QB Index

NFL QB Index, Week 16: Baker Mayfield hits new high; Patrick Mahomes in danger of exiting top 10

Published: Dec 19, 2024 at 03:17 PM

Nick Shook

Around The NFL Writer

NOTE: Up/down arrows illustrate movement from the Week 15 QB Index.

Rank

Josh Allen

Buffalo Bills · Year 7

One week after he lost in a shootout, it seemed like Allen showed up in Detroit with one apparent goal in mind: make a statement. He led two emphatic touchdown drives to start the game, then settled into command of an offense that looks like a juggernaut. He threw for 362 yards and two touchdowns by capitalizing on wide-open looks for his receivers, roaming outside of the pocket to extend plays before pulling off fantastic completions and chipping in 68 yards and two rushing scores on 11 attempts. Allen and these Bills can beat you in a wide variety of ways, as they showed in Detroit. He's playing the best football of his career and deserves recognition.

Rank

Lamar Jackson

Baltimore Ravens · Year 7

If Josh Allen wasn't on an absolute heater, Jackson would be the leader for NFL MVP. He put together another fantastic outing against the Giants, getting whatever he wanted in both the passing and running games. At one point, while scrambling for a first down, Jackson tried to hold his pants up because he thought they were falling down -- and he still made a defender miss. His touchdown passes appeared effortless, as did most of his day. Jackson continues to play at an elite level.

Rank

Joe Burrow

Cincinnati Bengals · Year 5

So, let's address those two interceptions against the Titans. On Burrow's first pick, he made an anticipatory throw dictated by coverage, apparently releasing the ball before checking to see how much risk was associated with the play, and Luke Gifford snared it. On the second pick, Burrow made a good decision, targeting a receiver running beyond single coverage, but the ball never got there because the QB was hit while throwing. Now, Burrow wasn't as clean in this game as he'd been for most of 2024. He fumbled away a possession, too. But unlike his counterpart in Tennessee (Will Levis), Burrow overcame those mistakes, extending one red-zone play by escaping a collapsing pocket, evading a free rusher and keeping his composure long enough to find Chase Brown for a touchdown. He tossed another quality TD pass with the rush in his face. And, fittingly for this chaotic game, Burrow's best throw ended in the grasp of a defensive end (Sam Hubbard) moonlighting as a tight end. It was a weird day, but Burrow emerged victorious because he remains one of the brightest young stars in this league.

Rank

Jared Goff

Detroit Lions · Year 9

Oh, look, Joe Burrow finally isn't the only quarterback putting up gaudy numbers that are wasted by his team. Goff was largely excellent in Week 15, tossing five touchdown passes and nearly breaking 500 yards through the air, while the Lions leaned significantly on him to keep them afloat. He threw a 66-yard touchdown pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown, found Tim Patrick for a 12-yard score, hit eligible tackle Dan Skipper (who slipped out of pass protection) for a short touchdown pass and would have had another long completion, had Jameson Williams held on to the ball. Goff was good enough to win; in fact, he became the first quarterback to throw for 400-plus yards, five-plus passing touchdowns and zero interceptions and lose since 1950.

Rank

Baker Mayfield

Tampa Bay Buccaneers · Year 7

Mayfield made one mistake against the Chargers, leaving a pass over the middle behind his intended target, resulting in an interception. The rest was magical. He ripped a gorgeous touchdown pass down the seam to Mike Evans, routinely converted third downs by relying on his favorite target, took off on scrambles for big gains and finished with a four-touchdown day. The Buccaneers are peaking right now because of a number of factors, with Mayfield's efficiency being one of them. If he can consistently avoid turnovers, watch out.

Rank

Jayden Daniels

Washington Commanders · Rookie

Daniels was excellent against the Saints from start to finish, handling all facets of the quarterback position comfortably while relying on his natural talents in both the passing and running game to keep drives going. He threw two sharp touchdown passes to Terry McLaurin and might have added another 50-75 yards (plus an additional score) had McLaurin hauled in a couple more of Daniels' deep passes to him in the second half. Daniels also made a courageous play on a fourth-and-1 keeper, somersaulting over the line to gain to keep a late drive going. Though the final numbers weren't outrageous, Daniels played a fantastic game, staying in a good enough rhythm to convince the Commanders they could trust him to pass while trying to bleed clock late. If he plays like this going forward, Washington is definitely playoff-bound.

