Ranking all 32 NFL QBs after Week 4: Drake Maye channels Tom Brady (no, really!)

We couldn't have asked for a better Week 4 in the NFL. From Chicago's narrow one-point victory over the Raiders, to the Packers and Cowboys matching blows in a 40-point tie on Sunday Night Football, there was plenty of entertainment for the viewers at home to feast on.

It was an especially consequential week on the quarterback front. Patrick Mahomes beat Lamar Jackson (again) and the latter suffered what could become a season-altering hamstring injury. Jaxson Dart made his NFL debut for the Giants — and Cleveland finally decided this was the final straw for Joe Flacco, setting up Dillon Gabriel's debut in Week 5. Jalen Hurts beat Baker Mayfield, Matthew Stafford beat the indomitable Daniel Jones. There were a lot of juicy, high-stakes QB battles last Sunday.

Now, let's update our rankings of all 32 starting quarterbacks in the NFL. You can check out last week's addition here. The wheels of change are turning... let's dive in.

Ranking all 32 NFL starting quarterbacks after Week 4

Drake Maye is giving Patriots fans Tom Brady flashbacks

Look, Drake Maye is not Tom Brady and he will not become Tom Brady, so we can nip that conversation in the bud. But the second-year quarterback put on a show in Sunday's 42-13 shellacking of the Panthers, becoming the first New England Patriots QB since — you guessed it — Tom Brady to compile three straight games with a 75-plus percent completion rate, 200-plus passing yards and two-plus passing touchdowns.

New England is 2-2, with seven-point losses to Pittsburgh and Las Vegas, and now wins over Miami and Carolina. We need to see the Patriots put together a complete, victorious effort against a quality opponent, but this team is miles ahead of the New England we saw a year ago. Maye is going to keep moving up in these rankings if he can continue to balance efficiency and aggressiveness as well as he has so far.

Jayden Daniels stole the spotlight and will continue to do so, but if we were to re-draft the 2024 class right now, Maye is the clear No. 2 pick. He looks so much more comfortable and confident out there than Caleb Williams, it's almost jarring.

The verdict on Jaxson Dart's first NFL start: Okay!

Jaxson Dart did what was necessary to win ugly in his first NFL start. The New York Giants' defense made Justin Herbert look mortal for the first time this season and the offense — well, it did just enough, with Dart's biggest flash plays coming on improvised runs.

He took five sacks and only threw for 111 yards, often playing it safe or opting to run instead of throwing into traffic. That is an understandable train of thought for a rookie with Dart's athleticism, but eventually he will need to showcase his arm talent without inhibition. Rendering quicker decisions — and taking the lid off the defense — would go a long way toward helping Dart unlock his star ceiling.

It's too early to move him meaningfully up or down, but he's clearly better than Russell Wilson. At least, the floor and ceiling are both higher. Dart will face his share of bumps in the road, but this Chargers defense was locked in through three weeks, so it's not like this was an easy first test. The Giants are officially 1-0 in the Jaxson Dart era. We'll see how long it lasts.

Jordan Love vs. Dak Prescott went about as you would expect

The Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys fought their way to a clean 40-40 tie on Sunday night. It was a bizarre display of immense offensive firepower and very little defensive resistance. This Packers defense was meant to look better than this with Micah Parsons, but after an emphatic 2-0 start to the campaign, Green Bay has lost to Cleveland and tied a Dallas team whose defense couldn't stop a bleeding wound if their lives depended on it. When your defense rivals the Cowboys for the title of 'Most Incompetent,' it's generally a bad look.

But what that means is that Jordan Love and Dak Prescott went off on Sunday night, both eclipsing 300-plus yards and three passing touchdowns. Prescott has quickly established a fruitful relationship with George Pickens (eight catches, 126 yards), while Love spread the wealth a bit more evenly. His No. 1 receiver on the evening was actually his running back, Josh Jacobs (four catches, 71 yards).

Love is still sanding the rough edges of his skill set, but there are few more innately gifted quarterbacks in the NFL today. Prescott, meanwhile, cannot take blame for the Cowboys' slow start. He's putting together an incredible season, as is Dallas' offense on the whole. It just won't matter if Jerry Jones' newfound cap flexibility doesn't start piling up a few stops on defense.

The Packers need their defense to settle back in. The hope is that this was simply an aberration. The Cowboys, on the other hand, clearly have a more chronic issue with their defense, but Prescott and the offense will at least keep Dallas competitive in most games. Not every team can drop 40 points, even on the NFL's worst defense.

What can we expect from Dillon Gabriel in Browns debut?

