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NFL Quarterback Power Rankings, Week 4: Baker Mayfield arrives

By Randy Gurzi

CLEVELAND, OH - SEPTEMBER 20: Baker Mayfield #6 of the Cleveland Browns celebrates after a touchdown by Carlos Hyde #34 (not pictured) during the fourth quarter against the New York Jets at FirstEnergy Stadium on September 20, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH - SEPTEMBER 20: Baker Mayfield #6 of the Cleveland Browns celebrates after a touchdown by Carlos Hyde #34 (not pictured) during the fourth quarter against the New York Jets at FirstEnergy Stadium on September 20, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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NFL Power Rankings Quarterbacks
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – SEPTEMBER 23: Josh Allen #17 of the Buffalo Bills passes the ball in the first quarter of the game against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium on September 23, 2018 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Adam Bettcher/Getty Images) /

28. Sam Darnold New York Jets (26)

It’s funny how quick the NFL changes. After a great showing on Monday Night Football in Week 1, some actually thought the Browns messed up drafting Baker Mayfield because of how good Sam Darnold looked. Of course, Mayfield hadn’t played yet so it wasn’t a fair comparison. Then when Mayfield did play, he led his team to their first win in 635 days over Darnold and the Jets.

Now some are whispering he may be a bust. Both takes are overreactions, especially the bust part. Darnold was raw after starting just two seasons in college, so it will take time.

Turnovers are still the main issue with Darnold and he threw a couple late interceptions in the loss to Cleveland. That was a giant issue at USC and needs to be figured out. He has all the other tools needed and will be fine — he’s just not there yet.

27. Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills (32)

Why teams keep insisting rookies can’t play is beyond me. Every time one of them gets a shot, they outplay the veteran player who was overrated ahead of them. This time, we’re not even talking about an established veteran, but a second-year guy in Nathan Peterman.

Buffalo was convinced he gave them a better shot at winning than Josh Allen did and that was wrong. Allen may have his issues, but he’s light years ahead of Peterman. He was also really good in the Bills shocking road win against the Minnesota Vikings. He threw a touchdown and ran two more — but he needs to work on ball security as he fumbled several times, but was fortunate to get them back. He won’t always get those breaks.

26. Deshaun Watson, Houston Texans (20)

It appears the book is out on Deshaun Watson. The Houston Texans thought most their issues would be solved by his return following a torn ACL in 2017, but so far that hasn’t been the case. Watson and the Texans dropped to 0-3 on the season, and Watson had another inefficient outing in the loss.

He was 24-of-40 for 385 yards, but that’s pretty misleading as he did most of his damage in the fourth as the team was attempting to climb back into the game. Watson also has far too many interceptions in his young career. He appears to play to the opponent as he’s better against the big-name teams, but he still doesn’t get many wins.

25. Andy Dalton, Cincinnati Bengals (24)

The 352 yards passing and two touchdowns looked pretty impressive for the Cincinnati Bengals starting quarterback Andy Dalton. The four interceptions were not. We can’t crush him too hard for that though, because he’s been much better this season than expected — up until this game that is.

He also still has the Bengals in contention in the suddenly tight AFC North. With the Pittsburgh Steelers struggling due to inner turmoil, the Bengals jumped out to an early lead and despite falling to 2-1, they still have the divisional win over the Colts. If Dalton keeps playing as he did in Weeks 1 and 2, they could stay in contention.

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