PFN takes Carson Wentz disrespect too far with horrendous QB rankings

The Washington Commanders were always going to be in the market for a new quarterback this offseason.

While they set their sights on Aaron Rodgers, which never seemed realistic, Russell Wilson and even Deshaun Watson (at least in terms of due-diligence while his legal situation was resolved), they wound up with Carson Wentz.

Before they acquired Wentz from the Colts, the Commanders reportedly inquired about every team’s quarterback situation, including the Chiefs, who seem content with Patrick Mahomes under a 10-year, $450 million contract.

While everyone is aware of Wentz’s volatile tendencies, the trade was a solid piece of business from Washington if you grade it through an objective lens. The national media, on the other hand, couldn’t wait to reprimand the move.

That’s not surprising, of course, as everyone’s lasting memory of Wentz is when he capitulated against the then-two-win Jaguars in Week 18 with Indianapolis facing a win-or-go-home scenario regarding their playoff fate.

Of all the criticism the Commanders and Wentz have faced this offseason, perhaps the most disrespectful form came from Pro Football Network’s quarterback rankings. You’ll literally never guess where Wentz ranked.

https://twitter.com/PFF_Washington/status/1527035265331634176

Pro Football Network’s QBs rankings lost all credibility with their placement of Commanders starter Carson Wentz.

According to PFN writer Dalton Miller, Wentz is the NFL’s 28th-worst quarterback entering the 2022 season. You can debate all day whether Wentz is a franchise quarterback. Hall of Famer Troy Aikman thinks this is the 29-year-old’s last chance to prove himself deserving of that title, and he’s probably right.

With that said, we’re hard-pressed to name 15-17 QBs better than Wentz. To say he’s only better than FOUR starters is a fallacy. Here’s what Miller’s rankings look like from Nos. 20-32. Trust us when we say to brace yourselves.

• 20. Jimmy Garoppolo, San Francisco 49ers
• 21. Baker Mayfield, Cleveland Browns
• 22. Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins
• 23. Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars
• 24. Justin Fields, Chicago Bears
• 25. Davis Mills, Houston Texans
• 26. Zach Wilson, New York Jets
• 27. Daniel Jones, New York Giants
• 28. Carson Wentz, Washington Football Team
• 29. Jared Goff, Detroit Lions
• 30. Sam Darnold, Carolina Panthers
• 31. Mitchell Trubisky, Pittsburgh Steelers
• 32. Drew Lock, Seattle Seahawks

That’s right, folks. Per this list, second-year QBs Trevor Lawrence, Justin Fields, Davis Mills and Zach Wilson, neither of whom looked very good as rookies, rank higher than Wentz. It’d be one thing in each of them set the NFL ablaze in Year 1, but their combined records and passer ratings were 10-41 and 75.9, respectively.

We’re not even going to mention their TD-to-INT ratios. Just know Wentz owns a 44-40-1 record while throwing 140 touchdowns to 57 interceptions in his career, once finished third in MVP voting and has been to the playoffs three times. But sure, go ahead and rank unproven sophomores ahead of him.

And Daniel Jones? Come on. Since he was drafted in 2019, the Giants starter is tied for third in the league with 49 turnovers. For context, he’s played seven and eight fewer games than the only quarterbacks ranked ahead of him: Jared Goff and Baker Mayfield. He also has more turnovers than passing touchdowns and his fifth-year option wasn’t picked up. Must be better than Wentz, though, right?

Are we really supposed to believe Tua Tagovailoa is better than Wentz? Is this ranking based on projections after the Dolphins added Tyreek Hill and Cedrick Wilson to pair with Jaylen Waddle and beefed up their offensive line? What has Tua shown over his 21 career starts that suggests he’s better than Wentz?

In the 15-20 range, Jalen Hurts and Mac Jones fall at 17 and 18, respectively. We suppose PFN didn’t gather that most of Hurts’ passing/rushing stats were accumulated in garbage time last year. How did Hurts look in the Eagles’ first-round playoff loss to the Buccaneers? Notice how that horrid performance didn’t hurt his standing amongst NFL QBs. Funny how that works.

As for Jones, does one year playing in a run-first offense and attempting 7.3 yards per dropback make him better than Wentz? The future is bright for the Patriots starter, but how can anyone say he’s already better than Wentz?

We’re not saying you have to love Wentz, but he absolutely belongs closer to the 17-22 range than 28-32. Or did him finishing 10th in passing touchdowns and QBR and 13th in passer rating last season not get considered?

We normally wouldn’t give an offseason ranking the light of day, but surely Commanders fans can understand why we felt compelled to defend Wentz’s honor here. The bias against the player is embarrassing at this point.