The situation around the NFL as it relates to quarterbacks is a fascinating one. Many people will call it a problem, but the reality is there just have never been a ton of great quarterbacks. A world where 32 NFL teams have high-end quarterbacks has never existed. In 2017, however, we have a crop of young quarterbacks coming along, trying to establish themselves as legitimate signal callers paired with a group of old, potential Hall of Fame quarterbacks who are on the way out. 

Unlike the last generation though, we've seen some of these older quarterbacks play longer than ever. Tom Brady is 40 and he is one of the top MVP candidates in 2017. Drew Brees isn't having his typically huge season (the Saints are running the ball really well this year) but he's still great at the age of 38. These guys say they want to play until they're 45; it's not just offseason lip service anymore.

NFL on CBS analyst Rich Gannon, who will be on the call for Ravens-Packers on CBS in Week 11 (stream it on CBS All Access here), joined the Pick Six Podcast (subscribe on iTunes here!) recently and colleague Pete Prisco asked Gannon about the success of guys like Brady and Drew Brees -- Gannon himself won the NFL MVP at the ripe age of 37. He believes it's all in the legs. And the different approach to health that these modern quarterbacks are taking.

"Your legs. I think most people don't take care of their legs. A couple positions it's very noticeable. We always say 'when they go, they go quick.' At receiver and defensive back, when you can't run at those positions, you simply can't play anymore. Look at Rivers -- he doesn't have very much left in his legs, and it affects the way he throws the ball. When the legs go, you struggle a little bit," Gannon explained. "I think when you look at the quarterbacks you're talking about [Tom Brady, Drew Brees, etc.], they've all gone to great lengths to take care of themselves.

"This is a different game, guys. These guys are into nutrition and soft-tissue specialists and acupunctures and different diets and workout routines. So you can play a long time. If you're smart like Brady and Brees and [Eli] Manning, they don't take the unnecessary hits. How often do you put the film on Monday morning and see one of those guys get hit in the back of the head with a corner blitz or a free safety they didn't see coming off the edge? It just doesn't happen. 

"There is luck involved, but there is also a lot of skill and expertise involved, and that's why those guys have gone to great lengths to be able to play the game at a high level."

Gannon, by the way, was unreal during the latter stage of his career. From 1999 (when he was 34) through 2002 (when he was 37), Gannon averaged 3,947 passing yards, 26 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Those were huge numbers in a time before passing offenses took off. His 4,689-yard season led to an MVP award in 2002. 

Like everyone else, he knows that football is still a young man's game. So he helpfully broke down three young quarterbacks --  Dak Prescott, Carson Wentz and Jared Goff -- as well. 

Gannon believes Prescott is in the "perfect system" but also recognized just how "poised" Prescott is.

"Dak I think is in the perfect system. They've got four former first-round picks along the offensive line and a guy [La'El Collins] who would have been a first-round pick if he hadn't had issues coming out of LSU, so that's a really good offensive line. That's how they've built the thing. Of course you've got maybe the most talented runner in the game right now [Ezekiel Elliott], so he's got a good supporting cast and, of course, a great receiver," Gannon said. "But in fairness, I think he makes the game look very easy. He's a bigger guy who has a kind of running back build when you look at his legs and his upper body. He's just very poised, he throws the ball well, he doesn't make a lot of mistakes. He's really just a winner, when you study his background. 

"I really like him -- that's an example of a quarterback, you put him in Cleveland, we may not be talking about him right now. But he goes to a team that is ready for a young quarterback and he has great success."

Speaking of Cleveland, Gannon accurately points out that they should be in possession of Carson Wentz, who Gannon believes has more "arm talent" than we give him credit for.

"And you look at Carson Wentz, he should have gone to Cleveland. If you're the Browns, how do you look yourself in the mirror every morning when you see this guy play, you see Deshaun Watson play, you see Derek Carr play -- they could have had him four years ago -- what a disaster. But Carson Wentz, I love him. Big kid -- 237 [pounds] -- he throws the ball well," Gannon said. "His arm talent we don't talk enough about. He can change speeds, throw the fastball, he can put touch on it. He's got good wrist talent. He makes plays -- he's not afraid to pull it down and run. He sits in there, very poised, smart guy that can handle a lot of volume. That's a good football team right now and he's a big reason why. And he's taken better care of the football, which as we know was a problem last year."

And, fairly, Gannon would like to see a little bit more out of Jared Goff before crowning him as part of that conversation.

"In terms of Jared Goff, I still think we need to see more of his body of work. Last year was a train wreck with the Rams, in terms of his coach and play caller. The guy who was calling plays there is now a tight end coach somewhere, which tells you a little bit about what was going on there last year," Gannon said. "They went out and got Andrew Whitworth, that helps, the left tackle. You go out and get a couple receivers in [Sammy] Watkins and [Robert] Woods. A lot of credit has to go to Sean McVay. Smart guy, knows how to coach the position, knows how to call plays, knows how to bring a young quarterback along and I think they've made a pretty good marriage so far."

The bottom line: the NFL is going to lose a lot of very good quarterbacks in the next five years or so. But there is a really good class coming in behind them to help elevate the talent level. Now we just need to get these guys to play well into their 30s too.