Cowboys' Dak Prescott Hit With Major Disrespect in Recent NFC East QB Rankings

Rankings are subjective and meaningless, but they're still fun to debate. They're also good for getting attention when a controversial ranking takes place, which happens often when it comes to Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys.

Prescott was a fourth-round pick in 2016 and was expected to be a developmental player who had a chance to develop into a starter. He shattered that narrative by starting in Week 1 and is now the franchise leader in passing yards with 35,989 yards and is just five touchdown passes away from tying Tony Romo for that title as well.

Despite his success, which wasn't supposed to happen, Prescott remains woefully underrated. That was the case again in a recent QB rankings from NFL insider John Frascella. While ranking every signal-caller against their division rivals, Frascella placed Prescott at No. 2 in the NFC East behind Jalen Hurts. Before jumping into that, here's a look at his rankings in the division:

4. Jaxson Dart, New York Giants
3. Jayden Daniels, Washington Commanders
2. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys
1. Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles

Putting Hurts over Prescott is prime example of overvaluing a useless stat

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts after the anthem against the San Francisco 49ers. | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

It's hard to find anyone outside of Philadelphia who would put Prescott over Hurts, which is something one fan said to Frascella on X. Frascella responded, and in doing so confirmed that he's judging the quarterback by the success of the team, rather than their individual talent or contribution. He even tried flipping the script, saying Hurts is the one who gets hated on for winning too much.

"That's just because people hate on Jalen Hurts for Winning too much," Frascella wrote on X.

He responded to another fan by asking to see Dak's rings. Using that logic, it would make sense to put Hurts ahead of Prescott. The Eagles have been much more successful than the Cowboys, and they have a ring with Hurts. They also have a ring with Nick Foles, which is proof that they have built a far more competitive roster and their culture has been superior to the one in Dallas.

That said, player ranking shouldn't be about who has the most support. If that was the case. Jeff Hostetler, Brad Johnson, Joe Flacco, and Trent Dilfer would all be ahead of Dan Marino since they won titles.

Dak Prescott stats vs. Jalen Hurts stats

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott hugs Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts. | Tim Heitman-Imagn Images

Comparing Prescott and Hurts' career stats would be unfair considering Prescott has been in the league for 10 years compared to six for Hurts. Instead, let's look at their best overall season as well as their 17-game average from Pro Football Reference.

Starting with their best campaign, which for Prescott would be 2023 and for Hurts, that would be 2022.

Prescott 2023: 69.5 completion percentage, 4,516 yards, 36 touchdown passess, and nine interceptions. He also rushed for 242 yards with two touchdowns.

Hurts 2022: 66.5 completion percentage, 3,701 yards, 22 touchdown passes, and six interceptions. Hurts also rushed for 760 yards with 13 touchdowns.

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott warms up before the game against the New York Giants. | Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images

17 game average for Prescott: 66.9 completion percentage, 4,402 yards, 30 touchdown passess, and 11 interceptions. Rushing averages, 259 yards and four touchdowns.

17 game average for Hurts: 64.4 completion percentage, 3,270 yards, 20 touchdown passes, and eight interceptions. Rushing averaged 650 yards with 12 touchdowns.

Looking at these numbers, both players are excellent. But putting Hurts ahead of Dak only happens if too much value is being placed on total wins and rushing stats (which can be inflated thanks to the Tush Push as well).

When it comes to playing the overall position of quarterback, Prescott is the superior player. He just happens to be held back by the organization the same way Romo was before him. On the flip side, Hurts is elevated by his organization the same way Carson Wentz and Foles were before him.

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