We saw some good NFL quarterback performances from Week 5, including Jared Goff throwing three touchdowns in his Detroit Lions win over the Carolina Panthers and Brock Purdy tossing four touchdowns for the San Francisco 49ers.
On the other side, Panthers signal caller Bryce Young turned the ball over two times with each one resulting in a Detroit touchdown.
Young joined Baltimore Ravens star Lamar Jackson and Joshua Dobbs of the Arizona Cardinals in putting up one of the worst NFL quarterback performances from Sunday afternoon’s action. However, it was Dak Prescott who struggled big time in a blowout loss to the San Francisco 49ers who took the cake.
Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens
- Lamar Jackson stats (Week 5): 22-of-38 passing, 236 yards, 0 TD, 1 INT
Jackson just did not have it against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 5. He turned the ball over two times, including an interception into the hands of rookie cornerback Joey Porter Jr.
This pick came with Baltimore up 10-8 and the Ravens looking to put Pittsburgh away with just over four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.
Jackson also fumbled on a sack from Alex Highsmith on the Ravens’ very next possession with the team down 14-10. The Steelers would get a field goal and come away with a comeback 17-10 win. Quarterbacks simply can’t make game-changing mistakes like what we saw from Jackson during NFL Week 5.
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Joshua Dobbs, Arizona Cardinals
- Joshua Dobbs stats (Week 5): 15-of-32 passing, 166 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
Acquired shortly before Week 1, Dobbs had put up a tremendous start to his first season with the Cardinals (four touchdowns, zero interceptions). It has led to some speculation that the Cards might actually stick with Dobbs once Kyler Murray is able to return from his torn ACL.
About that? Dobbs threw two interceptions and lost a fumble during Arizona’s 34-20 home loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday. That included an ugly pick-six into the hands of Bengals defensive back Cam Taylor-Britt.
Dobbs legitimately threw the ball to an area of the field that had four Bengals defenders. The end result wasn’t all too unexpected.
With Arizona down 34-20 in the fourth quarter, Dobbs threw yet another interception to pretty much put the icing on the cake. In putting up one of the worst NFL quarterback performances from Week 5, Dobbs turned into a pumpkin. That’s the harsh reality of the situation.
Bryce Young, Carolina Panthers
- Bryce Young stats (Week 5): 25-of-41 passing, 247 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT
Turnovers. Turnovers. More turnovers. The Panthers committed three giveaways Sunday as they lost for the fifth consecutive time to open the season. All three turnovers turned into Detroit Lions touchdown in what ended up being a 42-24 blowout.
The rookie No. 1 pick’s first interception came with the Panthers down 7-0 in the first quarter. It went into the hands of Detroit star edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson in what seemed to be a bubble screen.
With Carolina down 21-7 in the second quarter, Young threw an ugly pick into the hands of Lions defensive back Jerry Jacobs, who baited the youngster into the game-changing mistake.
The Panthers are not good enough to overcome mistakes like what we saw from Young on Sunday. No team is. And it had him putting up one of the worst NFL quarterback performances from Week 5.
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Mac Jones, New England Patriots
- Mac Jones stats (Week 5): 12-of-22 passing, 110 yards, 0 TD, 2 INT
For the second consecutive week, Jones found himself benched late in a blowout loss for the Patriots. This came after the third-year quarterback threw a pick-six into the waiting hands of Saints star defensive back Tyrann Mathieu.
We’re not too sure what Jones was even thinking there. Sure, he was facing pressure. But you can’t blindly throw the ball in that manner in today’s NFL. Later in the game, Jones threw yet another interception. It turned directly into a Saints touchdown, putting this one away.
“It was just early. I’ve got to watch the film. But definitely don’t want to start like that and we got to start faster in these games,” Mac Jones said after the game. “It’s been a trend here. So we want to improve and try and learn from it and do everything I can to get better.”
Bill Belichick said after the game that he pulled Jones because it was a blowout. But this is the second consecutive game that Jones has been shown the clipboard. It came amid a 34-0 shutout loss to New Orleans at home. Just ugly stuff here.
Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys
- Dak Prescott stats (Week 5): 14-of-24 passing, 153 yards, 1 TD, 3 INT
Prescott talked a whole lot about how he wanted to show up Sunday night against the San Francisco 49ers after seeing the Cowboys’ season end against the bitter rivals each of the past two seasons.
“I mean, we’re so far past that, to be honest with you, that’s obvious,” Prescott said heading into Sunday’s game when asked if these two losses motivates him. “You just want to piss me off going into this week, and I appreciate that. I do, actually. I do. I appreciate that.”
About that? Prescott was just atrocious Sunday night in what was a blowout 42-10 loss in San Francisco. That included throwing three interceptions, two of which turned into 49ers touchdowns.
Prescott is going to receive a ton of questions about his ability to perform in big games. As much as the quarterback and his team pumped up this game, to show very little against one of the best teams in the NFL is a bad omen.