Dak Prescott’s place in the quarterback conversation has changed, and ESPN’s latest rankings make that pretty clear.
For years, the Dallas Cowboys passer was a lightning rod. Fans and critics alike used to grab hold of the Prescott debate the same way they did with Tony Romo before him.
Now, with Prescott entering his eleventh season in the job, the arguments don’t feel quite as loud. Maybe that’s time.
Maybe it’s acceptance. Either way, the noise has eased.
ESPN’s newest quarterback rankings, built from input from NFL executives, coaches, and scouts, put Prescott at No. 6. He landed behind Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes, Matthew Stafford, Joe Burrow, and Lamar Jackson, but ahead of Justin Herbert, Drake Maye, Jared Goff, and Caleb Williams.
Prescott showed up on nearly 75% of ballots and drew a healthy number of top-five votes. He also had a wide gap between himself and the quarterback ranked seventh, which says plenty about how strongly he was viewed in this exercise. For a player who has often hovered around the fringe of the top 10 in these kinds of lists, this is a notable bump.
One NFL coordinator put it this way: “He’s a true, acute progression passer,” an NFL coordinator said. “There are only so many of those types.
He can read the whole field, from pre- to post-snap. He’s just really a good commander of the offense.”
That’s the heart of Prescott’s case. He’s not being ranked this high because of flash. He’s being ranked this high because of command, processing, and the way he handles a defense.
The numbers back up the profile. Prescott was hurt by interceptions in 2022, throwing 15, and he missed nine games in 2024 because of injuries.
But in 2023 and 2025, he was productive in a big way, piling up 9,068 passing yards and 66 touchdown throws. He also owns four seasons with at least 4,000 passing yards and 30 touchdown passes, which ties him for sixth most all time behind Drew Brees, Manning, Brady, Rodgers and Philip Rivers.
There was also a note from an AFC offensive coach that points to another layer of his game: “I think he can use his athleticism even more and run for first downs,” said an AFC offensive coach, referring to Prescott’s modest 177 rushing yards last season. “That would give [the Cowboys] a new dimension.”
That’s been a familiar talking point around Prescott for a while, and it still lingers. Cowboys fans would probably welcome a little more of that element if it means another way to stress a defense.
Among NFC quarterbacks, Prescott checks in second only to Matthew Stafford, who is the reigning MVP in this ranking. He’s also the lone NFC East quarterback on the list, though Jayden Daniels and Jalen Hurts were both named honorable mentions. The rest of that group was mostly NFC names: Sam Darnold, Jordan Love, Brock Purdy, Baker Mayfield, and Trevor Lawrence.
The ranking is a reminder of how far Prescott has come as a passer and how much respect he has earned from people inside the league. But the Cowboys’ story with him always circles back to the same place.
Regular-season production and career numbers can look great on paper. It gets harder to lean on them every year without serious playoff success.
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