NFL execs rank 2 undeserving NFC QBs ahead of Cowboys' Dak Prescott
By Jason Reed
Dak Prescott is already one of the most polarizing quarterbacks in the NFL and the spotlight on him has only grown during his contract situation with the Dallas Cowboys. Prescott is due for a new contract and with the quarterback market continuing to go up, many fans are wondering why a deal has not yet been made.
Prescott deserves to be paid like an elite quarterback because he is an elite quarterback. He may not be perfect, but he is a proven winner who has gone out and put up the numbers every single season to back his case. Yet, because he play's for America's Team, he has far more doubters than other quarterbacks in his orbit.
That includes those in league circles. As part of his yearly tradition, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reached out to NFL executives and coaches to rank the best players in the league at each position. Fowler teased the (currently unreleased at the time of writing) quarterbacks list by giving fans the top-five ranked quarterbacks in the NFC.
Prescott, despite making the list, did not rank as high as many Cowboys fans would have expected.
To tease the Top 10 QB rankings dropping soon, here’s how league scouts, execs, coaches value the NFC QBs.
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) July 14, 2024
No. 2 a surprise? Maybe it shouldn’t be. pic.twitter.com/5alXgMjp6G
Cowboys' Dak Prescott snubbed in favor of Jared Goff, Matthew Stafford
This NFC quarterback hierarchy is far from perfect and it is unclear how it is going to shake out when the AFC is included. The likes of Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Joe Burrow, C.J. Stroud, Justin Herbert and Trevor Lawrence all have a case for the top 10, so it will be interesting to see where Prescott ranks exactly in the top 10.
One thing is for certain: he is not worse than the quarterbacks who were ranked ahead of him. Jared Goff and Matthew Stafford may have been traded for each other but they should not be sharing the top-two spots in the NFC.
Goff has been regarded as one of the most disappointing quarterbacks in the league for years now and he leads the Detroit Lions to the playoffs one time and suddenly he completely usurps Prescott. Don't get us wrong, Goff and the Lions had a great season, but Prescott was still better in every measurable statistic.
The same can be said for Stafford, too. Stafford's Super Bowl run with the Los Angeles Rams in 2021 was great and all but he has not been the best quarterback in the NFC since then. Injuries slowed down his 2022 season and while he was still very good in 2023, his numbers were worse than Prescott's.
Not to mention Stafford is entering his age 36 season where regression could hit like a ton of bricks. There is a possibility he is not even on this list at all by the end of the season.
The numbers often don't lie and when you compare Prescott's numbers to Goff and Stafford it is actually bewildering how the two ended up ranked ahead of the Cowboys signal-caller.
Player | Passing Yds | Cmp% | TDs | INTs | QBR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Dak Prescott | 4,516 | 69.5 | 36 | 9 | 72.7 |
Jared Goff | 4,575 | 67.3 | 30 | 12 | 60.3 |
Matt Stafford | 3,965 | 62.6 | 24 | 11 | 63.5 |
There is only one stat above Prescott does not rank first in and the difference is marginal. Goff finished with 59 more passing yards than Prescott and somehow that was enough to get him ranked higher by the league.
As long as Prescott is on the Cowboys he is going to continue getting overlooked in favor of the flavor of the month. Maybe like Goff and Stafford, he will finally be appreciated fully by league circles if he leaves the team that drafted him and escapes the spotlight in Dallas.
But of course, that is the last thing Cowboys fans want to see happen.
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