NFL Quarterback Rankings Week 6: Dak Prescott Needs to Be Better

If the Cowboys QB is going to lead a team in the national spotlight, he will need to step up his performance and avoid another loss such as Sunday’s against the 49ers.

Sunday night showcased a few truths.

Brock Purdy is more than a manager, and Dak Prescott is more question than answer at the moment.

Purdy has started 10 regular-season games in his 49ers career. He’s 10–0 with 22 touchdown passes against four interceptions. He’s also averaging 8.6 yards per attempt, a number which this year stands at an absurd 9.3.

Meanwhile, Prescott has to answer the proverbial bell for the Cowboys. After leading the league with 15 interceptions a year ago (despite playing in only 12 games), he’s struggling again. Prescott has yet to have a 300-yard game, and is coming off a three-pick shellacking against the Niners.

So where do Prescott, Purdy and the other 30 starters check in for our Week 6 NFL quarterback rankings? Keep reading.

32. Bryce Young, Carolina Panthers (Last week: 30)

Young has been sacked 12 times so far this season :: Dale Zanine/USA TODAY Sports

We’re only four games into Young’s career, so declarative statements are both premature and dumb in nature. However, it’s also fair to be a bit concerned. The Panthers are 0–5, and Young ranks dead last in yards per attempt (5.2) for any quarterback with at least two starts. He’s also last in QBR (28.8). Nobody expected Young to be phenomenal right away, but the early returns are rough.

At some point, coach Frank Reich has to understand his position. He’s not getting fired after this season. He has the latitude to lose and stay on board. He needs to ask Young to throw deeper, challenge defenses and live with the inevitable blend of confidence-building throws and turnovers along the way.

31. Desmond Ridder, Atlanta Falcons (32)

30. Zach Wilson, New York Jets (31)

29. Kenny Pickett, Pittsburgh Steelers (28)

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28. Mac Jones, New England Patriots (26)

Jones was pulled from New England’s game Sunday / Brian Fluharty-USA TODAY Sports

It’s time to end the experiment. Hell, if the Patriots could have declined Jones’s fifth-year option at halftime Sunday, they might have done so.

But to be clear, this isn’t all about Jones’s shortcomings. While he’s not helping the Patriots’ situation, he’s also in a rudderless offense that has changed coordinators three times in as many years. Jones also has the slowest skill players in football around him, led by a pair of receivers in DeVante Parker and JuJu Smith-Schuster, who were somehow given three-year deals this offseason.

That said, New England has to try something. It’s time for Bailey Zappe.

27. Sam Howell, Washington Commanders (27)

26. Joshua Dobbs, Arizona Cardinals (25)

25. Gardner Minshew, Indianapolis Colts (N/A)

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24. Jimmy Garoppolo, Las Vegas Raiders (22)

23. Daniel Jones, New York Giants (21)

22. Justin Fields, Chicago Bears (29)

Fields and the Bears shocked everyone on Thursday Night Football :: Brad Mills/USA TODAY Sports

Fields is the perfect example of why our climate of instant reactions and snap judgments is fraught with idiotic statements.

Two weeks ago, many were ready to declare Fields a bust, advocating for the Bears to give up on a young man who was getting serious MVP bets this offseason. Now, after two weeks of torching hilariously bad defenses in the Broncos and Commanders (Fields went 43-of-64 for 617 yards, eight touchdowns and one interception), he’s being crowned in some corners.

The reality? Fields remains an open question. He ranks tied for second in touchdown passes (11) but has taken the third-most sacks (20) largely due to the most pocket time per drop-back in football (2.7 seconds). Let’s see some more.

21. Jordan Love, Green Bay Packers (16)

20. Ryan Tannehill, Tennessee Titans (22)

19. Russell Wilson, Denver Broncos (19)

Wilson was sacked four times against the Jets Sunday :: Ron Chenoy/USA TODAY Sports

Nothing says football season being in full swing like arguing about perspective on a quarterback. This year, few have been more polarizing than Wilson.

