Eli Manning, Philip Rivers or Ben Roethlisberger: Most career TD passes?

Eli Manning (No. 1 overall pick), Philip Rivers (No. 4) and Ben Roethlisberger (No. 11) were the first three quarterbacks off the board in the 2004 NFL Draft, and they've all carried their weight over the past 11 years. Eli and Big Ben both own a pair of Super Bowl rings, while Rivers boasts the most Pro Bowl nods (five) and the highest career passer rating (95.7) of the trio.

One area where these guys have produced at an eerily similar rate: touchdown passes. Currently, all three QBs rank in the top 20 in career scoring strikes, with Manning at No. 13 (259 TDs), Rivers at 16 (252) and Roethlisberger at 17 (251). Vinny Testaverde ranks 10th at 275, so a top-10 spot on the all-time list is within reach for each of these three signal callers entering the 2015 campaign.

With all of that in mind ... Which QB from the 2004 draft class will end up with the most career touchdown passes: Manning, Rivers or Roethlisberger?

I'll roll with Ben Roethlisberger. He's made up ground in recent years and has the best supporting cast, with Antonio Brown, Le'Veon Bell and an offensive line that is better than it's ever been. Big Ben is also sneakily more than a year younger than Manning. This question is about longevity. At one point, we worried that Roethlisberger would age poorly because his game was less cerebral. Those fears have been calmed in recent years.

Roethlisberger should take the lead in this competition with big-time production over the next two seasons, and Big Ben should keep getting chances longer than the other two, because he's simply the best player of the group. What a fantastic question. It is remarkable how even Big Ben, Eli and Rivers have been throughout their respective careers. But I'll take Manning, given that he has a bit of a lead right now and is playing with top-tier receivers in a passing offense.

I think Eli will extend his lead this season for many reasons. It's his second year in Ben McAdoo's offense -- he's comfortable. The Giants' defense is subpar, so New York will be trailing in many games, forcing Eli to throw the ball at a high rate. Manning really came on at the end of 2014, but I'll stick with Roethlisberger. I really like the firepower around Big Ben ( Le'Veon Bell, Antonio Brown, Markus Wheaton, Martavis Bryant), and he's coming off an unbelievable 2014 (67.1 percent completion rate with 4,952 passing yards and 32 touchdowns against just nine picks). It wasn't the first time he'd thrown that many scoring passes, either; he also notched 32 in 2007. He has averaged 27 TD strikes per season over the last four years.

And don't forget: Roethlisberger will have to pick up some of the slack while Bell is suspended, meaning he'll get more opportunities to add to the total in 2015. Roethlisberger will end up having the most successful career; Rivers will have the more impressive stats. With an offensive-minded head coach in Mike McCoy who has done very well with quarterbacks, Rivers is in a strong position to be quite productive over the remainder of his career.

And given that he didn't start a game until Year 3, Rivers has produced more on a year-by-year basis than Roethlisberger or Manning. Eli is set up to produce good numbers with Odell Beckham Jr. and Victor Cruz, but it won't be enough. With Le'Veon Bell in the mix (and just entering his prime), the Steelers should be a heavier run team than the Chargers. I think this is between Eli Manning and Ben Roethlisberger, because the receiving corps those two have to work with are better than Philip Rivers' group. ( Antonio Gates has enjoyed a tremendous career in San Diego, but he is nearing the end -- and he's set to miss the first quarter of the season with his four-game suspension.)

To me, this is a flip of the coin between Eli and Big Ben. They both have true No. 1 wide receivers in Odell Beckham Jr. and Antonio Brown. I like Manning, though, because I think he has the edge at WR2 with Victor Cruz. Manning is the pick in this debate. He is flanked by a pair of gifted pass catchers ( Odell Beckham Jr. and Victor Cruz), and Ben McAdoo's offensive scheme emphasizes a quick-rhythm passing game. With the Giants set to air it out for the foreseeable future, I believe Manning is in the best position to ring up big numbers for the balance of his career. When it comes time to judge 2004's Big Three QBs at the pearly gates of Canton, it seems unlikely a few TD passes in either direction will affect any of the trio's candidacy, but alright, I'll dance: Phil averages 1.7 touchdowns per game over the course of his career, better than Ben's 1.58 and Eli's 1.53. In a vacuum, that suggests Rivers oughta end up on top. ... But the cold reality is, his current collection of pass catchers ranks a distant third to those in Pittsburgh and New Jersey. Bottom line: Who cares? It's probably gonna end up very close.

The real question is, who's had the best career?

Eli's got those two rings, but he is the least efficient: Whereas Ben and Phil average .82 interceptions per game, Eli throws 1.09 per game. Rivers is a borderline Hall of Famer, but his mid-career swoon and lack of even one Super Bowl appearance drops him behind Roethlisberger, whose gold jacket is all but guaranteed even if he retires later today.