Week 13 of the 2024 NFL season was an interesting one, but not necessarily because of good quarterback play around the league. Intriguingly, 70% of the top-10 performances this week came from quarterbacks who lost, with nine of the top 12 grades coming from QBs on the losing side. However, the top three were from players who ended up on the winning side.
Let’s break down all of the quarterback performances this week in our Week 13 QB rankings, using our QB+ metric to analyze the full spectrum of their play.
Our QB+ metric looks at several statistics, including net yards per attempt (nYPA), third-down conversion rate, passing under pressure, and passing from a clean pocket. Additionally, we have quantified performances in clutch situations using statistics from different key scenarios within a game.
By no means is QB+ the perfect metric, and we will continue to develop it throughout the season and beyond. However, when we analyzed it against the past five years, the results were extremely indicative of what we saw on the field while providing enough nuance away from traditional statistics for measuring quarterback play.
All stats are from TruMedia unless otherwise stated.
Week 13 QB Grades
First, you will find a full list of all quarterbacks from Week 12, listed in order of their QB+ grade and score. Below, you will find an analysis of all qualified quarterbacks and the context for their grades.
They will be listed alphabetically by first name rather than by grade or score. This will allow readers to quickly find the QB they are looking for in the writeups.
- Jordan Love B (86.6) | GB vs. MIA
- Russell Wilson B (84.7) | PIT at CIN
- Josh Allen B- (82.0) | BUF vs. SF
- Jayden Daniels B- (80.8) | WAS vs. TEN
- Drake Maye B- (80.4) | NE vs. IND
- Will Levis C+ (77.5) | TEN at WAS
- Tua Tagovailoa C+ (77.0) | MIN at GB
- Joe Burrow C (75.6) | CIN vs. PIT
- Lamar Jackson C (75.9) | BAL vs. PHI
- Bo Nix C (75.8) | DEN vs. CLE
- Jameis Winston C (75.7) | CLE at Den
- Aidan O’Connell C (75.4) | LV at KC
- Mac Jones C (75.1) | JAX vs. HOU
- Caleb Williams C (75.0) | CHI at DET
- Bryce Young C (74.7) | CAR vs. TB
- Jared Goff C (74.3) | DET vs. CHI
- Matthew Stafford C (73.7) | LAR at NO
- Derek Carr C- (72.4) | NO vs. LAR
- Patrick Mahomes C- (72.2) | KC vs. LV
- Jalen Hurts C- (71.6) | PHI at BAL
- Cooper Rush C- (71.5) | DAL vs. NYG
- Kyler Murray C- (71.2) | ARI at MIN
- C.J. Stroud C- (70.2) | HOU at JAX
- Geno Smith D+ (69.1) | SEA at NYJ
- Anthony Richardson D+ (68.5) | IND at NE
- Aaron Rodgers D+ (68.4) | NYJ vs. SEA
- Justin Herbert D+ (68.3) | LAC at ATL
- Sam Darnold D+ (67.4) | MIN vs. ARI
- Brock Purdy D+ (67.0) | SF at BUF
- Drew Lock D (66.8) | NYG at DAL
- Baker Mayfield D (65.3) | TB at CAR
- Kirk Cousins D (64.4) | ATL vs. LAC
Week 13 QB Analysis
Aaron Rodgers, NYJ (vs. SEA)
- Grade: D+
Week 13 saw another poor performance from Aaron Rodgers, who was below average in essentially everything he did this week. This was his fourth grade of a D+ or below in 12 games and his eighth performance grading as a C or below. The New York Jets have only won one of those eight games, which was his highest C grade (76.1) back in Week 2 against Tennessee.
Rodgers continued his struggles from a clean pocket this season with his seventh below-average performance. He was also bad in clutch situations and had one of his lowest net yards per attempt (nYPA) of the season. Despite some good spots in the first half, this was yet again another underwhelming performance from the Jets.
Aidan O’Connell, LV (at KC)
- Grade: C
Aidan O’Connell’s performance on Black Friday was mixed, but that was to be expected, as he had returned from injury to start in Kansas City. He started slowly but grew into the game with some impressive throws, bringing the Las Vegas Raiders back into the matchup and almost all the way to victory.
This was O’Connell’s best performance of the season, having posted two C- grades in his previous two qualified games back in Weeks 5 and 6. However, this was also the worst of the three defenses he has faced. His biggest improvement came in his performance when working from a clean pocket, and it resulted in a massive improvement in terms of nYPA compared to his previous starts.