The Cleveland Browns have officially moved Joe Flacco to the bench in favor of third-round pick Dillon Gabriel, much to the chagrin of fifth-round pick Shedeur Sanders, who literally refused to speak to the media, instead mouthing words to the camera. Just brutally odd behavior from a player who has handled a difficult situation with so much professionalism. It's a bit difficult to understand why Sanders thought this was the right move, but alas, Gabriel is starting. This was to be expected.

For Gabriel, his first test comes in a winnable matchup against Carson Wentz and the injury-riddled Vikings. We know Cleveland's defense can shut down mediocre QB play, so Gabriel won't need to put forth a Herculean effort in order to give the Browns a chance to win. He just needs to limit mistakes and make the simple plays. That should be easy enough for a quarterback known for his high IQ and quick processing speeds. Gabriel benefitted immeasurably from Oregon's advantageous scheme and high-level playmakers, but he still got the ball out quickly and almost never played a false note. The NFL is a different beast, of course, but after Bo Nix made the leap from Eugene to Denver, there's reason to believe Gabriel can at least hold his own.

The concerns over his slight frame are valid. It's notoriously difficult for smaller quarterbacks to stand out at the NFL level. Russell Wilson is the exception that, in recent years, is beginning to prove the rule. Bryce Young was the No. 1 pick with a comparable frame and, well, we know how that's going. Gabriel can put zip on his throws and again, he's a genuinely smart and savvy quarterback. But if he can overwhelmed by defensive pressure and forced into tough throws with a limited scope of vision, it could get ugly — fast.

Maybe in a few weeks we are figuring out where to rank Shedeur Sanders. Or maybe in a few weeks, it's clear that Gabriel is the QB of the future in Cleveland and we needn't discuss Sanders as a serious candidate anymore. Time will tell.

Josh Allen leapfrogs Lamar Jackson... for now

Lamar Jackson began the season as QB1 in these rankings it was going to take a serious shift in the landscape to bump him off that spot. Well, the Buffalo Bills are 4-0 and Josh Allen to sprinting toward another MVP trophy. Meanwhile, the Baltimore Ravens are somehow 1-3. A lot of it comes down to a brutal early schedule — the losses are to Buffalo, Detroit and Kansas City — but this isn't really a new problem for Baltimore. The Ravens just can't show up consistently against their truly elite opponents.

Jackson suffered a hamstring injury in Week 4, which could sideline him for a couple weeks. It's safe to say that Cooper Rush would rank toward the bottom of this list, probably in the 29-31 range. Jackson wants to play in Week 5, a more winnable showdown with the struggling Houston Texans, but the Ravens need to be smart. Baltimore has to turn its season around quickly, but risking a more catastrophic injury to its star quarterback is not worth it. Hamstrings are notoriously fickle.

There isn't much to complain about with Jackson's individual performance through four weeks. He's at 889 passing yards and 10 touchdowns, with only one interception. He has 166 yards and another touchdown as a runner, too. But the Ravens continue to squander golden opportunities and Josh Allen is riding the highest right now, continuing to blend unmatched athleticism and arm talent with an increasingly disciplined and efficient manner of operation. The reigning MVP has earned the No. 1 spot; just don't be too shocked if Jackson reclaims it down the line.

Seahawks are taking Sam Darnold victory to the bank

We can't make sweeping takeaways after four weeks, but the Seattle Seahawks' decision to part with Geno Smith in favor of Sam Darnold last offseason was met with broad skepticism. Folks wondered how well Darnold, a historically inefficient and inconsistent quarterback, might perform outside the ideal offensive ecosystem he occupied in Minnesota. Smith, meanwhile, has a rocket-like arm and was quite effective behind a makeshift Seahawks O-line last season.

So far, however, it seems like Darnold may have learned a thing or two in Minnesota, as he's keeping mistakes to a minimum and showcasing a strong connection to wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba. He can still dial up a few too many prayers, but Darnold's talent was never in doubt. He can deliver beautiful passes through tight windows 40 yards downfield. But now, unlike early in his career, Darnold is effectively playing the intermediate game and getting the ball out quickly, rather than taking his chances with a helmet in his ribcage and a hand in his face.

Smith, meanwhile, might be hitting a wall. He threw three interceptions in the Las Vegas Raiders' 25-24 loss to Chicago, his second three-interception game of the season. He now has seven turnovers and six touchdowns through four weeks, which is not a great ratio. The Raiders certainly aren't doing him any favors with a feeble supporting cast, but Smith just looks out of sorts, in a way we haven't seen in years. Seattle has to feel awfully good about how their offseason QB decisions are panning out so far.