Rank

Jordan Love

Green Bay Packers · Year 5

On a night when Josh Jacobs paced Green Bay's offense, Love certainly did his part, completing a wide variety of passes that required differing arm angles, off-platform throws and occasional improvisation. Love handled the range of challenges with uniform excellence, even adding in a gorgeous sideline pass to Christian Watson to keep the offense moving. His best throw of the night came in the fourth quarter, when he dropped, surveyed and threw a perfect ball to the right of the nearest defender, where only Romeo Doubs could snag it (in thrilling fashion) for a score, serving as the dagger. Love certainly benefits from an offense that is schemed incredibly well by Matt LaFleur, but that doesn't take credit away from the quarterback, who is playing great football right now.

Rank

Patrick Mahomes

Kansas City Chiefs · Year 8

Mahomes remained the same annoying quarterback he's been all season for opposing defenses, finding ways to convert out of structure and capitalize in key spots against the Browns. He and the Chiefs also took advantage of some beneficial field position provided by Cleveland errors. But what really stood out (and concerned me) was Kansas City's continued struggles to protect Mahomes. Joe Thuney made a spot start at left tackle out of necessity and performed well against Myles Garrett, but Mahomes was still hit far too often for a Super Bowl-caliber outfit. That came to a head in the fourth quarter when Mahomes was folded up by multiple Browns, resulting in an ankle injury. Most of this isn't related to Mahomes' performance; he found targets who were schemed open and executed. But I wonder if this situation is truly sustainable as the Chiefs pursue their third straight Super Bowl title.

Rank

Sam Darnold

Minnesota Vikings · Year 7

Darnold didn't play close to his best game of the season against Chicago. He froze in the pocket occasionally, took some questionable risks with his arm and didn't appear comfortable for stretches. His under-pressure play was also much different than it has been for most of the year, which falls in line with how he looked on tape. Having said all of this, Darnold was still productive, tossing a touchdown pass over a defender to Justin Jefferson that looked elementary in terms of difficulty, and he completed a few other nice throws. He just wasn't as spectacular as he'd been in recent weeks.

Rank

Matthew Stafford

Los Angeles Rams · Year 16

We saw the best of Stafford in Week 14, setting up for a potentially strong finish that could produce a playoff berth. But then the QB struggled mightily amid a driving rain against the 49ers in Week 15, completing just 4 of 12 passes for 23 yards and experiencing plenty of accuracy issues in the first half. Once the rain let up, Stafford started to find a bit of a rhythm in smaller bites, moving the Rams into scoring range three times in the second half. They fell short of the end zone on each trip -- including on a possession in which Stafford tried to run for a touchdown and was slammed into the turf, leaving a chunk of grass in his helmet -- but that was still enough to propel the Rams to a 12-6 win that was anything but pretty.

Rank

Geno Smith

Seattle Seahawks · Year 12

Smith encountered frequent pressure during his abbreviated outing in Week 15, succumbing to the Packers' rush on a few occasions. When he was protected, Smith was predictably sharp, firing accurate passes. He nearly threw a pick on Seattle's best drive of the night before following it up with an even more dangerous throw on the very next play. That pass was intercepted, dooming the Seahawks' best chance of scoring a touchdown before he was knocked out of the game with a knee injury in the third quarter. Sam Howell's struggles in relief proved how valuable Smith is to the Seahawks, who will now keep their fingers crossed that Smith will be healthy enough to play at a high level this week. Their season could depend upon it.

Rank

Brock Purdy

San Francisco 49ers · Year 3

In Week 14 Purdy looked like the quarterback we knew him to be in 2023, lighting up Chicago in his best showing of the 2024 season. However, the pendulum swung aggressively in the opposite direction in Week 15. Like Matthew Stafford, Purdy struggled with accuracy amid unrelenting rain last Thursday. Also unrelenting: The Rams' pass rush, which registered a 35.3 percent pressure rate and played a direct part in Purdy's second-half interception. Deebo Samuel's third-quarter drop didn't help matters, nor did Jauan Jennings' drop on an accurate third-down throw from Purdy, effectively defining a night of frustration for Purdy and the 49ers.

Rank

Russell Wilson

Pittsburgh Steelers · Year 13

Boy, did Wilson miss George Pickens against the Eagles. Philadelphia's defense made life incredibly difficult for the Steelers' offense early, and without Pickens, Wilson had no one to turn to in a moment of desperation. The Steelers went three-and-out on four of their first five possessions. Wilson managed to help the offense find life after they adjusted their approach, but they were operating with a thin margin for error. A fumble in the third quarter killed their best remaining opportunity, robbing us of a chance to see if Wilson could lead them back. It's clear he needs Pickens to be at his best.

