2026 has been a strong year for awful NFL quarterback performances. If Week 10's depth charts are any indication, we may rise to a new plateau on Sunday.
But the worst showings don't come from rookie mid-round draft picks or practice squad call-ups. They come from the quarterbacks from whom we've come to expect a baseline of competence and a ceiling of greatness. That's what makes an NFL passer truly capable of grossness.
There's no perfect metric for a quarterback's impact, but expected points added (EPA) helps measure their ability to swing the outcome of a game through the air, on the ground and through avoiding negative plays. Last year, EPA told us Drake Maye and Matthew Stafford were a cut above the rest of the league's quarterbacks in the regular
season, netting 151.3 and 120.3 EPA, respectfully. No one else in the league topped triple digits. Unsurprisingly, those two led playoff teams and finished second and first, respectively, in MVP voting.
We can use EPA to help dissect which quarterbacks underwhelmed the hardest in their debut. By comparing their Week 8 EPA across their early 2026 season averages, we get a better idea of whose fans should be most annoyed. And so, we end up with a "worst QBs" list that doesn't include some of the league's actual worst quarterbacks, simply because their starts to the season have been so disappointing we've been moderately conditioned not to expect more this fall. You have to be at least decent in 2026 — or otherworldly awful on a given week — to wind up in the gross QB rankings.
However, I did make an exception this week to talk about Carson Wentz, because my god.
We'll also look at completion percentage over expected (CPOE), which gives you a good idea of which quarterbacks are making tough throws (and, in some cases, being bailed out by exceptional catches). All data come from NFL Pro.
We'll also keep a running tally of the times each quarterback lands here. We'll score that placement track meet style — 10 points for first place, then eight, six, four, two and one — in order to figure out who was truly 2026's grossest passer.
Honorable mention: Jared Goff, Detroit Lions
- 2026 EPA/game: 9.8
- Week 9 EPA: -5.2
- Difference: 15 points worse
- 2026 CPOE: 1.7 percent
- Week 9 CPOE: -3.7 percent
- Difference: 5.4 points worse
Goff is partially a victim of his own success. He was limited largely to short passes and threw his second interception of the season against what's beenthe league's worst defense. He still gave Detroit enough for a double-digit win even as Jahmyr Gibbs struggled. He'll be fine.
5. Geno Smith, New York Jets
- 2026 EPA/game: 0.9
- Week 9 EPA: -14.6
- Difference: 15.5 points worse
- 2026 CPOE: 6.4 percent
- Week 9 CPOE: -10.4 percent
- Difference: 16.8 points worse
Smith was given an opportunity in a game the Jets only trailed by two points at halftime. He failed to lead a single scoring drive after the break and New York lost, 35-12. The veteran's revival hinged on huge CPOE numbers, showcasing his downfield accuracy and ability to make throws others could not. But in Kansas City, he tried to throw his way back into the game with deep shots to Adonai Mitchell.
Mitchell was targeted seven times with an average distance of just under 19 yards downfield. He failed to catch a single pass. Some of this was due to Mitchell's inconsistency. Some was due to fitting square pegs into round holes; the Chiefs knew these passes were coming, had safety help on the ready and held the young wideout to just 1.6 yards of separation per target -- by far his lowest mark of the season.
As a result, Smith only completed a single pass that traveled more than eight yards beyond the line of scrimmage.
4. Drake Maye, New England Patriots
- 2026 EPA/game: 4.4
- Week 9 EPA: -13.7
- Difference: 18.1 points worse
- 2026 CPOE: 3.6 percent
- Week 9 CPOE: 1.4 percent
- Difference: 2.2 points worse
Maye returns to the list, because nothing is better for a gross quarterback than high expectations and relentless inconsistency. The return of Mack Hollins to the lineup led to an immediate interception on a miscommunication. From there, the Patriots trailed for more than 58 minutes of game time.
YEAH, X!
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) November 8, 2026
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/ksTRfzRy5Y
While Hollins cut his route short early, "lobbed pass across your body on the run into coverage" was destined to fail regardless. This did not stop Maye's gunslinging but instead amplified it. He tried to battle back from an early three-score deficit with deep throws. While he was able to make Demario Douglas work in that situation, Kyle Williams was a different story.
Damn, Evan
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) November 8, 2026
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/OWHe5FIN7K
The Green Bay defense is peaking right now, and a steady diet of blitzes subjected Maye to a 52 percent pressure rate. The player who'd handled crowded pockets with aplomb glitched out, trading off good throws and bad on a three-touchdown, three-interception day. Douglas stepped up from his depleted receiving corps, but that was about it. 14 of Maye's 38 passes traveled at least 15 yards downfield. He completed six of those to his teammates and another three to Packers safeties.
3. Kirk Cousins, Las Vegas Raiders
- 2026 EPA/game: 4.2
- Week 9 EPA: -17.8
- Difference: 22 points worse
- 2026 CPOE: 2.7 percent
- Week 9 CPOE: 4.7 percent
- Difference: Two points better
Cousins saved his worst for last in Las Vegas. The now-Minnesota Viking (for reasons we'll discuss at No. 1). He completed a ton of passes, but the plurality of them were short, ineffective throws to his left. That makes sense, because when he threw to the right, bad things happened.
just a hunch for the Packers, but i think Kirk Cousins is gonna throw left on Sunday
— Christian D'Andrea (@trainisland.bsky.social) 2026-11-11T17:30:59.875Z
In fairness to Cousins, that deep ball interception came in garbage time and was, in terms of field position, better than an incompletion or a throw short of the sticks.
