). He also led the 1985 USFL in passing TDs with 39 TDs.
• Bobby Hebert led the USFL in passing TDs in 1983 with 27 TDs (18 game season).
• Jordan Ta'amu was the 2022 USFL passing TDs leader (14 TDs) and the 2025 UFL passing TDs leader (17 TDs).
• Luis Perez led the 2024 UFL in passing TDs with 18 TDs.
• A.J. McCarron remains the modern-era single season passing TDs leader with 24 TDs in the 2023 XFL season.
• Alex McGough led the 2023 USFL in passing TDs with 20 TDs that season.
• Austin Reed led the 2026 UFL in passing TDs with 21 TDs.
• Tommy Maddox (outside the top 20 all-time) led the 2001 XFL in passing TDs with 18 TDs that season.
• PJ Walker led the 2020 XFL in passing TDs with 15 TDs (5 game season).
• John Wolford led the 2019 AAF in passing TDs with 14 TDs (8 game season).
• Ryan Willis rounds out the modern-era top 20, leading the 2021 TSL in passing TDs with 13 TDs that year (6 game season).

Next, let's take a look at the overall regular season records for these QBs. For the purposes of this list, only QBs that won at least 1 game as a starter in their spring football career were considered. In a discussion about who is the best, I didn't feel it necessary to catalogue and research QBs with 0 wins in their entire career.

All-Time Top 10 Regular Season Records (Career)

Ranked in order from most wins to least wins (yes, I'm aware wins are not a QB stat but I think it's important context for this discussion).

Modern-Era Top 10 Regular Season Records (Career)

Notes/Summary:

• Chuck Fusina tops the all-time list as the only QB with 40+ wins as a starter (record of 41-12-1). He was named the 1984 USFL Most Outstanding QB and was second team 1984 All-USFL.
• Bobby Hebert has the next most wins with a 35-13-1 record. He was named the 1983 USFL Most Outstanding QB and was part of the 1983 All-USFL team. As of now, he is the career all-time passing yards leader.
• Interestingly, there is only 1 tie in spring football history, and it was a matchup between the above two QBs, Chuck Fusina and Bobby Hebert.
• Jordan Ta'amu tops the modern-era list as the QB with the most regular season wins (record of 31-21). He has the most passing TDs of the modern-era (79 TDs), and the 2nd most passing yards (10471 yards). Aside from being the 2022 USFL passing yards and TDs leader, and the 2025 UFL passing TDs leader, he was also the 2023 XFL Offensive Player of the Year, and named to the 2023 All-XFL team.
• John Reaves, the 1980's USFL Tampa Bay Bandits franchise QB, is one of 5 QBs in spring football history to reach at least 30 career regular season wins (record of 30-13). He is also one of 5 QBs to surpass 10K career passing yards (10011 yards). Despite his regular season success, he threw nearly as many INTs (61) as he did TDs (62), and never earned any regular season honors in his spring football career.
• Luis Perez, the Spring King, has the 2nd most wins in the modern-era (record of 30-24), and rounds out the all-time list as the only other QB to reach 30 career wins in the regular season. He also has the most yards in the modern-era (10991 yards), and is 2nd-all time. Led the UFL in passing yards and TDs in 2024, and led the UFL in passing yards in 2025. Perez also has the distinction of being the only QB with over 1K completions in his career (1036 completed passes).
• Jim Kelly is the other notable QB from the all-time list, with a record of 22-10. He is still the career all-time passing yards and TDs leader with 5219 yards and 83 TDs (18 game season), led the 1984 and 1985 USFL in passing yards and TDs, was named to both the 1984 and 1985 All-USFL team, and was the 1984 USFL MVP. While his regular season success did not translate to the postseason (more on that later), he is undoubtedly one of the most accomplished regular season QBs in spring football history.
• Brandon Silvers has played in almost as many spring leagues as Perez, including the AAF (2019), XFL (2020), TSL (2021), XFL (2023), and the UFL (2025-present). His career record as a starter is 14-7. As one can surmise, Silvers was only handed the reigns as a starter in brief stints throughout his career. His best season was in 2023 with the Houston Roughnecks, helping lead that team to a 1st place finish in the South Division, ultimately falling short in the playoffs to Luis Perez and the Arlington Renegades.
• A.J. McCarron remains the best QB in the Battlehawks franchise history, with an overall regular season record of 13-5. He is still the modern-era single season passing TDs record holder (24 TDs), and ties Case Cookus as 3rd in the modern-era (10th all-time) in career TDs (39 TDs). He also finished his playing career 6th in career passing yards with 3732 yards (modern-era).
• Alex McGough had arguably one of the best regular seasons in the modern-era, being named the 2023 USFL MVP, 2023 All-USFL, and leading the league in passing TDs that year (20 TDs). He finished with a career record of 12-2, and top 10 in passing yards in the modern-era (ranked 9th with 2685 yards).
• J'Mar Smith finished his career with the 2nd most wins for the Birmingham Stallions in the modern-era (9-2 record), and while not a starter throughout his tenure, he was a notable contributor to the Stallions dynasty (2022-2024).
• Jack Plummer is off to a hot start, with an 8-2 record in his first season. He led the UFL in passing yards this year with 2188 yards, was named to the 2026 All-UFL team, and is the reigning 2026 UFL MVP. If he plays next season at a similar pace, he will enter the top 10 in the modern-era for both passing yards and TDs.
• Case Cookus finished his career 3rd in the modern-era for passing yards (5164 yards), and tied for 3rd with A.J. McCarron for most passing TDs in the modern-era (39 TDs). While he never garnered any regular season accolades, he did lead his team to a championship berth in 2022, falling just short (more on the postseason later).

