About

The NFL passer rating compresses four independent metrics - completion percentage, yards per attempt, touchdown percentage, and interception percentage - into a single composite index scaled from 0.0 to 158.3. Each component a, b, c, d is individually clamped to the range [0, 2.375] before averaging. A "perfect" rating of 158.3 requires at least 77.5% completions, 12.5 yards/attempt, 11.875% touchdown rate, and 0.0% interception rate - thresholds no quarterback has sustained over a full season. The formula was adopted by the NFL in 1973 and remains the official efficiency metric, despite criticism that it ignores rushing, sack avoidance, and game context.

This calculator also computes the NCAA passer efficiency rating, which uses a different linear formula and has no upper bound. Misreading the scale is a common error: an NFL rating of 100 is above-average, while an NCAA rating of 100 is below-average. A minimum of 1 attempt is required; the formula is undefined at zero attempts due to division by zero. Pro tip: when comparing across eras, note that rule changes favoring passing have inflated modern passer ratings by roughly 15 - 20 points compared to pre-2004 averages.

Formulas

The NFL passer rating decomposes into four clamped components. Each is individually bounded to the range [0, 2.375] before final aggregation.

a = clamp(COMP / ATT − 0.30.2)

b = clamp(YDS / ATT − 34)

c = clamp(20 × TD / ATT)

d = clamp(2.375 − 25 × INT / ATT)

Rating = a + b + c + d6 × 100

The NCAA passer efficiency rating uses a different linear formula with no upper bound:

NCAA = 8.4 × YDS + 330 × TD − 200 × INT + 100 × COMPATT

Where: COMP = completions, ATT = pass attempts, YDS = passing yards, TD = touchdown passes, INT = interceptions. The clamp function restricts each component to [0, 2.375].

Reference Data

Rating Range (NFL)	Performance Tier	Historical Context
158.3	Perfect	Achieved in single games; never over a full season
120.0 - 158.2	Elite	Top-5 all-time season performances
100.0 - 119.9	Excellent	Pro Bowl caliber; ~top 10 QBs in a season
90.0 - 99.9	Very Good	Solid starter; above league average
80.0 - 89.9	Good	Competent starter; near league average (~87 in 2023)
70.0 - 79.9	Average	Borderline starter / high-end backup
60.0 - 69.9	Below Average	Likely to lose starting job
< 60.0	Poor	Replacement-level or worse
All-Time NFL Season Records
122.5	Aaron Rodgers (2011)	Highest single-season NFL passer rating
121.1	Tua Tagovailoa (2023)	2nd highest single-season NFL passer rating
117.5	Peyton Manning (2004)	Pre-2010 era record
112.8	Nick Foles (2013)	27 TD / 2 INT season
110.0	Russell Wilson (2015)	34 TD / 8 INT
Component Boundaries (NFL Formula)
Component a	Completion %	Clamped [0, 2.375]
Component b	Yards / Attempt	Clamped [0, 2.375]
Component c	TD %	Clamped [0, 2.375]
Component d	INT %	Clamped [0, 2.375]
NCAA Passer Efficiency Benchmarks
200+	Exceptional	Heisman-caliber seasons
150 - 199	Excellent	All-conference level
120 - 149	Good	Above-average starter
100 - 119	Below Average	Struggles with efficiency
< 100	Poor	May lose starting position

Frequently Asked Questions

The ceiling of 158.3 is an artifact of the formula's construction. Each of the four components is clamped to a maximum of 2.375. When all four reach their maximum, the sum is 9.5. Dividing by 6 yields approximately 1.58333, and multiplying by 100 gives 158.333… repeating. The NFL rounds this to 158.3. The number was never designed to be aesthetically clean - it emerged from the algebraic structure of the clamping bounds chosen in 1973.

Yes. If a quarterback throws at least one attempt with zero completions, zero touchdowns, and zero interceptions, component d (interception avoidance) evaluates to 2.375 (maximum), while a and c are 0 and b may be 0 or nonzero depending on yards from penalties credited. The minimum possible rating with 0 completions and 0 interceptions on a single incompletion is (0 + 0 + 0 + 2.375) / 6 × 100 = 39.6. However, if there are interceptions, d drops and the rating can reach 0.0.

The traditional NFL passer rating uses only passing statistics (completions, attempts, yards, touchdowns, interceptions) and applies a fixed algebraic formula. ESPN's Total QBR is a proprietary metric scaled 0-100 that incorporates rushing, expected points added, win probability, opponent strength, and game context. The two are not comparable on the same scale. This calculator computes only the official NFL passer rating and the NCAA passer efficiency rating.

The NFL passer rating was designed in 1973 by Don Smith of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. At the time, sacks were not consistently tracked as an official statistic (they became official in 1982). Fumbles were considered a ball-handling metric separate from passing efficiency. While this is a known limitation - a quarterback who takes many sacks avoiding interceptions gets a deceptively high rating - the NFL has not updated the formula. Alternative metrics like ESPN QBR and PFF grades address these gaps.

The NFL requires a minimum of 14 attempts per scheduled game (currently 238 attempts over a 17-game season) for a quarterback to qualify for the season passing title. For single-game analysis, the rating is technically valid with 1 attempt, but with small samples, extreme values are common and misleading. A quarterback who completes 1 of 1 for 50 yards and a touchdown achieves a perfect 158.3 - which says nothing about sustained performance.

Direct comparison is misleading. Rule changes in 1978 (allowing receivers to be contacted only within 5 yards), 1994 (restricting defensive contact), and 2004-onward (stricter enforcement of illegal contact and roughing the passer) have systematically inflated passing statistics. The league average passer rating has risen from approximately 60 in the 1970s to approximately 87-92 in the 2020s. To compare across eras, normalize by subtracting the league average rating of that season, producing a "rating above average" metric.