O’Connell is still far from being the Raiders’ long-term answer, but he demonstrated that he at least deserves an extended opportunity over the next five weeks.
Anthony Richardson, IND (at NE)
- Grade: D+
There was a similar story for Anthony Richardson this week, with flashes of nice play, both with his arm and legs, but a lot of inconsistency and frustration. He demonstrated his value with two short-yardage scores, including the game-winner on a do-or-die 2-point conversion. Unfortunately, there was just too much that fell in the bad category, as he completed just 12 of 24 pass attempts.
We saw a flip in Richardson’s performance this week compared to last week. In Week 12, he was good from a clean pocket and struggled under pressure. This week, he was good under pressure but struggled when operating from a clean pocket.
That inconsistency reared its head in the form of third-down struggles and one of his worst nYPA outputs of the season. However, he played well enough in clutch spots to help the team get the win.
Baker Mayfield, TB (at CAR)
- Grade: D
Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers survived his worst performance of the season… just. This was by far his worst performance when working under pressure and ranked as the worst performance under pressure in the entire league in Week 13. Things were not much better from a clean pocket relative to his peers, but compared to our database, it was a big step up from his performance under pressure.
After being perfect on third down last week, Mayfield converted just 20% of opportunities in Week 13. Mayfield’s EPA per dropback was -0.26, in large part thanks to a -1.56 EPA per dropback when pressured. What largely saved his grade here was an outstanding performance in the clutch situation to drive down the field and get a field goal in the final 30 seconds.
Bo Nix, DEN (vs. CLE)
- Grade: C
Bo Nix won the wild matchup with Winston, throwing for 294 yards and a TD but also two interceptions in Monday night’s game. The highlight was a 93-yard TD throw to Marvin Mims Jr.; for the season, it was tied for his third-best performance. His top four performances this season have all come since Week 10.
Brock Purdy, SF (at BUF)
- Grade: D+
Brock Purdy was throwing from behind in the snow all game, and it resulted in one of the worst performances of his young career. The D+ was only his fourth grade of D+ or worse, and the 67 score was the second-worst of his career.
On the night, Purdy threw for 94 yards, by far the lowest output of his career. He completed 11 of 18 passes on an otherwise miserable night.
Bryce Young, CAR (vs. TB)
- Grade: C
Week 13 saw another promising performance from Bryce Young, with good moments coming in spurts. Unfortunately, the performance was not consistent enough across all four quarters for the Panthers to get the win. His numbers were actually down slightly on what we saw in Kansas City last week, with drops in performance under pressure and from clean pockets.
Young did improve this week in clutch spots but only a small amount. Again, he was good in small doses but not consistent enough in those moments to really give the Panthers a telling lead. The overall performance for the last six weeks is promising, but further improvement is needed.
Caleb Williams, CHI (at DET)
- Grade: C
It was a game of two halves for Caleb Williams, who struggled to get into any kind of fluidity in the first half but brought his team back to the brink of victory on Thanksgiving in Detroit. Ultimately, the rest of the performance was overshadowed by the debacle over the final play, but if Rome Odunze carries on running, we may be viewing that entire play differently.
Williams performed well when operating under pressure in this game, posting his second-best numbers in those situations this season. The rest of his numbers were unconvincing at best, and he continues to be mediocre when operating from a clean pocket. The clutch numbers and his nYPA dipped from last week but remained above some of his worst performances this season.
C.J. Stroud, HOU (at JAX)
- Grade: D+
It continues to be an unconvincing second act for C.J. Stroud, who posted his third C- grade in four weeks and his eighth straight grade of a C or below. We have not seen Stroud put in an above-average performance since Week 5. The bye week could not be coming at a better time for Stroud and this offense.
The only element in which Stroud was above average this week was throwing from a clean pocket. He converted just 20% of his third-down conversions, struggled when under pressure, with an EPA per pressured dropback of -0.87, and his nYPA (6.4) was nothing better than fine. He did enough in clutch spots, but it was nothing to be excited about.
Cooper Rush, DAL (vs. NYG)
- Grade: C-
Cooper Rush has led the Dallas Cowboys to two straight wins over NFC East rivals, but his performance this week was not as impressive as his performance in Washington. Rush put together an extremely impressive set of numbers when pressured last week but struggled when he was in the same situation this week. His numbers from a clean pocket remained fairly consistent, but that is only league average.
