Last Monday it was the Favre-Rodgers hoo-hah, and for a good piece of the evening, brother — what a show it was.

And don’t forget last Sunday, when we got Brady v. Flacco … and Roethlisberger v. Rivers … and Sanchez-Brees … and Peyton was ripping Seattle, like he does, and Eli was drilling K.C., and Jay Cutler was gunning up the Lions, and when you step back and take it all in, the evidence shows we’ve hit a real hotspot for pro quarterbacks.

Once there was a time when nearly every team had something going at the position. Way back … decades ago, a real era of lore for QBs. It came to a head with the golden draft of ’83, the Marino-Elway-Kelly kaboom. And Steve Young — in 1984.

But from there, on a quality basis, it’s been a position under steady erosion. No one is certain why, but there have been far more misses than hits in QB procurement. Guys never pan out. Until now. Now, the quarterback is back.

Proof, you say? Easy. Let’s take a look at the rosters of 1999 to see what’s what, how the passers from a decade ago match up against the sophisticated arm power of today.

Of course there is a strange trio of caveats to deal with — Favre and Kurt Warner and Kerry Collins. Favre was a Packer in ’99 and a Viking today. Warner was a Ram then, a Cardinal now. Collins was a Giant, now a Titan. You can’t count ’em each twice … or can you? I can. It’s my rulebook. It’s around here someplace.

AFC — 1999 versus 2009

Miami — Dan Marino vs. Chad Pennington. Age or injury? The last snaps for Danny, turning out the lights on a 17-year career. Pennington has time on his clock but the body won’t stop breaking down. A tie.
 
Buffalo — Doug Flutie vs. Trent Edwards. Flutie willed Buffalo to its last playoff appearance. Then, on gameday in Tennessee, they benched him before kickoff and the Bills lost. One of the real wack-job decisions. Edwards is limited. He may never see a postseason. Flutie wins.

New England — Drew Bledsoe vs. Tom Brady. Brady shoved out Bledsoe for the job in 2001. He also shoves him here.

N.Y. Jets — Ray Lucas/Rick Mirer vs. Mark Sanchez. Sanchez becomes the first rookie QB ever to start a season 3-0. Now he’s 3-1. The rule is, fine SC prospects trump guys separated by slashes.

Pittsburgh — Kordell Stewart vs. Ben Roethlisberger. Stewart drove defenses loopy when he was lining up all over the place. They liked him best under center, a true purveyor of inaccuracy. Roethy is headed toward the Hall, one of the great instinct QBs of this era. Big Ben.

Cincinnati — Jeff Blake vs. Carson Palmer. Blake is one of the reasons they drafted Akili Smith. Smith is why they went after Palmer. He hasn’t disappointed. A vote for ’09.

Cleveland — Tim Couch vs. Derek Anderson. You felt bad for Couch, an expansion QB who was tossed into heavy traffic. Too many cars to dodge. Too many wrecks on the interstate. Anderson is streaky, poor on the move, but better overall. Anderson.

Baltimore — Tony Banks vs. Joe Flacco. Flacco couldn’t win a college job at Pitt, but he’s good enough to play in an AFC title as a rookie. That’s strange. Banks was lost from day one. Flacco’s the pick.

Tennessee — Steve McNair vs. Kerry Collins. McNair near his peak, before all the injuries took over. Not always stylish, but a man who understood winning. Collins has always been a doorstep quarterback … knock, ring the bell, wipe the feet, then on to the next house. McNair.

Indianapolis — Peyton Manning vs. himself. Remember Peyton’s second year in the league? 533 throws, 62.1 percent completions, 26 for touchdowns … yes, the 15 INTS, but how many love those numbers today? Day-in, day-out, the best ever to man the position. 2009 — and the mature Peyton — wins.

Jacksonville — Mark Brunell vs. David Garrard. Brunell’s an easy choice. Much steadier. Zipped it quite well on the run. Garrard looks like he’s ready to bloom, then a late frost always moves in.

Houston — The Texans did not exist in 1999.

Oakland — Rich Gannon vs. JaMarcus Russell. Gannon played himself out of the league in ’94; five years later he was a Pro Bowler. Russell is playing himself out of the league right now. The Pro Bowler.