MALIK SAYS NOT TODAY 🙅♂️
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) November 9, 2026
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/RMvHBvLQdh
But that chart actually shorts him an interception, which means he completed more passes to the right sideline to 49ers defenders than his own teammates. That includes the first play of the second half which, uh...
JADEN SAID MINE ☝️
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) November 8, 2026
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/a5Qu8O0ACx
Before this, Cousins was good in a way that got the Raiders out to 3-0 and largely hasn't mattered since. He ranks seventh in the NFL in EPA per dropback. He's 1-5 since Week 3, thanks to part to a brutal schedule and the underwhelming receiving corps that makes his job more difficult (and fumbled twice deep in San Francisco territory with a chance to tighten a 28-17 game).
Now he goes from Tre Tucker and Jalen Nailor as his top wideouts to Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison (and maybe even a Jauan Jennings revival!). He's 38 years old, but he's throwing the ball downfield more often than he did in any of his seasons after leaving Minnesota. You can see how the Raiders' lack of receiving depth has affected him; his average separation per target is a career low 3.0 yards. His tight window throw rateis 20.3 percent -- a career high.
This all suggests we're going to see a better version of Cousins in the Twin Cities. Not just from his Week 9 performance, but over the steady play he'd already been giving the Raiders this fall. Which is good, because the Vikings are already lousy with quarterbacks who can play like he did against the 49ers.
2. Caleb Williams, Chicago Bears
- 2026 EPA/game: 9.9
- Week 9 EPA: -12.7
- Difference: 22.6 points worse
- 2026 CPOE: 5.8 percent
- Week 9 CPOE: -3.2 percent
- Difference: NIne points worse
For the second straight week, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers bullied a 2024 first round draft pick into four interceptions. But while Michael Penix Jr. was an indoor quarterback slinging passes on the road in the rain, Williams was on his home turf of Soldier Field on a brisk but otherwise pleasant Chicago night. More concerningly, two of those interceptions were on throwaways!
back-to-back interceptions from Caleb Williams and this one is, to use a technical term, real gross
— Christian D'Andrea (@trainisland.bsky.social) 2026-11-09T02:19:20.352Z
and:
INT IS GOOD ✅
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) November 9, 2026
📺: #TBvsCHI on NBC pic.twitter.com/ILsIqF90B6
That should be easily correctable, at least in theory. But after handling a blitz-heavy defense and beating the Patriots two weeks earlier, cracks showed against a top five Tampa Bay defense. Luther Burden III bailed him out with massive gains on shorter throws. His seven catches came a combined 30 yards downfield. He turned that into 97 yards and a touchdown, because he is Chicago's contingency plan for when a young quarterback glitches out.
That's not a great sign when you're competing with the Vikings for a division title. Minnesota already limited him before he exited Week 2 with a hamstring injury. Opposing defenses are compiling tape on how to stop Caleb Williams, but only a select few have the personnel to pull it off. Fortunately for Chicago, once opponents have answers, head coach Ben Johnson has a wonderful track record of changing the questions.
1. Carson Wentz, Minnesota Vikings
- 2026 EPA/game: 0.2
- Week 9 EPA: -26.2
- Difference: 26 points worse
- 2026 CPOE: -8.0 percent
- Week 9 CPOE: -23.7 percent
- Difference: 15.7 points worse
Why did the Vikings trade a top 100 draft pick for Kirk Cousins? Somehow, an eight for 25, 83-yard, two interception stat line doesn't paint a complete picture of how bad things were against Buffalo.
This helps, though.
did Kyler Murray pay Carson Wentz to make him look better by comparison
— Christian D'Andrea (@trainisland.bsky.social) 2026-11-10T03:45:44.017Z
You know what? There's no amount of analysis that's going to sum up Wentz's performance better than that. Pack it up, we're done here.
OK, now we've got some decent data: FTW Gross QB rankings after Week 9
1. Drake Maye, New England Patriots: 22 points
t-2. Daniel Jones, Indianapolis Colts: 20
t-2. Michael Penix Jr., Atlanta Falcons: 20
4. Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers: 19
5. Jacoby Brissett, Arizona Cardinals: 15
6. Aaron Rodgers, Pittsburgh Steelers: 14
7. Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams: 13
t-8. Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles: 12
t-8. Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 12
t-8. Bryce Young, Carolina Panthers: 12
t-8. Kirk Cousins, Las Vegas Raiders: 12
t-12. Bo Nix, Denver Broncos: 10
t-12. Malik Willis, Miami Dolphins: 10
t-12. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys: 10
t-12. Carson Wentz, Minnesota Vikings: 10
t-16. Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers: 9
t-16. Jared Goff, Detroit Lions: 9
t-18. Deshaun Watson, Cleveland Browns: 8
t-18. Caleb Williams, Chicago Bears: 8
t-18. Geno Smith, New York Jets: 8
21. Jordan Love, Green Bay Packers: 7
t-22. Cam Ward, Tennessee Titans: 4
t-22. Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs: 4
t-22. Jameis Winston, New York Giants: 4
25. C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans: 3
26. Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars: 2
t-27. Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills: 1
t-27. Tyler Shough, New Orleans Saints: 1
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Gross quarterback ranks: For the first time ever, 2 Vikings make the list
