The balance of power when it comes to the greatness of quarterbacks in the NFL is severely skewed to the AFC. Arguably, only one of the top five quarterbacks in the league resides in the NFC. Even then, he is not known as a prolific passer but more a dual-threat, excellent runner. Even then, there are a few NFC quarterbacks who can toss it around the yard.
As much as we are ready for Jordan Love to fill Aaron Rodgers’ shoes, that’s not happening yet. As far behind the NFC is in terms of top tier quarterbacks, there are still some who will get it done in 2023-24.
Ranking the top passers in the NFC is difficult but there are so many great receivers who help out the cause. Someone has to lead the way. The top of the NFC is wide open, so how will it all shake out? With the retirement of Tom Brady and the defection of Aaron Rodgers to the AFC, it’s wide-open.
Predicting the Top 5 Passers in the NFC
Dak Prescott
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The signal-caller for America’s Team always carries a ton of weight and expectation. In seven years, Prescott has suited up for every game five times. Unfortunately, two of his last three seasons have been shortened by injury. However, when fully healthy, Prescott is a legit threat.
In those five seasons, Prescott finished with 3,667 yards in 2016 (12th in the NFC), 3,324 in 2017 (ninth), 3,885 in 2018 (seventh), 4,902 in 2019 (second in the NFC and NFL), and 4,449 in 2021 (third).
When it comes to weapons, Prescott is set. He has one of the best one-two punches at receiver with CeeDee Lamb and Michael Gallup. The Cowboys offensive line is a consensus top-five unit with Russell Martin returning from his holdout.
Expect Dallas’ quarterback to get back to form and ball out in 2023.
Jalen Hurts
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The lone non-AFC quarterback among the top five, Jalen Hurts burst onto the scene last year by leading his Philadelphia Eagle squad to the Super Bowl and very nearly bringing it all home. He was good-not-great in 2021 but took a massive step forward in 2022. His efforts earned him a second-place finish in MVP voting, third place in Offensive Player of the Year, Second-Team All-Pro, and a Pro Bowl bid.
Acquiring A.J. Brown was a game-changer. Hurts tacked on over 40 more yards per game and improved his completion percentage from 61.3% to 66.5%.
Defenses have to respect his rushing abilities. Hurts is one of the top rushing quarterbacks in the NFL and he can take advantage of the defense over-playing the run. With Brown, Hurts has the unanimous top offensive line in the league no matter where you look. Plus, it doesn’t hurt to have the 2020 Heisman Trophy winner as WR2 in DeVonta Smith.
Philly is a Betway betting favorite to repeat as the NFC champions and Hurst is a massive reason why.
Jared Goff
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The Detroit Lions are an interesting case in 2023. They narrowly missed the playoffs last year but managed to give Aaron Rodgers an unceremonious send-off in Green Bay. At the helm after being traded from Los Angeles, Jared Goff has gone from veteran placeholder to legit contender at quarterback.
2022 was his second year in Detroit and he finished with 4,438 yards (most since 2019) and 29 touchowns (second-most in his career behind the 32 in 2018).
Amon-Ra St. Brown is developing as a legit threat out wide. Oddly enough, we have not even seen what this offense is capable of. Jameson Williams is set to be an explosive threat…once he serves his suspension. He only appeared in six games last year after tearing his ACL in college. Once the suspension is over, the duo of Williams and St. Brown could lead Goff and the Lions to the promised land.
Finally, Detroit did make a head-scratcher of a decision by selecting Jahmyr Gibbs early in the first round. A running back isn’t as important as it once was but Gibbs is an explosive threat out of the backfield. Goff is set to have another superb year and further make the most of his second chance.
Geno Smith
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The man the NFL wrote off got his shot with Seattle and had a ridiculous 2022 campaign. The Comeback Player of the Year struggled in his first two years in the league and was relegated to be a back up journeyman over the course of the next seven seasons.
Smith was able to lean on a rushing attack with rookie Ken Walker leading the way. Plus, it doesn’t hurt to have physical specimen D.K. Metcalf catching passes. Smith’s first Pro Bowl bid was thanks to a 4,282-yard, 30-touchdown effort. He even received MVP votes!
That rushing attack will be aided by Zach Charbonnet, the rookie from UCLA. Plus, they drafted who many believed to be the best receiver in the draft in Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Despite missing most of the 2022 season at Ohio State, Smith-Njigba was selected with the 20th pick. He was an uber-productive player in college and owns the single-most prolific game in history.
The NFL might’ve messed up by giving Smith a trio of Metcalf, Smith-Njigba, and Tyler Lockett.
Kirk Cousins
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Over the course of his last eight seasons, Kirk Cousins has eclipsed 4,000 yards seven times. He did so with two separate franchises, one of which resides in Washington D.C. Quite impressive. Even then, Cousins is often disrespected among NFL folks.
2023 will be Cousins’ sixth season in the NFC North with Minnesota and he’s only ever put up great passing numbers. Those five years, Cousins passed for 4,298 yards in 2018 (fifth in the NFC), 3,603 in 2019 (10th), 4,265 in 2020 (fourth), 4,221 in 2021 (fourth), and 4,547 last year (most in NFC, third in NFL).
Is Cousins the best quarterback in the NFC? Probably not. Does he have the best weapon in Justin Jefferson? Absolutely.
The fun thing about Cousins and this Vikings offense is that they can pop off at any moment with Jefferson out wide. It helps that they were able to replace Adam Theilen with one of the top receivers in the draft, Jordan Addison. Addison has a whole lot of talent and will require defenses to respect him. Between Addison and Jefferson, someone is bount to be open. Finally, while they “lost” Dalvin Cook, Alexander Mattison is more than capable of stepping up.
Cousins has the ability and opportunity to take control of the NFC passing leaderboard.