The Broncos are terrible at 1–4, but Wilson has statistically been far better than his 2022 disaster, in some ways. He already has 11 touchdowns juxtaposed by only two interceptions, after tossing 16 touchdowns and 11 picks a year ago.

However, Wilson has only a 44.1 QBR, and Denver is scoring just 20.2 points per game when a Hail Mary and two nonoffensive scores are stripped out.

Bottom line? Wilson has improved, but he’s more average than good so far.

18. Derek Carr, New Orleans Saints (20)

17. Deshaun Watson, Cleveland Browns (18)

16. Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (17)

15. Kirk Cousins, Minnesota Vikings (15)

14. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys (11)

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is still backing Prescott as Dallas’s QB :: Kyle Terada/USA TODAY Sports

Let’s strip out the nonsense and talk facts. The Cowboys are the most popular NFL team on Earth, based in the football hotbed of Texas. Prescott is always going to be under the proverbial microscope, and when he plays awful on a national stage? Forget it.

Through five games this year, Prescott hasn’t been awful. He also hasn’t been good enough for Cowboys fans, and rightfully so. He’s thrown five touchdowns against four interceptions. Dallas’s wins have come over the Giants, Jets and Patriots, who are a combined 4–11, with three below-average at the helm.

For Prescott, he needs to stop with frivolous turnovers and start beating elite teams. If those two things don’t happen, the chatter around replacing him will only persist and grow. While winning isn’t solely under his control, he’s a quarterback for the Cowboys. Just like Tony Romo, Troy Aikman, Danny White and Roger Staubach, Prescott will be judged by his trophy case.

And right now, in part because of his issues, that case is empty.

13. C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans (14)

12. Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams (10)

Stafford is leading a young Rams roster this season :: Gary A. Vasquez/USA TODAY Sports

Stafford has had an uneven start to his season. With five touchdowns and as many interceptions, he’s making too many mistakes.

Still, Stafford has also made some fabulous throws, many of which have gone to rookie sensation Puka Nacua, who sits second in receiving yardage (572) and first in receptions (46). Now, with All-Pro Cooper Kupp back on the field, the Rams have two legitimate threats.

For Los Angeles to reach the playoffs, though, Stafford has to be more consistent. He also needs to stretch the field successfully. Against the Eagles on Sunday, Stafford was just 5-of-14 on throws of 10+ air yards.

11. Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals (13)

10. Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers (12)

9. Geno Smith, Seattle Seahawks (9)

8. Jared Goff, Detroit Lions (8)

7. Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens (6)

6. Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars (7)

Lawrence has spearheaded an electric offense for Jacksonville this season :: Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports

Despite facing a relentless pass rush Sunday against the Bills, Lawrence delivered his best performance of the young season.

Jacksonville struggled all day with edge rusher A.J. Epenesa, among others, but Lawrence still went 25-of-37 of 315 yards, his first time throwing for more than 300 yards in 2023. He stretched the field time and again, specifically in a few key moments. All told, Lawrence was 10-of-15 on throws more than 10 air yards, including a touchdown.

With Calvin Ridley, Zay Jones and Christian Kirk on the outside, the Jaguars have a litany of weapons who can win against man or zone. If Lawrence increasingly stretches the field, Jacksonville is a bona fide threat in the AFC.

5. Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers (4)

4. Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins (3)

3. Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles (5)

2. Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills (2)

1. Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs (1)

Mahomes became the youngest QB to beat all 31 other teams in the league :: Jeffrey Becker/USA TODAY Sports

For Mahomes, the numbers are pedestrian. He’s on pace for 4,375 passing yards and 34 touchdown passes, figures which would rank worse than only his 2019 campaign, in which he started just 14 games.

Yet for most others, those numbers are MVP-caliber. And Mahomes is doing it without a single above-average wide receiver. The Chiefs rank fourth in drop-back EPA and EPA per play. And Mahomes also remains a wizard under pressure, being sacked only four times all year.

It’s likely Kansas City will eventually figure out its receiver situation and put everyone in a position to succeed. Facing the Broncos twice and the Chargers once over the next three weeks, this might be the stretch to do so.