Buy or Sell: Matthew Stafford Is a Better Quarterback than Dak Prescott
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Two of the better quarterbacks currently playing in the National Football League play in the NFC: the Lions' Matthew Stafford and the Cowboys' Dak Prescott.
They are consistently ranked in the the top 10 of active quarterbacks playing in the league.
It can't be stated enough how productive Stafford was in 2019 prior to his season-ending back injury.
In just a half of a season played, Stafford ranked second in touchdown passes, fifth in DVOA (which measures efficiency by comparing success on every single play to a league average based on the situation and opponent), fifth in passer rating and seventh in total QBR.
While former head coach Jim Caldwell and offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter attempted to limit Stafford's mistakes by lowering his average yards per pass, it has proven worthwhile for Detroit's offense under Darrell Bevell to allow Stafford to take more risks.
The 12th-year veteran has a chance to be the best quarterback in 2020 based on his current supporting cast.
It's no question that Prescott has a better supporting cast surrounding him than Stafford.
Junfu Han, Detroit Free Press
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Dallas' franchise passer recently signed a one-year tender contract worth $31.4 million.
Per CBS Sports, Prescott is ranked as the fifth-best QB, while Stafford is ranked seventh.
As Sean Wagner-McGough explains,
"Prescott is completing 65.8 percent of his passes, and averaging 3,944.5 passing yards per season, 7.6 yards per attempt, and 24.3 touchdown passes and nine interceptions per season. He's accumulated a 97.0 passer rating. He's also averaging 305.3 rushing yards and 5.3 rushing touchdowns per season.
So, it's not farfetched to think Prescott will play like a top-10 quarterback in 2020. He's mostly been playing at that level over the past four seasons. I think there's a good chance Prescott outplays his ranking on this list. He's set up to thrive."
Until the Lions turn the corner, Stafford will continue to be undervalued by many who are ready to turn the page to the future.
Both quarterbacks are about to embark on critical seasons for both themselves and their respective organizations.
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