Passer rating is a weird, clunky math problem that somehow became the gospel of NFL excellence. If you look at the NFL quarterback ratings 2024 leaderboard, you’ll see Lamar Jackson sitting right at the top with a massive 119.6. He was basically a cheat code. But if you just look at that number, you're missing the real story of how the season actually went down. Honestly, the 2024 season was less about a single "best" guy and more about who managed to survive a really chaotic year for offensive line play and weird coaching shifts.
Lamar didn't just lead the league; he broke the scale. 41 passing touchdowns against only 4 interceptions? That’s not supposed to happen. It was his second straight MVP-caliber run, but people still argue about whether "passer rating" captures his value because it doesn't account for the 1,000 yards he churned out on the ground.
The Numbers That Defined the Year
We’ve gotta talk about Jared Goff for a second. Most people still think of him as a "system QB" who needs everything perfect to work. Well, the Detroit Lions' system was perfect, and Goff was a machine. He finished with a 111.8 rating. He was actually more efficient on a per-throw basis than Joe Burrow, who led the league in passing yards.
Burrow was interesting because he put up 4,918 yards—the most in the NFL—and 43 touchdowns. His 108.5 rating looks great on paper, but the Bengals went 9-8 and missed the dance. It’s a classic example of how a high rating doesn't always translate to wins if your defense is giving up points faster than you can score them.
📖 Related: Why College Football Christmas Eve Games Are The Best Tradition Nobody Admits To Loving
Then you have the Sam Darnold situation. Nobody—and I mean nobody—expected Darnold to finish with a 102.5 rating. He was basically a draft bust wandering the league until Kevin O'Connell got a hold of him in Minnesota. He threw 35 touchdowns. In one year. That’s more than he had in multiple seasons combined earlier in his career. It goes to show that your NFL quarterback ratings 2024 often depend more on who is calling your plays than your own "talent."
Why Passer Rating Isn't Everything
Passer rating is a formula from the 70s. It cares about completion percentage, yards per attempt, touchdowns, and interceptions. It doesn't care if you got sacked 50 times because your left tackle was a turnstile. Look at Caleb Williams or C.J. Stroud. Stroud’s rating "dipped" to the low 90s this year, and people started calling it a sophomore slump. But the guy was under fire every single snap.
Baker Mayfield is another one. He finished with a 106.8. He’s outplaying guys like Patrick Mahomes in the regular season stats. Mahomes actually had a "down" year by his standards, finishing with a 93.5 rating. If you just looked at the rankings, you’d think Baker was significantly better than Mahomes. But if you're a defensive coordinator, who are you more scared of in the fourth quarter? Exactly.
The Rookies and the "Old" Guard
Jayden Daniels basically lived in the 100+ rating zone for the first half of the season. He finished at 93.2, which is respectable, but his impact was more about the "vibe" shift in Washington. Meanwhile, Aaron Rodgers stayed hovering around 90.5. At 41 years old, the efficiency is still there, but the explosiveness is... well, it's different. He’s not hunting the deep ball like he used to.
Advanced Metrics vs. The Eye Test
A lot of experts are moving toward EPA (Expected Points Added) or QBR because passer rating ignores the "clutch" factor. For example:
- Lamar Jackson: Elite in everything. 119.6 rating, #1 in EPA.
- Josh Allen: 101.4 rating. Seems lower, right? But he accounted for 14 rushing touchdowns.
- Justin Herbert: 101.7. He had almost no receivers left by December and still stayed efficient.
Josh Allen is the perfect example of why the NFL quarterback ratings 2024 can be misleading. He won the AP MVP because he’s a one-man wrecking crew. His passer rating is "only" 8th in the league, but he’s the reason the Bills won 13 games. He throws picks—6 this year, which is actually low for him—but he makes plays no one else can.
Surprises and Disappointments
The biggest "yikes" was probably Kirk Cousins. He finished with a huge interception total (16) and a rating that fell out of the top ten. Transitioning to a new team after an Achilles injury is a lot harder than the media makes it sound. On the flip side, Tua Tagovailoa kept his rating at 101.4 despite missing time. When he’s on the field, that Dolphins offense is a Ferrari. When he’s off? It’s a 1998 Honda Civic with a flat tire.
Bo Nix actually finished with a 93.3. For a rookie that everyone called a "reach," that’s a massive win for Sean Payton. He played boring, safe football, and the rating reflected that. He didn't turn it over much (12 INTs on 567 attempts), which kept the Broncos in games.
What to Look for Moving Forward
If you're trying to use these stats to predict 2025, don't just hunt for the highest number. Look at "Adjusted Yards per Attempt" (AY/A). This is where Jared Goff (8.96) and Lamar Jackson (10.15) really separated themselves. It punishes interceptions more heavily and rewards the big plays.
🔗 Read more: Why Ohio State Penn State 2017 Is Still the Craziest Game I've Ever Seen
Also, watch the sack rates. Joe Burrow got hit 48 times. That’s a lot of "hidden" yardage lost that doesn't show up in his 108.5 rating but definitely shows up on the scoreboard.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Analysts:
- Check the Supporting Cast: Before betting on a QB's 2024 rating to repeat, see if their Offensive Coordinator stayed. Guys like Sam Darnold are huge "system" risks.
- Contextualize Interceptions: Did the QB throw a "bad" pick, or did the ball bounce off a receiver's hands? Baker Mayfield’s 16 INTs were high, but a lot were "arm punts" on third-and-long.
- Value the Floor: A rating in the 90s (like Mahomes or Stroud) is often more sustainable than a fluke 110 season if the underlying completion percentage is high.
- Watch the Rushing: If a QB has a 100 rating but 0 rushing yards (like Goff), they are more dependent on their O-line than someone like Jayden Daniels.
The 2024 season proved that the "middle class" of NFL quarterbacks is getting better, but the gap between "really good" and "Lamar Jackson" is still a canyon. Don't let a single number tell you the whole story.