Which quarterback has the most career passing yards in NFL history?

Which quarterback has the most career passing yards in NFL history? Tom Brady holds the record, with 89,214 regular-season passing yards.

Brady accumulated that total during 23 seasons with the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He passed Drew Brees for the career yardage record late in the 2021 season, then extended the lead during his final season in 2022. His record reflects both high-level efficiency and extraordinary durability.

Drew Brees is second with 80,358 yards, followed by Peyton Manning with 71,940. Brett Favre was also once the NFL’s career passing-yardage leader, which explains why he is a frequent answer in older versions of this question, but Brady ultimately moved past him and every other predecessor.

These figures cover regular-season passing yards. Brady also owns the postseason record, with 13,400 playoff passing yards, giving him the highest combined regular-season and playoff total in NFL history.