Rank

Jalen Hurts

Philadelphia Eagles · Year 5

After spending the week answering questions about his relationship with A.J. Brown, Hurts responded by throwing for 290 yards and two touchdowns against the Steelers. He fired a laser to Brown for Philadelphia's first touchdown and tacked on another via a two-yard pass to DeVonta Smith. Hurts stepped up to the challenge on a day in which Pittsburgh did a solid job of containing Saquon Barkley, mixing in a few runs to keep the offense going. The best achievement: Hurts led a drive lasting more than 10 minutes to finish the game.

Rank

Aaron Rodgers

New York Jets · Year 20

Rodgers lit up Jacksonville in the second half by relying on Davante Adams, finding him nine times for 198 yards and two touchdowns in the final two quarters to power a comeback effort. His TD pass to Adams with 3:24 left in the game was vintage Rodgers and Adams, with the quarterback firing a laser downfield within Adams' catch radius, leaving it for the veteran to snag. Their goal-line fade was a beauty, too, as was Rodgers' under-pressure bullet to Adams for a big catch-and-run that set up the Jets' go-ahead touchdown. Although the haters will scoff, Rodgers is stringing together a nice little stretch here just in time to bolster his attractiveness to potential future employers. It's too bad it didn't happen sooner, though.

Rank

Kyler Murray

Arizona Cardinals · Year 6

Statistically, it was a very solid day for Murray against the Patriots. He completed 23 of 30 passes for 224 yards and avoided turnovers, which have plagued him in recent weeks. Murray wasn't the main story from the game, though. It was James Conner's success in the running game that really stood out (110 yards and two TDs on 16 carries). That fits what the Cardinals have been in 2024: a team that wins when it’s thriving on the ground. Murray leaned on Trey McBride and found Greg Dortch for a few nice plays, but the QB is still struggling to connect with Marvin Harrison Jr. If those two ever figure it out, the team will advance to the next stage of its evolution.

Rank

Justin Herbert

Los Angeles Chargers · Year 5

Herbert looked very sharp early, leading an impressive touchdown drive to answer the Buccaneers' opening salvo. He kept the momentum going midway through the second quarter, capitalizing on a turnover by capping a drive with a touchdown pass to Quentin Johnston. But then, the Todd Bowles-led defense and their assortment of blitzes short-circuited the Chargers' offense, getting after Herbert and taking the life out of Los Angeles. There was little Herbert could do, exposing the weaknesses of an offense that lacks weapons for Herbert to use to throw them to victory. We'll see if it was an anomaly or a sign of things to come, but the Chargers need to quickly figure it out.

THURSDAY NIGHT UPDATE: Herbert found a rhythm by targeting intermediate crossers early Thursday night, firing rockets downfield to help Los Angeles tie the game up at 7-7 in the first quarter. He reached his peak in the second half, though, leading the Chargers to a 34-27 win by completing 11 of his final 16 passes to power a balanced attack.

Rank

C.J. Stroud

Houston Texans · Year 2

Considering the state of Houston's offense, Stroud's outing against the Dolphins wasn't bad. He tossed two very sharp touchdown passes with the quick trigger that is becoming his signature attribute (outside of his accuracy) and kept the Texans ahead in a tight game. Stroud didn't blow the doors off Miami by any means, of course, and was sacked four times behind an offensive line that continues to be leaky. But unlike some other recent outings, Stroud stayed on the positive side of things.

Rank

Tua Tagovailoa

Miami Dolphins · Year 5

I've seen a few quarterbacks make the same mistake Tagovailoa did when he threw the first of his three interceptions in Week 15. He saw a single-high safety, executed a run fake and threw the ball before checking for danger. What he probably didn't see was the Texans had disguised Cover 2, leaving defenders in the window he anticipated would be open. By the time he had released the pass, it was too late. That's correctable. More concerning was his lack of accuracy on a sideline throw to Tyreek Hill, in which Hill broke off a fade against man coverage and Tagovailoa didn't properly place the ball along the sideline, leaving it inside for Derek Stingley Jr. to pick it off. His third interception was just a great play made by Stingley. As for the rest of the game, Tagovailoa was once again asked to carry an offense that lacks an effective running game, and while he connected on 29 of 40 passes, 12 of his completions came at a depth of nine yards or less. The Dolphins offense has lacked verticality for weeks. This time around, their quick-fire approach wasn't enough.

