2023 NFL Season: Where do the top passers rank in major QB statistics?

2023 NFL Season: Where do the top passers rank in major QB statistics?

Passing Touchdowns

There are some new names who rank near the top of the NFL in passing touchdowns. Prescott leads the NFL with 23. Josh Allen and Tua Tagovailoa have 22 each. Justin Herbert, Jordan Love, Patrick Mahomes, Brock Purdy, and Russell Wilson each have 19. Kirk Cousins, Jared Goff, and Sam Howell each have 18.

Obviously, Kirk Cousins has been out for weeks now, but it's crazy that he still ranks high in various QB statistics. He was on pace to have a monster season. CJ Stroud, Joe Burrow, Jalen Hurts, and Baker Mayfield all have at least 15 TD passes on the year.

Passer Rating

Perhaps the most popular quarterback statistic is passer rating. It can be misleading at times. A lot of people cite ESPN's QBR statistic in the same vein as passer rating, and I've seen countless people across the NFL landscape confuse the two numbers. Anyway, among qualified passers, Brock Purdy is first in the NFL in passer rating. His is 112.3.

Second is Dak Prescott with a 107.4 rating. Russell Wilson is third with a 104.3 rating, and Kirk Cousins and Tua Tagovailoa round out the top five. Lamar Jackson is the other passer who has a passer rating above 100, and that obviously includes Cousins and Tua. Russell Wilson might be the most notable name here, as many thought that he was all but done as a starter in the NFL after a brutal 2022 season.

It's become more and more clear that Russell Wilson was not the primary issue with the Denver Broncos last year, and his resurgence in 2023 is obvious.

Interceptions

A statistic that no one wants to lead in is interceptions. Sam Howell has the most in the NFL with 13. Josh Allen has the second most with 12. All of Mac Jones, Jordan Love, and Tua Tagovailoa have 10 interceptions each. Jimmy Garoppolo, Jalen Hurts, and Patrick Mahomes each have nine. Some of the best passers in the NFL have also thrown a ton of interceptions. INTs are another statistic that doesn't tell the full story.

Someone like Tua Tagovailoa is lighting it up through the air this year, and is a part of the second-ranked scoring offense in the NFL. Some offenses force passers to take shots down the field. And that's sort of the story with Tua. The same could be said with Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes as well.

There you have it. That was a comprehensive overview of the major QB categories thus far in 2023.