Passer Rating vs EPA: Which Tells You More?
Why we rank quarterbacks by EPA per dropback, and what passer rating still gets right.
Read Article →EPA per dropback with garbage time removed: a margin of more than 38 points in the 2nd quarter, 28 in the 3rd or 22 in the 4th. This is a split, never a replacement for the full number.
The 2016 leaders: Tom Brady (+0.35), Matt Ryan (+0.31), Dak Prescott (+0.28).
Minimum to rank: 14 pass attempts per team game (the NFL's minimum for passing rate leaders). 30 players.
| Rk | Player | Pos | Team | Att | Dropbacks | EPA/DB (no GT) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tom Brady | QB | NE | 432 | 458 | +0.35 |
| 2 | Matt Ryan | QB | ATL | 534 | 587 | +0.31 |
| 3 | Dak Prescott | QB | DAL | 459 | 509 | +0.28 |
| 4 | Aaron Rodgers | QB | GB | 610 | 686 | +0.24 |
| 5 | Kirk Cousins | QB | WAS | 606 | 635 | +0.19 |
| 6 | Ben Roethlisberger | QB | PIT | 509 | 526 | +0.19 |
| 7 | Drew Brees | QB | NO | 673 | 696 | +0.16 |
| 8 | Matthew Stafford | QB | DET | 594 | 653 | +0.15 |
| 9 | Marcus Mariota | QB | TEN | 451 | 494 | +0.14 |
| 10 | Derek Carr | QB | LV | 560 | 591 | +0.13 |
| 11 | Andrew Luck | QB | IND | 545 | 624 | +0.12 |
| 12 | Andy Dalton | QB | CIN | 563 | 624 | +0.11 |
| 13 | Tyrod Taylor | QB | BUF | 436 | 526 | +0.11 |
| 14 | Jameis Winston | QB | TB | 567 | 630 | +0.11 |
| 15 | Alex Smith | QB | KC | 489 | 537 | +0.09 |
| 16 | Philip Rivers | QB | LAC | 578 | 619 | +0.09 |
| 17 | Russell Wilson | QB | SEA | 546 | 619 | +0.08 |
| 18 | Sam Bradford | QB | MIN | 552 | 596 | +0.07 |
| 19 | Colin Kaepernick | QB | SF | 331 | 401 | +0.06 |
| 20 | Carson Palmer | QB | ARI | 597 | 639 | +0.06 |
| 21 | Ryan Tannehill | QB | MIA | 389 | 430 | +0.05 |
| 22 | Trevor Siemian | QB | DEN | 486 | 530 | +0.04 |
| 23 | Carson Wentz | QB | PHI | 607 | 657 | +0.03 |
| 24 | Eli Manning | QB | NYG | 598 | 622 | -0.01 |
| 25 | Ryan Fitzpatrick | QB | NYJ | 403 | 440 | -0.02 |
| 26 | Joe Flacco | QB | BAL | 672 | 707 | -0.03 |
| 27 | Brock Osweiler | QB | HOU | 510 | 550 | -0.05 |
| 28 | Cam Newton | QB | CAR | 510 | 554 | -0.06 |
| 29 | Blake Bortles | QB | JAX | 625 | 694 | -0.06 |
| 30 | Case Keenum | QB | LA | 322 | 353 | -0.10 |
EPA per Dropback ACE (Accuracy Compared to Expectation) ACE per 100 Attempts Expected Completion % Success Rate Total Passing EPA Total QB EPA (Passing + Rushing) First-Down Rate per Dropback Explosive Pass Rate Negative-Play Rate Win Probability Added NFL Passer Rating Completion % Yards per Attempt Adjusted Net Yards per Attempt Adjusted Yards per Attempt Net Yards per Attempt Yards per Completion Touchdown % Interception % TD:INT Ratio Sack % Passing Yards per Game Pass Attempts per Game Passing Yards Passing Touchdowns Completions Pass Attempts Interceptions Thrown Sacks Taken Passing First Downs 20+ Yard Completions 40+ Yard Completions Longest Completion 300-Yard Passing Games 4-Touchdown Games Wins as Starter Average Depth of Target Deep Attempt Rate Deep Completion % YAC per Completion Share of Yards Through the Air 3rd-Down Conversion Rate Red Zone Touchdown Rate Clutch EPA per Dropback Clutch Passer Rating Two-Minute Drill EPA per Dropback Game-Winning Drives 4th-Quarter Comebacks Quarterback Rushing Yards Quarterback Rushing EPA Scrambles QB Sneak Conversion Rate Touchdowns Responsible For Total Yards (Passing + Rushing) Turnovers Turnover Rate per Play
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What the box score cannot tell you about the people behind the pass.
Why we rank quarterbacks by EPA per dropback, and what passer rating still gets right.
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