NFL QB rankings, Week 14: Lamar Jackson falls out of top 20; who jumped 12 spots?

NOTE: Up/down arrows illustrate movement from the Week 13 QB Index.

TIER 1

• Matthew Stafford was largely excellent in Week 13, save for one mistake that resulted in a pick-six. Aside from that, he and Davante Adams have become a red-zone wrecking crew, making touchdown passes look elementary. I will admit, though: The MVP race is getting tight.
• Drake Maye keeps cooking. He has it all: accuracy, composure, athleticism and outrageous deep-ball touch.
• Dak Prescott has dunked on his doubters over the last two weeks, propelling the Cowboys to huge wins over both of last season's Super Bowl participants. Most impressive is the fact he earned both victories in different fashions, leaning on George Pickens in Week 12 before turning to CeeDee Lamb in Week 13. The Cowboys are dangerous because of Prescott, who deserves MVP consideration as we enter December.
• I'd love to move Josh Allen up this week, but the quarterbacks ahead of him don't deserve to move down. Allen stays at No. 4, but not without me taking a moment to acknowledge his incredible Week 13 touchdown pass to Keon Coleman. As soon as he received the snap and executed a quick run fake, Allen had pressure in his face. He evaded it, stepped into a wall of a pass rush and, with his hips square to the end zone, fired a rocket to Coleman for a TD. Every week, a quarterback makes a play that makes me jump out of my chair. This week, it was Allen.

TIER 2

• Jordan Love put together a Thanksgiving masterpiece befitting a grand feast, tossing four touchdown passes and completing 18 of his 30 throws against the Lions, all while playing with an injured left (non-throwing) shoulder. I'm fascinated to see if this is the start of a hot finish to the regular season, because he looked remarkably good in Week 13.
• Baker Mayfield was closer to the form we've come to expect from him in Week 13. It would have been an even better final product had Chris Godwin not dropped a would-be touchdown pass. I know Mayfield's been limited by the lack of weaponry around him in recent weeks and is also playing through a shoulder injury, but for a guy who's playing hurt, he sure looked pretty good.
• It won't show up in the stats, but Brock Purdy played significantly better in the win over the Browns, firing passes -- some off platform -- with conviction and much-improved accuracy. Considering he did so on a windy afternoon in Cleveland and under the constant threat of Myles Garrett, that's a notable achievement.
• Sam Darnold didn't have to play a leading role in the Seahawks' Week 13 win, a luxury most teams only realize in their dreams. I'm a bit concerned, though, by some of his recent play. He seems a bit uneven and uncomfortable right now, but he also hasn't been required to push the accelerator much in the last two weeks.

TIER 3

• I should note Trevor Lawrence was playing against the Titans and had an absurd amount of time to throw in Week 13. That made a difference in his performance. It was a beautiful display, though, filled with long completions to wide-open receivers streaking across the field. While he'll be good for a couple of outrageous turnovers in many weeks, Lawrence is also a big reason why the Jaguars are 8-4.
• Bryce Young continues to be the most unpredictable quarterback in the NFL. In Week 12, he looked like a rookie making perhaps his third or fourth career start in an uncompetitive road loss. Then he morphed back into a confident, clutch passer, tossing two touchdown passes of 30-plus yards -- on fourth down -- in Week 13. If he can consistently play to the level he displayed against the Rams, he'll live in the upper half of these rankings for quite some time. But that's a big if.
• Caleb Williams' mobility is starting to make a difference in how the Bears' offense operates. He's unusually skilled at executing a naked bootleg to the left and swiveling his hips to throw or take off for positive gains. Sure, a massive rushing day from his backfield teammates helps, but Williams is on an upward trajectory.
• We now have multiple examples in which Daniel Jones has not been able to overcome the challenge of high-pressure situations in key games with the Colts. Add in his fibula fracture, and I'm worried we've already seen the best of what he can do this season.
• Philadelphia's offense is broken, and Jalen Hurts is having a tough time finding anyone unless it's a go ball to A.J. Brown in single coverage. Those throws are still highly effective, but Hurts' threat as a runner doesn't seem to be nearly as significant as we've seen it be in the past. Frankly, the offense is constipated, and Hurts isn't helping matters much, failing to see open receivers and struggling with accuracy when locating them.
• Joe Burrow showed signs of rust in the first half of his return from injury. He shook off some of it to make a handful of very pretty throws in the second half of the Bengals' upset of the Ravens on Thanksgiving night. It's a good start for a quarterback who might have come back too late to save his team.
• Bo Nix had an inverse Bo Nix game on Sunday night, playing well for three quarters before losing his powers in the fourth. Denver likes to play with its food, and Nix is no different, it seems, although I remain encouraged by what I've seen from a schematic perspective. I think Nix's best games are ahead of him.

TIER 4

• Kirk Cousins did a bang-up job against the Jets for most of the game, firing accurate passes and fulfilling all the goals set for a backup quarterback. It was one of the better performances I've seen from him over the last two seasons (outside of those stat-stuffers against Tampa Bay in 2024).
• Marcus Mariota played his tail off and deserved better than the disappointing fate the Commanders met against the Broncos in overtime.
• Lamar Jackson still doesn't look like himself. He's not much of a threat as a scrambler, and the Ravens' passing offense is disjointed, which isn't all his fault. It is concerning, though.
• C.J. Stroud returned from his extended absence and delivered a satisfactory showing in a Week 13 rock fight between division rivals.

TIER 5

• Tyler Shough gave us a tale of two halves in a narrow loss to Miami. He learned a valuable lesson about anticipating a throw that never comes open when he fired a pass to a receiver running a speed out and watched Rasul Douglas read him like a book for an interception. He then bounced back and nearly threw the Saints to a comeback win. Shough looks the part physically and is gifted enough to get the job done, but he needs more reps.
• Geno Smith is playing behind the worst offensive line in the NFL, doesn't have any support from Las Vegas' nonexistent running game and is frequently asked to just figure it out. He did a pretty good job of that in Week 13, tossing a couple of touchdown passes to Brock Bowers. That was all the scoring the Raiders could muster.

TIER 6

• Aaron Rodgers looks old, frustrated and ready to shout at a cloud. The image of Rodgers' bloodied nose illustrated how the last month has gone for him (hint: not great). It was comforting to know that some things in life are reliable, such as when Rodgers began throwing teammates under the bus after another disappointing showing. We'll see if that motivation tactic works this time around.
• Shedeur Sanders didn't commit any backbreaking mistakes in the Browns' loss to the 49ers, but he also didn't make much of a difference in Cleveland's low-potential offense. He held onto the ball for too long, exposing himself to pressure against a pass-rushing unit that has struggled to generate pressure since losing Nick Bosa and Mykel Williams. He missed some throws. Ultimately, it was a forgettable second start.
• Those who believed J.J. McCarthy represented rock bottom for quarterback play in 2025 learned the floor is, in fact, in an even deeper location inhabited by Max Brosmer. In his defense, he's a rookie who made his first start against one of the NFL's most ferocious defenses, a rough situation for an inexperienced signal-caller. But Brosmer checked all the boxes for a nightmare outing, appearing overwhelmed by the speed of the game, hesitant to make a decision and desperate under duress (SEE: his backhanded fling of a pass for a pick-six). He was generally overmatched by the responsibilities of the position. Fittingly, he also threw an interception that mirrored McCarthy's final pass in Week 12, one of Brosmer's four picks tossed on the day.