3 clearcut reasons Cowboys' Dak Prescott should win MVP over Brock Purdy

2. Prescott is playing at a higher level

Analysis doesn't always have to be cutting edge. To the naked eye, Prescott is playing at a higher level than Purdy. He's making more difficult throws on a weekly basis, taking more risks and being more creative outside the pocket.

Look no further than the QB's passing charts from Week 13 and Week 12. Purdy threw for 314 yards and four touchdowns against the Eagles, while Prescott threw for 331 and four TDs vs the Commanders in Week 12. Similar numbers, but their respective passing charts show the sheer discrepancy in difficulty of their pass attempts.

Purdy didn't attempt a single pass 20 yards downfield and three of his four TDs were thrown behind the 10-yard marker. Two of them went for 48 yards and 46 yards, but Deebo Samuel did 90% of the work after the catch on both of them.

Care to guess which QB ranks first in YAC per completion this season? Purdy at 6.6. The Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes is second at 6.0 YAC per completion.

Conversely, three of Prescott's four TDs in Week 12 traveled 20 air yards. Including the scores, he completed eight passes 10 yards downfield and six traveled at least 20 yards.

In Week 13 against a good Seahawks defense, two of Dak's three TDs traveled at least 10 yards (one over 20) and he completed five passes over 10 yards, including two over 20 yards. Additionally, Prescott ranks in the bottom five in the league with 4.7 yards after the catch per completion.

It probably sounds like we're holding it against Purdy that he has a great weapon in Samuel and play designer in Kyle Shanahan but there's really no debating whether Dak or Purdy is playing the QB position at a higher level.