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 →2021 NFL Share of Yards Through the Air Leaders
Completed air yards ÷ passing yards. High numbers mean the passer moved the ball himself rather than relying on runs after the catch.
The 2021 leaders: Justin Fields (63.5%), Josh Allen (60.7%), Lamar Jackson (60.1%).
Share of Yards Through the Air
Minimum to rank: 14 pass attempts per team game (the NFL's minimum for passing rate leaders). 31 players.
| Rk | Player | Pos | Team | Att | Dropbacks | Air% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Justin Fields | QB | CHI | 270 | 349 | 63.5% |
| 2 | Josh Allen | QB | BUF | 646 | 718 | 60.7% |
| 3 | Lamar Jackson | QB | BAL | 382 | 465 | 60.1% |
| 4 | Kirk Cousins | QB | MIN | 561 | 599 | 57.0% |
| 5 | Matt Ryan | QB | ATL | 560 | 616 | 56.6% |
| 6 | Matthew Stafford | QB | LA | 601 | 639 | 56.5% |
| 7 | Russell Wilson | QB | SEA | 400 | 456 | 55.6% |
| 8 | Trevor Lawrence | QB | JAX | 602 | 663 | 55.1% |
| 9 | Daniel Jones | QB | NYG | 361 | 405 | 54.8% |
| 10 | Teddy Bridgewater | QB | DEN | 426 | 472 | 54.6% |
| 11 | Dak Prescott | QB | DAL | 596 | 646 | 54.4% |
| 12 | Baker Mayfield | QB | CLE | 418 | 484 | 54.1% |
| 13 | Davis Mills | QB | HOU | 394 | 433 | 53.8% |
| 14 | Mac Jones | QB | NE | 521 | 563 | 53.7% |
| 15 | Carson Wentz | QB | IND | 516 | 574 | 53.7% |
| 16 | Tua Tagovailoa | QB | MIA | 388 | 425 | 53.6% |
| 17 | Jalen Hurts | QB | PHI | 432 | 506 | 53.5% |
| 18 | Zach Wilson | QB | NYJ | 383 | 442 | 52.9% |
| 19 | Kyler Murray | QB | ARI | 481 | 541 | 52.8% |
| 20 | Derek Carr | QB | LV | 626 | 680 | 52.5% |
| 21 | Ryan Tannehill | QB | TEN | 531 | 596 | 52.4% |
| 22 | Tom Brady | QB | TB | 719 | 749 | 52.3% |
| 23 | Justin Herbert | QB | LAC | 672 | 738 | 52.1% |
| 24 | Joe Burrow | QB | CIN | 520 | 589 | 51.2% |
| 25 | Taylor Heinicke | QB | WAS | 494 | 569 | 48.9% |
| 26 | Jimmy Garoppolo | QB | SF | 441 | 473 | 48.4% |
| 27 | Ben Roethlisberger | QB | PIT | 605 | 644 | 48.3% |
| 28 | Aaron Rodgers | QB | GB | 531 | 575 | 47.1% |
| 29 | Jared Goff | QB | DET | 494 | 535 | 45.9% |
| 30 | Sam Darnold | QB | CAR | 406 | 464 | 45.1% |
| 31 | Patrick Mahomes | QB | KC | 658 | 732 | 44.2% |
More 2021 NFL Quarterback Leaderboards
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 EPA per Dropback, Excluding Garbage Time 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 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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QBS BLOG · PASSING QUESTIONS · MINDSET
All Posts →Understanding the Throw.
What the box score cannot tell you about the people behind the pass.
What CPOE Means, and How ACE Builds on It
Completion percentage over expected gives credit for difficult completions. Here is how ACE measures it.
Read Article →Why Sacks Belong Partly to the Quarterback
A sack is the rush, the line and the decision. Why our dropback stats count them.
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