Tennessee football’s five QBs with greatest NFL careers

Teams played for:

• New York Jets: 1978-1990
• Philadelphia Eagles: 1991

This one might be shocking to a lot of people. Pat Ryan went to Tennessee football as a backup to Condredge Holloway and then Randy Wallace. Johnny Majors arrived in 1977, and Ryan was in contention to be the starting quarterback. However, Ryan was a pure drop-back passer, and Majors brought in the veer/I-formation mix.

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As a result, the styles clashed. Ryan got his first start against the Oregon State Beavers with Rocky Top 1-2, and he appeared to be the answer en route to a 40-18 win with a dominant performance. But he then lost his starting job to Jimmy Streater amidst a three-game losing streak after that because of the clash of styles.

Still, even with limited experience, Ryan was taken in the 11th round of the NFL Draft by the New York Jets. He spent 13 years there and appeared in 145 games, starting in 19 of them. As a starter, he actually went 11-8, and he even started two playoff games in 1986 winning one.

In his two playoff starts, Ryan looked like a clutch performer, completing 64.7 percent of his passes for 256 yards, four touchdowns and 0 interceptions. During the regular season, he completed 55.4 percent of his passes for 4,320 yards, 31 touchdowns and 35 interceptions.

Ryan finished his career with the Philadelphia Eagles in 1991, appearing in four games. So as a career backup on Rocky Top, he became the second most successful pro quarterback ever who played for the Vols.