The NFL Week 1 preseason games are in the books. Along the way, rookie quarterbacks made their professional debuts.
Some of the young signal-callers stunned with surprisingly spot-on accuracy and stellar plays. Along with the good came the bad, however, in the form of injuries, turnovers and some terrible lapses of judgement.
We have ranked the following rookie quarterbacks based on overall performance.
9. Jeff Driskel, San Francisco 49ers
Driskel’s debut showed that he needs some much more time to get acclimated to the the big leagues.
The 49ers brought Driskel in late in the third quarter and let him play the remainder of the game. He struggled to hit receivers that were clearly open. As a result, the rookie connected only four times on his 12 passing attempts for a measly total of 20 yards. Driskel did not manage to score but fortunately was not intercepted, either.
Notable is his 61 rushing yards on five attempts, which was the second-most rushing yards accomplished by any 49ers player in Sunday’s game. He should receive even more work with Colin Kaepernick’s “dead arm” appearing to be an issue that could last a while (more on that here).
Furthermore, Thad Lewis is out for the season after sustaining a torn ACL.
8. Cody Kessler, Cleveland Browns
On paper, Kessler’s 100 percent completion rate and one touchdown looks beautiful.
Though, he attempted only two passes and committed a safety on this errant play.
Oh dear. Cody Kessler drops back… And goes out of the back of the end zone.
That's a safety. #CLEvsGB https://t.co/MfHUEEkHNy
— NFL (@NFL) August 13, 2016
Kessler appeared to be lost when he wondered out of the end zone and gave up two points to the Green Bay Packers in Friday’s game. He also had a difficult time escaping pressure and was sacked three times for a loss of 16 yards during his limited play.
Fortunately, Kessler did connect on a 10-yard touchdown pass to Rashard Higgins late in the third quarter prior to his blundering safety. Needless to say, the Browns’ third-round pick is a work in progress.
7. Jared Goff, Los Angeles Rams
The much anticipated debut of Goff, who the Rams gave up the farm to select at No. 1, was a tad anticlimactic.
Goff was featured in just two drives and completed an underwhelming four-of-nine attempts for 38 yards and zero touchdowns. The Dallas Cowboys did a fine job of applying pressure, and Goff got intercepted by rookie linebacker Mark Nzeocha, who benefited from a delayed blitz.
He departed the game shortly afterwards with a shoulder injury that is doing better now.
Goff reportedly will be working with the first team for a spell when the Rams host the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday in LA.
6. Carson Wentz, Philadelphia Eagles
Wentz is already done playing this preseason, barring a minor miracle.
After entering the game late in the second quarter and playing nearly the entire second half, Wentz sustained a hairline fracture to his ribs in Thursday’s victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
During a rocky road performance, he completed 12-of-24 passes for a total of 89 yards. Wentz also threw an interception when a pass intended for Paul Turner was picked off by Isaiah Johnson. He also failed to score.
There were some real positives to be gleaned from his performance. He moved around well in the pocket and escaped plenty of pressure, making a few really nice throws in the process.
However, he also showed a propensity to throw high and behind his receivers at times. And any positives he did show won’t be able to take root, given the injury he sustained.
5. Connor Cook, Oakland Raiders
Cook took the field late in the third quarter and successfully completed his first two passes. Overall, he recorded seven completions on 11 attempts for a total of 71 yards.
He did not manage a score, nor did he throw an interception. At this time, the Raiders consider Cook a “distant No. 3” behind Matt McGloin on Oakland’s depth chart. McGloin went five-of-11 on attempts, but he threw for two touchdowns.
Throughout training camp, Cook has shown improvement, and overall he performed adequately considering he was up against the Cardinals defense.
4. Cardale Jones, Buffalo Bills
Jones recuperated nicely in his rookie premiere following his fumble and (thankfully) a quick recovery on his first drive.
He managed to complete 11-of-21 passes for a solid 162 yards and zero interceptions. The highlight of Jones’ performance was a four-yard touchdown pass to Jarrett Boykin as the clock ticked down to zero seconds.
Had the two point conversion been successful, the Bills would have beat the Indianapolis Colts by one point.
Jones currently lies beneath backup E.J. Manuel in depth.
3. Trevone Boykin, Seattle Seahawks
Boykin saw the most action of all of the three Seahawks quarterbacks in Saturday’s game against Kansas City.
He came onto the field late in the first quarter to relieve Russell Wilson and completed 16-of-26 passing attempts. The most memorable play of the game was a classic Hail Mary, when Boykin connected with Tanner McEvoy for a game-winning 37-yard touchdown.
He also tacked on 21 rushing yards, including a long run of 15-yards, on three attempts. Not too surprisingly, Boykin also fumbled and took a couple of sacks.
Boykin originally went undrafted, but his efforts against the Chiefs were enough to establish himself as a clear backup to Wilson.
2. Paxton Lynch, Denver Broncos
Each of the three Broncos quarterbacks put up a valiant effort in the first preseason game, but none managed to stand out ahead of the others.
Realistically, Lynch has the worst chance in actually earning the starting job this fall. Although, he looked quite solid when the Broncos featured him for the entire second half of Thursday’s shutout against the Chicago Bears.
His pocket awareness was quite spot-on and he was nearly 100 percent accurate when he completed six-of-seven passes for a total of 74 yards. Lynch actually bested Trevor Siemian and Mark Sanchez in his pass-completion percentage.
Lynch did not manage to score, but he also avoided turning the ball over. He will have another chance to impress against the 49ers on Saturday.
1. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys apparently are in fine hands at the backup quarterback position after watching Prescott dazzle against the Los Angeles Rams on Saturday.
Completing 10-of-12 passes for a total of 139 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions, Prescott established a stunning 154.5 quarterback rating.
Who knew Jerry Jones and the Cowboys had this gem up their sleeves after they took a bunch of criticism for not properly addressing their backup needs beyond Tony Romo?
After connecting with both Dez Bryant and Terrance Williams like a pro, Prescott was eventually replaced by Jameill Showers at the end of the first half. Sadly to say, the Cowboys tanked their early lead and lost to the Rams 24-28.
It should be fascinating to see if Prescott’s success continues when the Cowboys face the Miami Dolphins on Friday.