The Cowboys finally signed Dak Prescott to a long-term deal yesterday: 4 years, $160 million. It's a huge amount of money, and some NFL fans can wonder if he's worth it. But fantasy teams can rejoice, because Prescott in Dallas has been pretty awesome the past few years.
Prescott played in only five games last season before getting injured, but those were some games. He averaged over 33 fantasy points in a scoring system that awards 4 for TD passes, 6 for runs, and 1 for every 10 rushing and 20 passing yards. That's the top average for any quarterback with at least 5 starts in any of the past four seasons. Looking at the top 60 such performances since 2017, Prescott shows up on that list three times.
QB FANTASY POINTS PER GAME, 2017-2020 | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Player | G | Pass | TD | Run | TDR | PPR | FF/G |
2020 | Dak Prescott, Dall. | 5 | 1856 | 9 | 93 | 3 | 168.2 | 33.6 |
2018 | Patrick Mahomes, K.C. | 16 | 5097 | 50 | 272 | 2 | 496.1 | 31.0 |
2019 | Lamar Jackson, Balt. | 15 | 3127 | 36 | 1206 | 7 | 463.0 | 30.9 |
2020 | Josh Allen, Buff. | 16 | 4544 | 37 | 421 | 8 | 473.5 | 29.6 |
2020 | Patrick Mahomes, K.C. | 15 | 4740 | 38 | 308 | 2 | 437.8 | 29.2 |
2017 | Deshaun Watson, Hou. | 7 | 1699 | 19 | 269 | 2 | 203.9 | 29.1 |
2020 | Kyler Murray, Ariz. | 16 | 3971 | 26 | 819 | 11 | 450.45 | 28.2 |
2020 | Aaron Rodgers, G.B. | 16 | 4299 | 48 | 149 | 3 | 440.25 | 27.5 |
2020 | Deshaun Watson, Hou. | 16 | 4823 | 33 | 444 | 3 | 437.55 | 27.3 |
2020 | Russell Wilson, Sea. | 16 | 4212 | 40 | 513 | 2 | 435.9 | 27.2 |
2018 | Ryan Fitzpatrick, T.B. | 8 | 2366 | 17 | 152 | 2 | 215.5 | 26.9 |
2018 | Ben Roethlisberger, Pitt. | 16 | 5129 | 34 | 98 | 3 | 429.2 | 26.8 |
2018 | Matt Ryan, Atl. | 16 | 4924 | 35 | 125 | 3 | 428.2 | 26.8 |
2019 | Jameis Winston, T.B. | 16 | 5109 | 33 | 250 | 1 | 426.5 | 26.7 |
2020 | Justin Herbert, LAC | 15 | 4336 | 31 | 234 | 5 | 398.2 | 26.5 |
2017 | Russell Wilson, Sea. | 16 | 3983 | 34 | 586 | 3 | 415.8 | 26.0 |
2019 | Deshaun Watson, Hou. | 15 | 3852 | 26 | 413 | 7 | 389.5 | 26.0 |
2019 | Matthew Stafford, Det. | 8 | 2499 | 19 | 66 | 0 | 207.6 | 25.9 |
2019 | Dak Prescott, Dall. | 16 | 4902 | 30 | 277 | 3 | 412.8 | 25.8 |
2020 | Lamar Jackson, Balt. | 15 | 2757 | 26 | 1005 | 7 | 386.35 | 25.8 |
2017 | Carson Wentz, Phil. | 13 | 3296 | 33 | 299 | 0 | 334.7 | 25.7 |
2020 | Tom Brady, T.B. | 16 | 4633 | 40 | 6 | 3 | 410.25 | 25.6 |
2018 | Andrew Luck, Ind. | 16 | 4593 | 39 | 148 | 0 | 405.9 | 25.4 |
2020 | Ryan Tannehill, Ten. | 16 | 3819 | 33 | 266 | 7 | 398.55 | 24.9 |
2018 | Deshaun Watson, Hou. | 16 | 4165 | 26 | 551 | 5 | 397.4 | 24.8 |
2018 | Jared Goff, LAR | 16 | 4688 | 32 | 108 | 2 | 397.2 | 24.8 |
2018 | Cam Newton, Car. | 14 | 3395 | 24 | 488 | 4 | 342.6 | 24.5 |
2019 | Patrick Mahomes, K.C. | 14 | 4031 | 26 | 218 | 2 | 341.4 | 24.4 |
