Since his entry into the NFL, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott has been dominating the rest of the NFC East with a record of 25-6. Looking at that number alone would lead you to assume that he’s the best quarterback in the league.
While wins and losses are really what matter, the little things also matter. In an effort to get an accurate read on how Prescott stacks up to the rest of the quarterbacks in the NFC East we have to take a look at their overall stats and situational football to see how the quarterbacks in the division really stack up. In this article, we will take a look at five different quarterback elements to see how well the Cowboys QB compares to his competition.
How does Cowboys QB Dak Prescott compare to the rest of the NFC East quarterbacks heading into the 2022 season?
Accuracy in 2022
Hurts – 78.2% of his passes were on target and 14% were considered bad throws
Jones – 76.1% of his passes were on target and 18.4% were considered bad throws
Prescott – 77.3% of his passes were on target and 14.7% were considered bad throws
Wentz – 73.7% of his passes were on target and 18.8% were considered bad throws
We continually hear complaints about how accurate Prescott is compared to others around the league. While some of it is deserved, it’s more of a perception than reality. But how does he stack up in his own division? Surprisingly, based on last season’s numbers, it was Hurts and not Prescott who was the most accurate of the group, though not by much.
This could be thanks to the stronger running game from the Eagles last season compared to the lackluster output by the Cowboys running game towards the end of the season. Either way, Hurts was the more accurate of the two, and that number might rise even higher for Hurts with the addition of A.J. Brown, while Prescott’s could fall with the loss of Amari Cooper. Wentz and Jones both had disappointing seasons. But out of those two, Wentz played worse and had better-receiving targets and a stronger running game.
Winner: Jalen Hurts
Completion Percentage in 2021
Hurts – 265 of 432 passes which equals 61.3%
Jones – 232of 361 passes which equals 64.2%
Prescott – 410 of 596 passes which equals 68.7%
Wentz – 322 of 516 passes which equals 62.4%
The most important thing a quarterback can do is complete passes to move the chains and when nothing is there for them down the field. The dump-off pass to running backs usually becomes the go-to throw. They may not be big plays but they are plays that keep the offense on the field and give the team more chances to put points on the board. You would think that accuracy and completion percentage would go hand in hand, but that is not the case.
While Hurts was the more accurate quarterback of the group, the Cowboys quarterback had the better completion percentage. This is probably due to his need to make the safer play instead of taking risks going for the big play downfield. It’s a good strategy if you’re looking to maximize your time on the field and not make mistakes. Once again, Wentz and Jones are at the bottom, but Jones had a better season in terms of completions than Wentz did.
Winner: Dak Prescott
Conference Game Stats in 2021
Hurts – 60.6% completion percentage with a QBR of 80.9
Jones – 63.6% completion percentage with a QBR of 81.3
Prescott – 69.9% completion percentage with a QBR of 112.2
Wentz – 64.1% completion percentage with a QBR of 97.4 *vs NFC teams
Here, we are comparing how these quarterbacks faired against the rest of the teams in the NFC Conference as a whole. No surprise here that Prescott was the better quarterback against the conference with a higher completion percentage but also a QBR of 112.2. Compared to the rest of the group, Prescott was far better against the NFC than the rest and that’s a big advantage when you look at positioning for the playoffs and Wild Card spots.
Wentz rose his play against the NFC compared to how he did against the AFC which put him second on this list. Hurts fell to fourth on this list. If Prescott can keep this percentage in this range, then it will go a long way to keep the Cowboys in the playoff and/or Wild Card hunt going forward.
Winner: Dak Prescott
First Half vs Second Half in 2021
Hurts – 1st half 62.1% completion percentage with a QBR of 84.7
2nd half 60.5% completion percentage with a QBR of 90.1
Jones – 1st half 64.4% completion percentage with a QBR of 85.6
2nd half 63.2% completion percentage with a QBR of 82.7
Prescott – 1st half 69.7% completion percentage with a QBR of 106.5
2nd half 66.8% completion percentage with a QBR of 99.1
Wentz – 1st half 65.2% completion percentage with a QBR of 102.1
2nd half 60.2% completion percentage with a QBR of 89.7
Looking at how these quarterbacks fair looking at the first and second halves of games you can see that the Cowboys quarterback fairs better in both. However, Hurts does get better compared to everyone else from the first to second halves. Prescott’s ability to adjust on the fly gives him the advantage in those instances compared to the others. While he is no longer the most athletic of the group, his knowledge of defenses thrown at him allows him to have continued success after defenses adjust their gameplans.
Many tend to believe that Prescott trails off late in games but that’s not due to his play on the field. Instead, it has more to do with the offensive coordinator’s failure to put him in better situations. You could say that same for the rest of the quarterbacks, but the fact that they aren’t starting off as quickly as Prescott shows that throughout a complete game he’s the more reliable of the group.
Winner: Dak Prescott
Career Game-Winning Drives
Hurts – 2 career game-winning drives out of 30 games
Jones – 3 career game-winning drives out of 38 games
Prescott – 17 career game-winning drives out of 85 games
Wentz – 10 career game-winning drives out of 85 games
When it’s all said and done, one of the most important stats here comes down to what the quarterback is able to do in a two-minute warning situation with the game on the line. Out of these quarterbacks, the Cowboys have the one that you’d trust the most with the ball in crunch time. Prescott has shown the ability to put the team on his back and put them in scoring positions and eventually win the game. That shows the poise and confidence in high-pressure situations you want out of your quarterback.
The rest of this group, outside of Wentz, haven’t been able to show that ability. So if it came down to a divisional game, the Cowboys have the advantage with the Washington Commanders being the only team with a quarterback that has the ability to lead the team to a closeout win.
Winner: Dak Prescott
Overall, when you take all of these QB factors into account, you see that despite all of the negative things said about Dak Prescott’s play on the field, he’s the best quarterback in this division by a wide margin. Can Prescott lead the Cowboys to the first back-to-back NFC East title in 18 years?