Rank

Drake Maye

New England Patriots · Rookie

There was one moment late in the third quarter against the Cardinals in which Maye looked like he was angry with himself because he missed an open Kayshon Boutte in plus territory while trailing 16-3. It was one of only four incompletions on the day for Maye, who was sharp but also could only put up a meager three points in the first half. The Patriots didn't truly find a rhythm until the game was essentially out of hand. Maye did a good job engineering two fourth quarter touchdown drives, capping their final scoring possession with a five-yard scramble for six points, but as has been the case for most of 2024, it was not enough. That isn't all Maye's fault, though.

Rank

Bo Nix

Denver Broncos · Rookie

Perhaps Sunday's showing will quell some of the Offensive Rookie of the Year chatter for Nix. The rookie looked like, well, a rookie against Indianapolis, throwing three interceptions. His first was a forced throw into a crowd of three Colts defenders. He sailed his second pick beyond his intended target. And his third was a deeper throw to the sideline that didn't have enough velocity to get there before the defensive back was able to cut underneath it. None of the three were great decisions, and all of them came without pressure bearing down on Nix. He recovered effectively enough to toss two touchdown passes in the fourth quarter, but this wasn't a game the Broncos won because of Nix. Nix has now thrown five interceptions over the last two games, a concerning sign for a quarterback who had seemed to settle in.

THURSDAY NIGHT UPDATE: Nix started Thursday night's game on a heater, completing 15 of 21 passes for 155 yards and two touchdowns in the first half. The Broncos succumbed to the Chargers' defensive adjustments in the second half, though, as Nix threw for just 108 yards in the final two quarters and was shut out of the end zone, ultimately taking a 34-27 loss.

Rank

Bryce Young

Carolina Panthers · Year 2

Young had a rough Week 15. He accounted for four turnovers (two interceptions, two fumbles lost), with his first giveaway ending a promising drive that could have given Carolina an early lead. Young's first interception came on a pass thrown slightly behind Adam Thielen, which was deflected into the air for the taking. His later pick was the result of Young taking a shot but failing to push it downfield and inside enough to get the job done. That will happen for a young quarterback trying to dig his team out of a hole. He did a great job of capitalizing on a turnover just before halftime, hitting Jalen Coker for an 83-yard touchdown to create a huge momentum swing. The deficit, however, interrupted Carolina's offensive balance, making for a tough outing. I still believe Young has done enough to give the Panthers hope he'll be their long-term answer.

Rank

Caleb Williams

Chicago Bears · Rookie

Monday night’s game made me wonder if Williams is so focused on avoiding interceptions that he's becoming hesitant to throw. If the quick read wasn't there, he tended to hold onto the ball for too long, which allowed Minnesota's blitzes to cause problems in the pocket. He's still a magician when it comes to avoiding the rush, but the speed of the game also seemed to be a bit much for him at times, leading him to overshoot an open receiver in the end zone. As has become common practice for these Bears, Williams found a rhythm in the second half, but it was too late to make a difference.

Rank

Cooper Rush

Dallas Cowboys · Year 7

Depending on the week, we either see a borderline unplayable Rush or four quarters of justification for why he's Dallas' backup. The latter was what we witnessed in Week 15. Rush threw two touchdown passes away from coverage to the right corner of the end zone, found a rhythm that eluded him a week earlier and kept the Cowboys’ offense moving, consistently firing passes without hesitation (averaging 2.55 seconds per throw). He enjoyed solid protection against the Panthers -- after facing 13 pressures in Week 14, Rush was pressured just five times in Week 15. This doesn't mean I've found new confidence in him, but it was refreshing to see Rush competently handle the job.

Rank

Mac Jones

Jacksonville Jaguars · Year 4

It was a surprisingly solid day in Week 15 for Jones, who learned he should rely heavily on Brian Thomas Jr. and reaped the rewards. Jones wasn't just force-feeding Thomas, though. He also connected with Brenton Strange 11 times for 73 yards, as well as Parker Washington and Devin Duvernay for three receptions each. Jones' greatest highlight was his spin move on Jamien Sherwood, leaving the linebacker in the dust. Unfortunately, Jones took an unnecessary risk on a deep attempt in the first quarter, resulting in a Jalen Mills interception, and he had an overthrow to Washington on the Jaguars’ final play, ending their hopes in a game they led 22-17 early in the fourth quarter. That’s essentially what we can expect from Jones, who is a backup for a reason.