2020 | Kirk Cousins, Min. | 16 | 4265 | 35 | 156 | 1 | 384.85 | 24.1 |
2019 | Russell Wilson, Sea. | 16 | 4110 | 31 | 342 | 3 | 383.7 | 24.0 |
2019 | Drew Brees, N.O. | 11 | 2979 | 27 | -4 | 1 | 262.6 | 23.9 |
2018 | Drew Brees, N.O. | 15 | 3992 | 32 | 22 | 4 | 356.9 | 23.8 |
2018 | Jameis Winston, T.B. | 11 | 2992 | 19 | 281 | 1 | 259.7 | 23.6 |
2019 | Matt Ryan, Atl. | 15 | 4466 | 26 | 147 | 1 | 350.0 | 23.3 |
2018 | Mitchell Trubisky, Chi. | 14 | 3223 | 24 | 421 | 3 | 325.3 | 23.2 |
2017 | Alex Smith, K.C. | 15 | 4042 | 26 | 355 | 1 | 347.6 | 23.2 |
2018 | Aaron Rodgers, G.B. | 16 | 4442 | 25 | 269 | 2 | 367.0 | 22.9 |
2017 | Aaron Rodgers, G.B. | 7 | 1675 | 16 | 126 | 0 | 160.4 | 22.9 |
2017 | Cam Newton, Car. | 16 | 3302 | 22 | 754 | 6 | 366.5 | 22.9 |
2018 | Carson Wentz, Phil. | 11 | 3074 | 21 | 93 | 0 | 250.4 | 22.8 |
2017 | Tom Brady, N.E. | 16 | 4577 | 32 | 28 | 0 | 363.7 | 22.7 |
2018 | Kirk Cousins, Min. | 16 | 4298 | 30 | 123 | 1 | 360.1 | 22.5 |
2019 | Ryan Tannehill, Ten. | 12 | 2742 | 22 | 185 | 4 | 269.6 | 22.5 |
2019 | Daniel Jones, NYG | 13 | 3027 | 24 | 279 | 2 | 291.3 | 22.4 |
2020 | Gardner Minshew, Jac. | 9 | 2259 | 16 | 153 | 1 | 201.25 | 22.4 |
2020 | Matt Ryan, Atl. | 16 | 4581 | 26 | 92 | 2 | 356.25 | 22.3 |
2018 | Baker Mayfield, Cle. | 14 | 3725 | 27 | 131 | 0 | 311.4 | 22.2 |
2017 | Ben Roethlisberger, Pitt. | 15 | 4251 | 28 | 47 | 0 | 333.3 | 22.2 |
2017 | Kirk Cousins, Was. | 16 | 4093 | 27 | 179 | 4 | 354.6 | 22.2 |
2018 | Philip Rivers, LAC | 16 | 4308 | 32 | 7 | 0 | 354.1 | 22.1 |
2018 | Dak Prescott, Dall. | 16 | 3885 | 22 | 305 | 6 | 352.8 | 22.0 |
2017 | Matthew Stafford, Det. | 16 | 4446 | 29 | 98 | 0 | 352.1 | 22.0 |
2018 | Russell Wilson, Sea. | 16 | 3448 | 35 | 376 | 0 | 351.9 | 22.0 |
2018 | Tom Brady, N.E. | 16 | 4355 | 29 | 35 | 2 | 350.9 | 21.9 |
2019 | Kyler Murray, Ariz. | 16 | 3722 | 20 | 544 | 4 | 350.5 | 21.9 |
2020 | Carson Wentz, Phil. | 12 | 2620 | 16 | 276 | 5 | 262.6 | 21.9 |
2020 | Joe Burrow, Cin. | 10 | 2688 | 13 | 142 | 3 | 218.6 | 21.9 |
2020 | Ben Roethlisberger, Pitt. | 15 | 3803 | 33 | 11 | 0 | 327.25 | 21.8 |
2020 | Derek Carr, L.V. | 16 | 4103 | 27 | 140 | 3 | 347.15 | 21.7 |
2019 | Josh Allen, Buff. | 16 | 3089 | 20 | 510 | 9 | 345.5 | 21.6 |
Given his production, it's fair to wonder if Prescott will be undervalued in drafts. He won't be selected as early as Mahomes, Jackson, Watson or Murray, most likely, but the potential is there for him to outperform them. Particularly for those in best-ball leagues drafting now, Prescott being under contract makes him a much safer pick.
He might not be as good as last year (Dallas's defense couldn't possibly be as bad as it was in those games where Prescott was tearing it up), but his pass-run combo makes him look very appealing.
--Andy Richardson