There are a scant few national opinions on the quarterback position that I take super seriously. Former Houston Texans (and several other NFL teams) quarterback Dan Orlovsky, one of the top analysts on ESPN, is one of them. As a backup quarterback across over a decade in the league, Orlovsky has seen it all, and has a great sense of what makes good QB’s good (along with excellent communication skills to convey that).
While most of Orlovsky’s work comes in front of the camera for various ESPN franchises — First Take, Get Up!, NFL Live — last week, he took to the keyboard to rank the top 10 quarterbacks in seven key categories of quarterbacking. Article like this are tremendously fun to dissect and digest now in Houston, because of the presence of C.J. Stroud.
Orlovsky is very open about his admiration and football love for Stroud. So how did that play out in these rankings, where Orlovsky rates the signal callers in the areas of arm strength. ball placement, mechanics, decision making, pocket presence, rushing ability, and second reaction plays? Let’s take a look”:
Arm strength
1. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs
2. Josh Allen, Bills
3. Justin Herbert, Chargers
4. Matthew Stafford, Rams
5. Aaron Rodgers, Jets
6. Will Levis, Titans
7. Baker Mayfield, Buccaneers
8. Anthony Richardson, Colts
9. Dak Prescott, Cowboys
10. Lamar Jackson, RavensBall placement
1. Joe Burrow, Bengals
2. Tua Tagovailoa, Dolphins
3. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs
4. Matthew Stafford, Rams
5. C.J. STROUD, TEXANS
6. Brock Purdy, 49ers
7. Geno Smith, Seahawks
8. Dak Prescott, Cowboys
9. Jared Goff, Lions
10. Josh Allen, BillsMechanics
1. Joe Burrow, Bengals
2. Matthew Stafford, Rams
3. Justin Herbert, Chargers
4. C.J. STROUD, TEXANS
5. Dak Prescott, Cowboys
6. Jared Goff, Lions
7. Tua Tagovailoa, Dolphins
8. Aaron Rodgers, Jets
9. Brock Purdy, 49ers
10. Trevor Lawrence, JaguarsDecision-making with the football
1. Aaron Rodgers, Jets
2. Matthew Stafford, Rams
3. Joe Burrow, Bengals
4. C.J. STROUD, TEXANS
5. Brock Purdy, 49ers
6. Jordan Love, Packers
7. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs
8. Dak Prescott, Cowboys
9. Jared Goff, Lions
10. Kirk Cousins, FalconsPocket presence
1. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs
2. Joe Burrow, Bengals
3. C.J. STROUD, TEXANS
4. Matthew Stafford, Rams
5. Lamar Jackson, Ravens
6. Brock Purdy, 49ers
7. Jordan Love, Packers
8. Josh Allen, Bills
9. Geno Smith, Seahawks
10. Dak Prescott, CowboysRushing ability
1. Lamar Jackson, Ravens
2. Josh Allen, Bills
3. Anthony Richardson, Colts
4. Jalen Hurts, Eagles
5. Justin Fields, Steelers
6. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs
7. Dak Prescott, Cowboys
8. Joe Burrow, Bengals
9. Kyler Murray, Cardinals
10. Trevor Lawrence, JaguarsSecond-reaction ability
1. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs
2. Josh Allen, Bills
3. Lamar Jackson, Ravens
4. Brock Purdy, 49ers
5. Jordan Love, Packers
6. Caleb Williams, Bears
7. Dak Prescott, Cowboys
8. Jalen Hurts, Eagles
9. Gardner Minshew, Raiders
10. Justin Herbert, Chargers
Okay, a few thoughts here:
I summarized Dan’s rankings quantitatively, and Stroud is a top five QB (categories in first place in parentheses)
So I took Orlovsky’s rankings and applied a point system, where the number one player in a category gets 10 points, second place gets 9 points, etc. Basically, a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3—2-1 point system. It shook out in a way that very much matches the eye test, and in a way that paints a very rosy picture of what C.J. Stroud is at the tender age of 22:
Mahomes 47 (3 first place rankings)
Burrow 40 (2)
Stafford 39
Allen 31
Stroud 28
Purdy 25
Jackson 25 (1)
Prescott 23
Rodgers 19 (1)
Herbert 17
Love 15
Tagovailoa 13
Richardson 11
Hurts 10
Goff 9
Fields 6
G. Smith 6
Levis 5
Williams 5
FIFTH overall, and I’ve seen nothing this preseason, in training camp or in games, that indicates a backslide in his sophomore season.
The one category that I was surprised that Stroud was unranked
Where Stroud hit in Orlovsky’s rankings, he hit big, making the top five in ball placement, mechanics, decision making, and pocket presence. I was mildly surprised to see him outside the top 10 in accuracy, and not surprised at all to see him outside the top 10 in rushing ability.
Of the three categories where he went unranked, the “second reaction” category (code for “ability to improvise”) should have Stroud at the back end of the top 10. His ability to buy time, navigate the picket, and escape pressure is very good, and obviously, at least as it pertains to Orlvosky’s rankings, underrated. Defensive backs routinely talk about Stroud’s patience and ability to buy time creating the need for them to cover for six or seven seconds per play, which is exhausting. Maybe next year in the rankings for C.J., I suppose.
The one quarterback who made the top 10 in EVERY category may surprise you
Every list of the “best of the best” at quarterback in the NFL usually has Mahomes on top, and then some combination of Josh Allen, Joe Burrow, and Lamar Jackson right after him. Stroud has been knocking on that door, too. Despite his finishing runner up for the MVP last season, the lists rarely have Cowboys QB Dak Prescott up that high, and yet, guess who the one quarterback is how made the top 10 in all seven categories?
You guessed it, Dak Prescott! He only finished top five in one category, but was in between sixth and tenth in the other six categories. This is exactly the profile you’d expect for an above average quarterback who is bumping his head on the ceiling, trying to break into the top seven or eight on this lust. He finished 8th overall.
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This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2024.