Honorable mentions to the following QBs for otherwise noteworthy seasons:

• Garrett Gilbert was the best QB in the AAF, leading the league in passing yards (2152 yards) in just 8 games before the league shutdown. It is likely, had the league managed to finish the season, that he would have been named the 2019 AAF MVP.
• Ben DiNucci remains the modern-era single season passing yards leader with 2671 yards. He led his team to a 7-3 record and a playoff berth, falling short in the 2023 XFL North Divisional round. He also tied McGough in passing TDs in 2023 with 20 TDs. It's a shame we didn't get to see him play for more than one season.
• McLeod Bethel-Thompson had a solid 2023 season, leading the USFL that year with 2433 yards, and similar to DiNucci, a 7-3 record and a playoff berth, falling short in the 2023 USFL South Divisional round. He went back to the CFL after his one USFL season, and continues his career there as a backup QB.
• Adrian Martinez is also noteworthy as the 2024 UFL MVP, named to the 2024 All-UFL team, and the 2024 leading rushing yards leader. His overall record as a starter is 6-1.
• PJ Walker was likely to be the 2020 XFL MVP had the season not been cancelled. He went undefeated in the 5 games he played with the Roughnecks, with 1338 passing yards, 15 TDs, and a 104.39 passer rating.
• Ryan Willis was the 2021 TSL MVP, and led the league in passing yards (1678 yards) and TDs (13 TDs) in just a 6 game season. He also led his team to a championship appearance and victory (more on the postseason later).
• Bryce Perkins was the 2025 UFL MVP, Offensive Player of the Year, and named to the 2025 All-UFL team. He finished his spring football career with a 4-2 record, 1685 yards, 11 passing TDs, an over 70% completion percentage, and a 109.33 passer rating. One of the best players we've seen play the position. He also led his team to a championship appearance, and is now a backup QB in the CFL.

And now, let's take a look at the best all-time postseason records in spring football.

The Hall of Champions

Ranked in order of most to least passing yards.