Thanksgiving saw Rush put together his best performance on third downs this season, converting 50% of his opportunities. Ultimately, the performance was good but not great, and he struggled to put the game away in the fourth quarter as the Giants scored 10 unanswered points to make this a one-score game with two minutes remaining.
Derek Carr, NO (vs. LAR)
- Grade: C-
Derek Carr’s fairly underwhelming performance ultimately meant that the New Orleans Saints fell short, and with it, their playoff chances essentially ended. Carr posted his worst numbers under pressure, with a -0.82 EPA per dropback. He was relatively better when working from a clean pocket but still only slightly above average in our database.
The biggest drop compared to the game against Cleveland was his nYPA, which fell to 5.0, with just 2.7 yards after the catch per completion. He played better in the clutch this week, but most of that was driven by a strong finish that came a little too late to make a difference.
Drake Maye, NE (vs. IND)
- Grade: B-
Drake Maye put together his best performance of the season in Week 13 and was somewhat unlucky not to come away with a win. A bizarre interception on the goal line proved to be the difference, but there was little blame on Maye with the ball ricocheting into the hands of the defender.
Maye continues to impress with his performance when pressured. He combined that with his best performance on third downs this season while tying his best nYPA output. The numbers in clutch spots were also good, ranking as his third-best this season, and the only thing Maye was not above-average at this week was when playing from a clean pocket where he made a few too many mistakes.
Drew Lock, NYG (at DAL)
- Grade: D
There is no great need to rush to judge Drew Lock, as he made his first start of the season on relatively short notice. The performance in this first game was underwhelming, posting below-average numbers when working from a clean pocket, on third downs, and in terms of nYPA.
Lock was slightly above average in our database when he was pressured and right around average in terms of clutch situations. He showed good poise at times and drove a 10-point fourth quarter that at least made things interesting to round out the game. He will need to prove a lot more if he wants to earn a starting role in 2025, and his output on Thanksgiving was worse than what we saw from Tommy DeVito against Tampa Bay.
Geno Smith, SEA (at NYJ)
- Grade: D+
Stop the presses! Geno Smith’s performance this season was not between a C+ and a C-. Unfortunately, it was on the negative side, with Smith grading as a D+ this week in a performance that was distinctly mediocre.
Smith was below average throwing under pressure and in terms of nYPA, third-down conversions, and clutch situations. His nYPA of 5.6 was his worst of the season, while he tied his worst performance in clutch spots this year. He was marginally above average in terms of making plays from a clean pocket, but it was not enough to keep his overall performance with a C grade of some form.
Jalen Hurts, PHI (at BAL)
- Grade: C-
Given the Philadelphia Eagles just knocked off the Baltimore Ravens, you may have thought that Jalen Hurts would have graded better than this. However, his numbers were fairly underwhelming, especially in the passing game. This was actually Hurts’ worst game of the season and his first grade below a C+ since before the bye.
The main driver behind that was a -1.10 EPA per dropback when under pressure, which was among the worst this week. However, he continued to be good in clutch situations and once again found the end zone on a Tush Push. A third-down completion rate of 25% and a nYPA number of 5.9 leave a lot to be improved going forward.
Jameis Winston, CLE (at DEN)
- Grade: C-
It was the full Jameis Winston experience on Monday night as he threw for four TDs, including a 70-yard TD to Jerry Jeudy. But he also had three interceptions, two of which were returned for a TD, and the last ended the game. All five of Winston’s games have been a C+ or worse.
Jared Goff, DET (vs. CHI)
- Grade: C
Back-to-back mediocre games from Jared Goff make it four C-graded games or worse in the last six weeks. That essentially sums up a season for Goff that has seen him post the best two performances we have seen this season while 50% of his games have been graded as a C or worse.
The most concerning element of this performance was Goff’s play in clutch situations. This was his worst performance of the season in those spots. However, he was also relatively unconvincing on third downs and in terms of his nYPA. His play under pressure was better than some of the performances we have seen this year, ranking as his sixth-best of the season.
Jayden Daniels, WAS (vs. TEN)
- Grade: B-
Jayden Daniels finally bounced back from a run of three tough outings in which he had not graded higher than a C. Daniels and the Washington Commanders’ offense were superb in the first half and then put the Titans away when they threatened a potential comeback.
Daniels’ biggest improvement was his performance when playing under pressure, but even that was still below the standard he set earlier in the year. He backed up last week’s good play from a clean pocket, which resulted in an impressive 55.6% third-down conversion rate.
