Rookie QB Power Rankings Heading Into Week 4

Rookie QB power rankings heading into Week 4.
Rookie QB power rankings heading into Week 4. / Sam Greenwood/Getty Images
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It was a bad week to be a rookie quarterback. Frankly, it's been a bad year to be a rookie quarterback. But we'll be ranking them each week regardless.

As a reminder, we're ranking these rookies based on how they've played so far – not how well we think they might play in the future.

Without further ado, here are the top-five rookie QBs in 2021.

1. Mac Jones, New England Patriots (Last Week: 1)

Mac Jones is No. 1 on this list by default. He's the only rookie QB who has delivered a rock-solid performance from start to finish this season, and that came back in Week 1. He completed 29-of-39 passes for 281 yards with 1 touchdown and 0 interceptions. Since then, he's averaging 228.0 yards per game with 1 TD and 3 picks. Still, he's been better than his peers.

2. Trey Lance, San Francisco 49ers (Last Week: 4)

Trey Lance has played 7 snaps through three weeks. He has accounted for as many total touchdowns (2) as Zach Wilson, who has started all three games. He's getting the No. 2 spot simply because we haven't seen him play as poorly as the next three names on this list.

3. Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars (Last Week: 2)

Trevor Lawrence has been extremely inconsistent. For every amazing, eye-popping play, he'll make two or three that leave you scratching your head. And he threw the Jacksonville Jaguars out of the game with a horrendous pick-six near the end of the third quarter. Jacksonville was leading, 21-17, at the time, but went on to lose 31-19. On the year, Lawrence has tossed 5 touchdowns to 7 interceptions. He really hasn't been much better than the next two names on this list, and his performances have been getting worse, not better.

4. Justin Fields, Chicago Bears (Last Week: 3)

Justin Fields had one of the worst debuts we've seen in a long time. He finished 6-of-20 for 68 yards with no TDs and no picks while taking 9 sacks. His Chicago Bears averaged 1.1 yards per play, which was the second-fewest by any team this century (per CBS). But the game planning by Matt Nagy was so atrocious that we'll give him the benefit of the doubt for one more week. He'll be at the bottom of this list next week if he doesn't turn it around – assuming he starts, that is.

5. Zach Wilson, New York Jets (Last Week: 5)

The New York Jets haven't scored a touchdown since Week 1. They're averaging 3.0 points per game (PPG) in that time. Zach Wilson has thrown 7 interceptions, taken 15 sacks and fumbled once while throwing just 2 touchdowns and averaging 209.3 yards per game this season. He's been really bad. But he's been plagued by drops and a terrible offensive line. And he's had to face three top-five pass defenses by DVOA. That is a brutal start for any QB, let alone a rookie. He should finally get a breather against the Tennessee Titans (No. 22). Wilson has a shot to be much higher on this list next week.


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Max Staley is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Max Staley also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username mstaley1212. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.