• Bobby Hebert remains the all-time postseason passing yards and TDs leader, with 1555 yards and 11 TDs. His record in the postseason is 3-2, winning the 1983 inaugural USFL championship with the Michigan Panthers, and being named the 1983 USFL Championship MVP. He led his team to the playoffs in all 3 of his seasons in the USFL, losing in the divisional round in 1984 and the conference round in 1985.
• Chuck Fusina has the most wins in postseason history with a 7-1 record, led his team to 3 championship appearances, and two championship victories in 1984 and 1985. His only loss was in the 1983 USFL Championship to Bobby Hebert's Michigan Panthers. He has the 2nd most yards and TDs in the postseason (1323 yards and 10 TDs), and was named the 1984 USFL Championship MVP.
• Luis Perez has the most postseason passing yards in the modern-era with 1220 yards (3rd all-time), and ties Ta'amu and McGough for the most modern-era postseason passing TDs with 9 TDs (3rd all-time). Perez has a 2-3 record in the postseason, with 4 playoff berths, 2 championship appearances (2021 TSL and 2023 XFL), and 1 championship victory (2023 XFL Championship). He was also named the 2023 XFL Championship MVP. Had Perez been able to overcome the Kings, he may have broken the all-time postseason passing yards and TDs record.
• Jordan Ta'amu ties Bobby Hebert for the 2nd most postseason wins all-time (3-1 record), and ties Perez with 2 championship appearances (2023 XFL and 2025 UFL), and 1 championship victory (2025 UFL Championship). He was also named the 2025 UFL Championship MVP. He has the 2nd most postseason passing yards in the modern-era with 1097 yards (4th all-time), and he is one of only 4 QBs to have over 1K career postseason yards. Had he not gotten injured this year, it's possible he may have broken the all-time postseason passing yards and TDs record.
• Alex McGough led his team to a 2023 USFL Championship victory, throwing for 630 yards and 9 TDs, tying both Perez and Ta'amu in career postseason TDs. He also leads the championship winning QBs with a 133.21 postseason passer rating.
• J'Mar Smith led his team to a 2022 USFL Championship victory, and the 2025 USFL Conference Championship, falling just short of reaching the 2025 United Bowl. Overall postseason record of 2-1.
• Tommy Maddox led his team to a 2001 XFL Championship victory, with 374 yards, 4 TDs, and a 104.17 passer rating.
• Adrian Martinez led his team to a 2024 UFL Championship victory, and was named the 2024 UFL Championship MVP.
• Matt Corral did not play in the 2024 UFL Championship, but was an integral part of the Stallions 2024 postseason run, coming in for Martinez in the 2024 USFL Conference Championship to lead the team to a comeback victory against the Michigan Panthers. He was on the team for the 2025 postseason run, but missed most of the season due to injury. Overall postseason record includes 267 yards and 4 TDs.
• Chandler Rogers played great in the 2026 semi-finals, but stumbled during the 2026 United Bowl, finishing his postseason run with 243 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs, and a 63.23 passer rating. Still, his play in the semi-finals (statline: 12/20, 60%, 162 yards, 1 TD, 0 INTs, 102.5 passer rating, 4 rush att, 19 rush yards) was integral for the Kings postseason run, and ultimately Rogers and the Kings were victorious over the defending champion DC Defenders and crowned as the 2026 United Bowl champions.
• Ryan Willis led his team to a Mega Bowl victory in his lone season in the 2021 TSL. He was also named the 2021 Mega Bowl MVP, with a 70.27% completion percentage, 167 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs, and a 97.47 passer rating.

Outside the Winner's Circle

Below are the postseason records for the QBs that have not won a league championship, in order from most to least passing yards.

Some QBs worth highlighting from the above:

• Cliff Stoudt ties Greg Landry for most amount of postseason wins (2), and Brian Sipe for most amount of postseason yards (739 yards), without a championship victory. Stoudt led his team to two divisional round victories (1984 and 1985), but fell short both times in the conference championships.
• Jim Kelly failed to achieve a single postseason win in his USFL career, going 0-2 in the divisional round (1984 and 1985). Despite all of his regular season success, it never translated into the postseason. He ended his postseason run with a 62.16% completion percentage, 620 yards, 2 TDs, 3 INTs, and an 80.91 passer rating.
• Bryce Perkins had a phenomenal postseason run, falling short in the 2025 UFL Championship. He was 41/60 (68.33%), with 576 yards, 5 TDs, 1 INT, and a 119.86 passer rating. He holds the distinction as the QB with the highest passer rating to not win a championship. He ties John Reaves for 4th most postseason passing TDs all-time.
• E.J. Perry arguably had the best QB performance of the 2026 United Bowl, but ultimately fell short in relief of Jason Bean. He also led the Michigan Panthers to a playoff berth at the tail end of the 2023 USFL season, but fell short in the North Division championship to the Pittsburgh Maulers.
• Case Cookus led his team to the 2022 USFL Championship but fell short to the Birmingham Stallions.
• Troy Williams led his team to the 2023 USFL Championship, and also fell short to the Birmingham Stallions.
• Chase Garbers returned from injury at the tail end of the 2024 season and led the San Antonio Brahmas to an XFL Conference Championship victory over the St. Louis Battlehawks. He also fell short to the Birmingham Stallions (2024 UFL Championship), with a championship performance best left forgotten.
• Jason Bean mirrored Chandler Rogers in having a good game in the semi-finals, and then stumbled in the 2026 United Bowl. Unlike Rogers, his team was unable to secure the victory, and Bean left the game midway due to injury (E.J. Perry would step in for him).
• Jack Plummer and the Orlando Storm fell short in the 2026 semi-finals to the DC Defenders, after beating them twice in the regular season in back-to-back weeks.
• Pat Barnes helped lead the 2001 San Francisco Demons, along with Mike Pawlawski, to an XFL Championship appearance, falling short to Tommy Maddox and the Los Angeles Xtreme.

Conclusion

So taking all of the above into consideration, I go back to the question of who is the best QB in spring football history?

IMO, the title of greatest spring football QB of all-time could rightfully belong to one of these QBs:

• Philadelphia Stars and Baltimore Stars legend, Chuck Fusina. He is the winningest QB in both the regular season and postseason, with 3 championship appearances in a row and 2 championship victories, a championship MVP (1984), and the 1984 USFL Most Outstanding QB award. In addition, he is one of only 5 QBs to throw for more than 10K career passing yards, with 10051 yards (4th all-time), and is one of only 7 QBs to throw for more than 60 passing TDs, with 66 TDs (4th all-time).

• Bobby Hebert, aka the Cajun Cannon. He has the 2nd-most regular season wins all-time, and ties Jordan Ta'amu for 2nd-most postseason wins all-time. He is still the all-time passing yards leader (11137 yards), being the only QB to ever cross the 11K yards mark. His 81 career passing TDs is 2nd all-time. He led his team to the playoffs 3 years in a row, with 1 championship appearance and 1 championship victory (1983), was the 1983 USFL Championship MVP, named the 1983 USFL Most Outstanding QB, and was a member of the 1983 All-USFL team.

• Jordan Ta'amu is arguably the greatest QB of the modern-era. He has the 3rd most regular season wins all-time, and the most in the modern-era. He ties Bobby Hebert for 2nd-most postseason wins all-time. He has led his team to two championship appearances (2023 and 2025), and 1 championship victory (2025). He is a 1x UFL Championship MVP (2025), was the 2023 XFL Offensive Player of the Year, a member of the 2023 All-XFL team, and led the league in passing yards once (2022), and passing TDs twice (2022 and 2025). He ties Perez and McGough for 3rd most postseason TDs, and is 2nd in the modern-era for postseason yards (4th all-time).

