Quarterback play has taken a huge step forward this week with many guys fighting for spots in my top 5 performances list. Let's see who's in my list for the Top 5 Quarterback Performances of NFL Week 3, starting with my honorable mentions.
Honorable Mentions
Joe Burrow, Andy Dalton, Malik Willis, Bo Nix, Lamar Jackson
A few repeat names from previous week's lists are found here this week in Week 3, but also a few new names were added as well. Lamar Jackson's first half performance alone is what got him on my honorable mentions this week. The Ravens went down to Dallas and with Lamar Jackson and Dereck Henry's running ability, punched Dallas into submission early in this game. Lamar was fine throwing the ball two, but what hurt him this week, was the inability to close out the Cowboys by scoring on drives in the second half. Lamar still stepped up when needed on the final drive of the game to put the game away, but a stronger effort to make plays in the air and on the ground in the second half, could have put this Cowboys team away even earlier. The rookie Bo Nix finally appears on this list this week with a great, decisive game from the older rookie. Nix finally showed a complete game of poise and moxie. This style is very Drew Brees like and has to have Sean Peyton loving what he has in this growing rookie quarterback. My best friend is back on this list for a second consecutive week, but this time maybe even less of a bias. Malik Willis came back to the team that gave him an opportunity to join the National Football League and played the best game of football I have ever seen him play (and I have known him since his Freshman year of high school). Coach LaFleur took some of the playcall restrictions from last week off and let Malik push the ball down the field. He was extremely accurate and showed off the arm that I and many others in Atlanta know that he has. I understand that he will not play too much longer with Jordan Love returning potentially next week, but Malik really took advantage of his 2 week audition for the offseason. Next we have the reemergences of Andy Dalton and Joe Burrow. Andy Dalton stepped into a mess of a situation and, for at least a game, gave the Panthers some stability at QB. He was firing bullets into the middle of the field on digs and crossing routes and did a great job making big time throws overtop the safeties. He really took advantage of the additional drives he got early on in this first half and led many squaring drives to put the game out of reach for Vegas. Joe Burrow on the other hand continued to show how good of a quarterback he is, but unfortunately, we are finding, he alone can't make the Bengals a winner.
My Top 5 QB Performances of Week 3
5. Sam Darnold - Minnesota Vikings
The magic continues in Minnesota! Sam Darnold finished this domination of the Houston Texans with a 119.2 QBR, completing 17 of 28 passes for 181 Yards and 4 touchdowns. Sam continues to be the perfect signal caller for the Vikings in a huge matchup against Houston. The Texans gave Darnold a lot of different looks with post-snap movement, but for the most part, each coverage shell were simple coverages. In the redzone/scorezone, you would get one of three coverages - 1, 3 or 4 Solid. In Trips formations, you'd get almost exclusively cover 4. This allowed Sam to not have to fear the rush and gave him time to wait for windows to clear. When the Texans did cover up reads, Sam would soak up the pressure and get outside of the pocket to extend the play and force the scramble drill. For the most part, he made a lot of quick decisive reads and throws a great ball to all parts of the field. In the red area, his game stepped up even more and made plays in the off schedule to convert drives touchdowns. Sam is playing amazing football and these Vikings shouldn’t be a surprise anymore. Dare I say MVP candidate?
4. Jayden Daniels - Washington Commanders
The league's leader in completion percentage made history on Monday night as the best rookie quarterback completion percentage in a game with a 91.3% completion percentage. Jayden Daniels broke out on primetime with a 141.7 QBR, completing 21 of 23 passes for 254 yards and 2 touchdowns. Additionally, the mobile signal caller had 12 rushes for 39 Yards and another touchdown on the ground. The rookie breakout we were all hoping for in Jayden Daniels happened against a formidable foe in another legendary LSU Alumni in Joe Burrow on Monday Night Football. Jayden continues his extremely high completion percentage due in part to all the high percentage throws and almost hand offs that Kliff Kingsbury gives Jayden, but he also made some amazing deep throws to perfect spots, leading to scoring drives. He made enough plays with his legs and his arm and comes out of Cincinnati with a major upset and gave the country a look into what he has quietly been doing in three games as a Commander.
3. Brock Purdy - San Francisco 49ers
One of the top rated quarterbacks from the entirety of the 2023 season makes his first appearance on my lists in 2024. The Iowa State alum finished the game with a 137.1 QBR, completing 22 passes on 30 attempts, for a total of 292 passing yards and 3 touchdowns. Purdy also tallied 10 rushes for 41 yards, with an unfortunate, unlucky fumble. Despite the loss, Brock Purdy is the only reason why the 49ers dominated the first half and were in with a chance to win late in the game. Brock continues to command this offense at an extremely high level. Nothing really fazes this kid. He is keeping the San Francisco offense consistently ahead of the chains, feeding playmakers like Jawan Johnson the ball in stride. He throws an extremely beautiful and catchable ball with solid velocity all over the field. He is quick and decisive in this Shanahan offense that is perfect for Brock. But most importantly, we are seeing when he is forced to improvise, he is able to move, break tackles, be agile and deliver very accurate balls even in the off schedule. I will say this over and over again, Brock uses all of his God-given abilities tremendously to create a beautiful masterpiece of offensive football in San Francisco. He is more than a game manager. He is a gamer. He is a playmaker.
2. Aaron Rodgers - New York Jets
For the first time ever, since I started making these lists last season, Aaron Rodgers appears on my top 5 performances of the week list. This is by far the best quarterback performance the Jets have had since Joe Namath, and arguably, one of the best ever in Jets franchise history when you really watch the tape. Rodgers finished this Thursday Night Football matchup with a 118.9 QBR, completing 27 of 35 passes for 281 Yards and 2 touchdowns. The old man with a new Achilles also ran the ball as well for 8 yards on three attempts. We might as well give A-Rod a doctorate degree with this performance. He didn’t seem to have a bad throw all night. He was throwing beautiful in-rhythm balls into tight windows, directing traffic like a veteran crossing guard and making the special out of schedule plays and back shoulders we have come to see from Rodgers. What impressed me most was every ball was in the perfect spot and he seemed to do it with ease. Rodgers arguably should have had a 3rd TD with the beautiful back shoulder fade he threw to Williams, that was knocked out on the way to the ground. This was a vintage A-Rod performance tonight. DISCOUNT DOUBLE CHECK IS BACK!
1. Josh Allen - Buffalo Bills
The other Monday Night Football matchup had the best quarterback performance of Week 3, in my opinion. Josh Allen dominated the Jaguars and ended the game by halftime. Allen amassed a 142.1 QBR, completing 23 of 30 pass attempts for 263 Yards and 4 touchdowns, with an additional 6 rushes for 44 yards on the ground. Dare I say the best quarterback in the NFL right now? Josh Allen torched the Jaguars defense on corner routes and crossers consistently, and the Jags had no answers for it. It seemed as if Josh Allen was just playing 7on7 in the summer with a high school team. He made throw after throw and play after play, and kept stealing the joy Jaguars fans everywhere (If there even is joy in that fanbase right now). Whether it was a drop back in-rhythm throw, a designed rollout or improv with the legs, he made every play he needed to make and his job was basically done by halftime. And even he took care of his body when running and didn’t take unnecessary hits! Bills win big and it’s because of Josh Allen again.
