6. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys
That sound you hear is me being asked by my friend and colleague Michael Kist to submit my letter of resignation as the co-host of “The QB Factory,” a Philadelphia Eagles podcast. Well, we had a good run Mike…
But in my defense here, Dak Prescott played the game at an extremely high level last season. His ANY/A of 7.84 was sixth-best in the league. His Total QBR of 70.2 was fourth-best in the league. He threw 30 touchdowns for the first time in his career, and most impressive to me was the difference between his Completion Percentage (65.1%) and his Expected Completion Percentage (62.6%). That difference of 2.5% was fifth-best in the league, and for a quarterback who was knocked by some during his draft process and after – including by me – that is great to see. That is in line with what we have seen from him over the years, a quarterback with the competitive toughness to improve himself. It’s what put him in position to step into the Cowboys’ huddle as a rookie, replacing a team legend in Tony Romo, and be successful.
Now let’s think about the year ahead. Sure the quarterback and the team failed to come to terms on a long-term extension, but prior to that moment Prescott will get to throw to an incredibly talented trio of receivers in Michael Gallup, Amari Cooper and first-round pick CeeDee Lamb. He has Ezekiel Elliott in the backfield with him, one of the game’s more complete running backs. So Prescott has weapons to play with and a contract to play for.
Place your bets.