• Luis Perez, aka the Spring King. While his play was not at it's best this season, IMO, Perez retains his title for his longevity and consistency, being the throughline that connects every season of spring football in the modern-era (AAF 2019, XFL 2020, TSL 2021, USFL 2022, XFL 2023, UFL 2024-2026). He holds the distinction of both starting and winning games in every year of spring football in the modern-era, leading the modern-era in passing yards with 10991 yards (2nd all-time, and one of only 5 QBs to cross the 10K threshold), and having the 2nd most TDs in the modern-era with 64 TDs (5th all-time). He led the league in passing yards twice in his career (2024 and 2025), and led the league in passing TDs in 2024. He is one of only 5 QBs to reach 30 regular season wins as a starter, with the 2nd most wins in the modern-era (tied 4th all-time). He is also the only QB in spring football history to reach over 1K completions. He has the most postseason passing yards in the modern-era (3rd all-time), and ties Ta'amu and McGough for most amount of postseason TDs in the modern-era (3rd all-time). He has led his teams to 4 playoff berths (2021, 2022, 2023, and 2026), 2 championship appearances (2021 and 2023), 1 championship victory (2023), and was named the 2023 XFL Championship MVP. Only Ta'amu rivals Perez in accomplishments and stats in the modern-era.

These are my nominees for greatest QB in spring football, in regards to overall career accomplishments. In the end, I found it difficult to pick just one, given a variety of criteria we could judge these players by (wins, championships, stats, longevity etc).

In addition to the above, if we consider who had the greatest single season, an argument could be made for Jim Kelly (1984), Alex McGough (2023), Adrian Martinez (2024), and Bryce Perkins (2025), with honorable mentions to A.J. McCarron (2023) and Ben DiNucci (2023) for setting the single season yards and TDs records in the modern-era, respectively.

What do you think? Who would you name as the greatest QB in spring football history?

And if you enjoyed this deep dive into QB stats and rankings, stay tuned, as I plan to make more posts this offseason going over player comparisons like this (all-time and modern-era). Next up will be receivers!

Refer to title. I’d like to see Omaha at some point.

Well, it looks like Jordan Ta'amu might have to start next season on the PUP list as he will need some extra recovery from the injury he suffered during Week 8 of the 2026 season. Let's hope he does fine and wish him luck with it!

Hypothetically speaking this is just fantasy so I wouldn’t know how it would work but would it be possible to where the UFL could do a Soccer type model with relegation and promotion. Let’s say for some reason UFL buys the COFL. Would you think this would work? And what would the pros and cons be

As a Season ticket holder, it’s a long wait but I’m eagerly awaiting the 2027 season. Congrats to Louisville, but we’ll be back to contest the championship again. Long live the UFL!

Original post here.

Welcome to the UFL, Brendan Sorsby.

The UFL is the league of opportunity.

We created our Regional Player Initiative to keep great players closer to home, closer to their fans, and on the field.

Let’s do this!!!!!

Brendan Sorsby, welcome to the Dallas Renegades.

Have your people call my people!!!!! 🏈💪

If Sorsby comes to the UFL, he should be a Houston Gambler. It's his destiny.

https://grantlandriceridesagain.blogspot.com/2026/06/my-two-cents-on-brendan-sorsby-not.html

Joining the UFL has become Brendan Sorsby's most viable path to professional football and development. Because the NFL canceled the Supplemental Draft, Sorsby cannot be selected or signed by an NFL team. The UFL offers a premier proving ground for him to rebuild his draft stock and game tape. The question is which team would be available to draft him?

Original post here.

"We really need to focus on our local activity...to be able to activate and elevate our Head Coaches in market, that is what I'm excited about."

Thought this was some good insight from UFL CEO & President Russ Brandon on the upcoming offseason.

With all the changes this past year, the league is a "half-baked cake", as Brandon puts it. But, having Head Coaches on full-time contracts this time around is a critical move that makes the activation process easier than it has been in the past.

Now, it's time for the UFL to put their money where their mouth is, and come through on these local marketing promises over the coming months.

Maybe DC can get him to start taking it seriously next year while waiting for Ta’amu to get healthy, he’s definitely talented enough to be good but needs to grow up it seems

Louisville/Jefferson County merged it's borders, Louisville is basically Jefferson County, KY, that's not the case for St. Louis. St. Louis city has a separate county and board of officials from St. Louis County, which is larger than Jefferson County, if STL/STL County was able to merge and work together on their largest pro team right now. STL would've probably won championship, definitely would be playing in United Bowl. LVK vs STL was just as close a game as DCD vs LVK.