Joe Burrow, CIN (vs. PIT)
- Grade: C
Despite the Cincinnati Bengals scoring 30 points offensively, this was one of Joe Burrow’s worst performances of the season. He struggled massively when pressured, including two fumbles, one of which resulted directly in a defensive touchdown. When he was given time in a clean pocket, Burrow made good plays and finished with a 50% third-down conversion rate.
Ultimately, if this is one of Burrow’s worst performances of the season, it says a lot about how impressive he has been at times this year. It is a shame that his errors proved to be the difference in the end, and the Bengals season may very well be over in terms of the playoffs.
Jordan Love, GB (vs. MIA)
- Grade: B
Since the Green Bay Packers’ bye week, Jordan Love has been impressive, posting two B-grade performances and a C+ alongside them. He now appears to be fully healthy after dealing with multiple injury issues this season. If he can stay healthy, he has a chance to climb inside the top 10 of our overall QB rankings (14th currently).
This was an impressive performance in a few different areas from Love. He was good when throwing under pressure and in terms of nYPA; he posted his best numbers from a clean pocket and in clutch situations and was above average on third downs. All of that combined for an effective performance that meant the Packers’ Thanksgiving was relatively stress-free.
Josh Allen, BUF (vs. SF)
- Grade: B-
Josh Allen had a lot of fun on a snowy night vs. the Niners, throwing for two touchdowns, including one to himself (through Amari Cooper) and rushing for another one. He became the fourth player in NFL history to throw and catch a TD on the same play. He also threw for 148 yards in a dominating Bills win.
Allen’s B- was his eighth score of B- or better in the 12 games he has played this season.
Justin Herbert, LAC (at ATL)
- Grade: D+
There has been a slightly concerning decline in Justin Herbert’s play over recent weeks. He went from a B grade in Week 10 to a D+ in Week 13, with this performance coming against one of the worst defenses in the league. However, it is worth noting that this was a short-week cross-country game played at 10 a.m. body clock time after playing a 5:15 p.m. body clock game just six days earlier.
Herbert struggled across the board this week, producing below-average results in every metric. He really struggled in clutch spots, while his play when under pressure (-0.72 EPA per dropback) was the worst week we have seen since Week 2. There are some mitigating factors here, and ultimately, they got the win, but the Los Angeles Chargers will want to see better in Week 14 and beyond.
Kirk Cousins, ATL (vs. LAC)
- Grade: D
Let’s start by saying that throwing interceptions does not automatically mean your QB+ will be bad if those interceptions are mixed in with good play elsewhere. That was the case with Goff a couple of weeks ago, but not here with Cousins, who did not impress much against the Chargers this week.
Cousins has now had back-to-back weeks with a grade of D+ or below and three straight weeks with a C grade or worse. The biggest concern will be continued issues when making plays under pressure, but in this game, he was also woeful from a clean pocket, posting his worst number of the season.
The Atlanta Falcons have now lost three in a row and four in their last six. All of those have coincided with Cousins’ QB+ grade being a C or lower. This team needs him to play better because they have let a fairly convincing lead in the NFC South slip through their fingers in recent weeks.
Kyler Murray, ARI (at MIN)
- Grade: C-
What a weird couple of weeks we have seen from Kyler Murray since the bye week in Week 11. This was at least an improvement overall compared to last week in Seattle; but for every good element, there was a bad element. It was good to see Murray bounce back from his struggles under pressure last week, but his play dropped off a little from clean pockets.
Murray has been very up and down this year, and we have seen these runs of poor performances earlier in the season. However, with the Seahawks winning this week, the Arizona Cardinals’ margin for error is reducing, and they need better from Murray.
Lamar Jackson, BAL (vs. PHI)
- Grade: C
It was not a terrible performance from Lamar Jackson, but it was far from his best. This game continued the trend that when Jackson grades below a B-, the Ravens lose football games. This will have hurt his MVP credentials, but you could point to the fact that this game proved how important it is for Jackson to be at his best for this team.
Overall, the individual numbers are not that bad. A nYPA of 5.7 is less than ideal, but nothing here was a disaster. The problem is that, for the most part, he was just league-average, and we have come to expect better than that. He was pretty good when working under pressure, with an EPA per dropback of 0.15 in those situations. He struggled in the fourth quarter, and that will be a worry looking ahead to the playoffs.