Denver — Brian Griese vs. Kyle Orton. I hate this matchup. No real distinctions emerge. Griese looked like he’d develop but never came around. Orton looks like he can’t develop but what about the 25-12 record as a starter?  7-Up or Sprite, kids? Another joyless tie.

Kansas City — Elvis Grbac vs. Matt Cassel. Cassell looked like the real deal in the autumn of New England, all those zippy numbers, the 11-5 record, straight off the bench. This year? Not so great. He’s been hurt I guess, but Grbac was never that fancy himself. A draw — for now.

San Diego — Jim Harbaugh vs. Philip Rivers. Harbaugh was known as Captain Comeback. That’s because he was always behind. Rivers’ biggest obstacle in San Diego has been the coaching. He should have hit the Super Bowl by now. Someday, I think, he will. Rivers earns the mark.

AFC Tally: 2009 wins (8-4-3)

NFC — 1999 versus 2009

Dallas — Troy Aikman vs. Tony Romo. Quite a controversial pairing. Aikman is a Cowboy hero, but by ’99 the concussion level was getting deep and his effectiveness was dropping way off. Romo has been a tease thus far, but you still expect some real upside, so … it’s Romo.

N.Y. Giants — Kerry Collins vs. Eli Manning. Both have led the G’ints to Super Bowls. Eli won his. That’s the separator. The nod is toward Manning.

Philadelphia — Donovan McNabb vs. himself. Donovan of ’09, well-aged in the barrel, is better.

Washington — Brad Johnson vs. Jason Campbell. There aren’t many ’99 alums whom Campbell could outduel. Johnson isn’t one of them. B.J. wins.

Chicago — Shane Matthews/Cade McNown vs. Jay Cutler. After four games we can observe that Cutler is the best Windy town QB since Papa Halas grinned at Sid Luckman.

Detroit — Gus Frerotte/Charlie Batch vs. Matthew Stafford. Tough times in East Michigan these days. Tough back then too. Stafford’s young, to raw to judge, so it’s a push, which ain’t so bad, right Detroit?

Green Bay — Brett Favre vs. Aaron Rodgers. The Brett of ’99 wins … but wait. It gets stranger, just ahead.

Minnesota — Jeff George/Randall Cunningham vs. Brett Favre. See how much easier this would be had Brett just stayed quit … checking his stock charts … fishing around for bluegill? George was a primo talent but slouchy. Cunningham blew all his chips during his memorable ’98 explosion; the following year he was finished. The Favre time machine wins again.

Carolina — Steve Beurlein vs. Jake Delhomme. At 34, Jake seems to be breaking down, that recent glut of killer turnovers. But he still hangs in there over Beurlein.

Tampa Bay — Trent Dilfer vs. Byron Leftwich/Josh Johnson. Dilfer, with reluctance. Trent was never that good. But yes, he does own a ring.

Atlanta — Chris Chandler vs. Matt Ryan. Chandler, coming off a strong Super Bowl year in ‘98, weilds the better résumé.

New Orleans — Billy Joe Tolliver/Billy Joe Hobert vs. Drew Brees. A mismatch. d’Artagnan versus a pair of beat cops with nightsticks. M. Brees tips his cap.

San Francisco — Jeff Garcia vs. Shaun Hill. Garcia, still the classiest Niner QB since Steve Young stepped aside.

St. Louis — Kurt Warner vs. Marc Bulger. It was one of the all-time sparkling seasons, the Warner of ’99. One to be framed and admired, with long viewing lines, caressed by the gallery lights.

Seattle — Jon Kitna vs. Matt Hasselbeck. QBs with similar stories. Minimal upside, the draft reports said. The reports were wrong. Hasselbeck just rose a little higher.

Arizona — Jake Plummer vs. Kurt Warner/Matt Leinert. Ten years ago the Plummer watch was on. Smallish, but you liked the slick gambling style. A player on the come. Who never got any better. So you go with Warner/Leinert. Sounds like a pharma company.

NFC Tally: 2009 wins (9-6-1)

Overall: 2009 over 1999 (17-10-4). The quarterback is back.