Rank

Jameis Winston

Cleveland Browns · Year 10

Winston has made an otherwise forgettable season exciting for the Browns, both for his sound bites and his freewheeling play. Cleveland encountered the downside to that style of play in Week 15, though. Winston threw two of his three interceptions via unnecessary risks taken on end zone shots, fumbled away possession and ended his day short of 200 passing yards. His connection with Jerry Jeudy remains strong, but when the Browns benched Winston for Dorian Thompson-Robinson in the fourth quarter, we all learned the limits of Kevin Stefanski's patience. I still think Winston carries value as a veteran who could contend for the starting job next season -– although his turnovers may have burned that opportunity. Look no further than Stefanski’s decision to start Thompson-Robinson in Week 16.

Rank

Anthony Richardson

Indianapolis Colts · Year 2

Sunday's game began on an encouraging note for Richardson, who completed a few very sharp passes and finished off the Colts' first possession with a swift touchdown run. That carried over to Indianapolis' second drive, but from there, Richardson reverted to his uneven ways. He threw an interception on a pass with poor ball placement and he was rather ineffective on third down, too, especially in the second half. Despite Richardson's threat as a runner, his accuracy drops off significantly when forced out of the pocket. He completed two passes (out of nine attempts) for three yards outside the tackle box against the Broncos. There is still a lot of inconsistency in Richardson's game, and if the Colts can't find a miraculous avenue into the playoffs, they should at least hope to see some improvement from the QB before the season ends.

Rank

Desmond Ridder

Las Vegas Raiders · Year 3

Once it became known that Aidan O'Connell wasn't going to play Monday night, we all knew we were in for a low-ceiling night for the Raiders offense. To Ridder's credit, he threw for over 200 yards. He also threw a dreadful interception, completed a few nice throws and missed many more. Their final drive wasn't surprising: Ridder checked down a handful of times without any timeouts and 80 yards to go before opening it up, but only enough to get the Raiders within range for a couple of shots at the end zone to end the game.

Rank

Kirk Cousins

Atlanta Falcons · Year 13

Monday night may have been the end of the Cousins era. After a solid bounce-back performance a week ago, Cousins fell back into his unproductive, unsightly ways in Las Vegas, failing to move the needle with his arm. Luckily, the ground game was working, but Atlanta has wasted far too many good opportunities over the last month or so, and much of it is directly related to Cousins' struggles. Head coach Raheem Morris left the door open to a change after the game -- which the Falcons won, by the way -- leading me to believe they just might switch to Michael Penix Jr. with their playoff hopes on the line. They did just that the following day, a change that could be permanent if Penix succeeds.

Rank

Will Levis

Tennessee Titans · Year 2

All of the goodwill Levis had built up over the last six weeks seemed to vanish in about 90 minutes in Week 15. On three straight possessions, Levis gave away the ball: He fumbled while getting tackled, missed his target on the next possession, leading to a deflected interception, then threw a truly awful pass into traffic, where Mike Hilton leapt up and snagged it for Cincinnati's third takeaway of the half. This sequence was even more painful because of how Levis started: He led two scoring drives, including one that covered 70 yards, to help the Titans take a 14-7 lead early, and was delivering sharp passes. That all fell apart before the half, and the final mistake -- the ugliest throw of the day, which was picked off and returned for a touchdown by Geno Stone -- prompted Brian Callahan to bench him for Mason Rudolph just days after speaking optimistically about Levis' long-term outlook. It will be Rudolph getting the start for Tennessee in Week 16.

Rank

Tommy DeVito

New York Giants · Year 2

DeVito threw a few nice passes to Malik Nabers early on against the Ravens, but he exited the game after the first half and is in the concussion protocol. The Giants enjoyed better production with career backup Tim Boyle -- who is on his second team during this regular season -- at quarterback in the second half. New York is expected to turn back to Drew Lock under center this week.

Rank

Jake Haener

New Orleans Saints · Year 2

Haener's first half in Week 15 left plenty to be desired. He completed 4 of 10 passes for 49 yards and threw an interception, giving New Orleans little reason to keep him in the game in the second half. The Saints benched him for Spencer Rattler after the break and their offense woke up, nearly pulling off a thrilling comeback against the Commanders. I expect Rattler to own this job in Week 16 and potentially for the remainder of the season. He's simply the better option.

QB Index

NFL QB Index, Week 16: Baker Mayfield hits new high; Patrick Mahomes in danger of exiting top 10

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