Mac Jones, JAX (vs. HOU)
- Grade: C-
Mac Jones was thrown into the fire in Week 13 after Trevor Lawrence was knocked out of the game. Jones responded nicely, putting in his best performance of the season, with a C grade after two D+ or worse performances in his starting opportunities.
Jones’ numbers from a clean pocket were impressive, ranking among the best in the league this week. The rest of the numbers were nothing to be overly excited about, but the way he stepped in and led this team back to make things competitive in the fourth quarter deserves some credit.
Matthew Stafford, LAR (at NO)
- Grade: C
This was a contrasting performance for Matthew Stafford. He was terrible when pressured but excellent when throwing from a clean pocket. He was awful in a lot of clutch situations but good in the fourth quarter when the game was on the line. A complete lack of consistency meant that the Saints hung around and nearly stole the game.
It was one of his better performances in the last five weeks, which tells you a lot about where Stafford is at this point in his career.
Patrick Mahomes, KC (vs. LV)
- Grade: C-
It is really tough to know what to make of Patrick Mahomes this season. Black Friday was his fifth game with a C grade or below this season, more often than he has posted a B- or better (four).
On the one hand, the team is 11-1, and he is doing nothing to hurt the team or cost them games. On the other hand, the team is scraping by as one of the luckiest teams in the league, and Mahomes does not seem capable of elevating them right now. That could come back to bite them down the stretch or in the playoffs.
In this game, Mahomes was below average when throwing under pressure despite a nice touchdown throw to Justin Watson. However, he was actually worse when operating from a clean pocket, as the lack of upside in his weapons is becoming more apparent each week. Mahomes’ numbers were also below average on third downs, in terms of nYPA, and in clutch situations against the Raiders.
Russell Wilson, PIT (at CIN)
- Grade: B
Russell Wilson continues to show that the Pittsburgh Steelers made a good decision by turning the offense over to him and benching Justin Fields. He had a little blip in Week 11 with a D grade but now has four B- or better grades this season. He was excellent in Week 13 against the Bengals, putting together his best performance of the season.
Russell Wilson completed 8 of 9 passes over 10 air yards for 205 yards and 2 TDs (+34.8% CPOE, his 3rd-highest mark in a game over the last seven seasons).
Wilson currently leads all qualified QBs in CPOE on attempts over 10 air yards this season (+15.7%).
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— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) December 1, 2024
Among Wilson’s highlights this week were a season-best performance when pressured and an nYPA of 10.8 that ranked above the 90th percentile in our individual game database. The only slight complaint is that he converted just 37.5% of his third-down opportunities, which allowed the Bengals to remain in the game through the fourth quarter.
Sam Darnold, MIN (at ARI)
- Grade: D+
Sam Darnold and the Minnesota Vikings put it all together in Week 13 when it mattered the most, but there was a lot that was ugly in his performance this week. He did not convert a single third-down opportunity in this game, and his performance in some clutch spots was so bad that his fourth-quarter heroics could not atone for those earlier performances.
This is Darnold’s third D+ grade or below this season and his second in the last four weeks. He can thank the defense that they are 3-0 in those games, but this time he did at least step up at the end of the game to help repair the damage that had been done by the offense during the game.
Tua Tagovailoa, MIA (at GB)
- Grade: C
If you look at Tua Tagovailoa’s performance in the context of his recent performances, it was a mediocre game that highlights the concerns around him playing in cold-weather games. However, if you put it in the context of some of his previous cold-weather games, it was a sign of progress in an area that Tua does not get much opportunity to practice down in Miami.
Tua undoubtedly struggled when pressured, posting his worst number since Week 8 and his worst number on third down. This was also one of his worst games in terms of performances in clutch situations, but he was by no means bad in any of those areas.
Ultimately, despite solid numbers when it came to throwing from a clean pocket and nYPA, Tua just did not quite do enough to elevate his team to win. It most certainly does not all fall on his shoulders, though, and overall, this was a promising performance in these conditions.
Will Levis, TEN (at WAS)
- Grade: D+
Will Levis’ road to remaining the Tennessee Titans’ starter continued with his fourth straight game with a C grade or above? By no means will the numbers blow you away, and the scoreline was ugly, but that was not all on Levis, who made some fantastic plays in this game, continuing a trend of improving performances in the last four weeks.
The promising aspects of this performance were his best numbers when pressured this season, his third-best third-down conversion rate of the year, and superb clutch numbers in a handful of different spots. He did struggle when throwing from a clean pocket, seeing a significant decline compared to last week’s number and continuing a trend of fluctuating performances in those situations.