Monday's episode of "The Top 100 Players of 2017" on NFL Network counted down from No. 20 to No. 11. Two of the names revealed happen to be two of the best young quarterbacks in the NFL: Dak Prescott (at No. 14) and Derek Carr (No. 11).
After Tony Romo went down in the preseason last August, Prescott was thrust into the starting role. From there, all he did was lead Dallas to an NFC-best 13-3 record, post a 104.9 passer rating and earn Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. Not bad for a fourth-round pick. Meanwhile, Carr established himself as a true MVP candidate, racking up a sparkling 28:6 TD-to-INT ratio and guiding the Raiders to a 12-3 mark ... before a broken fibula prematurely ended his season in Week 16. It's impossible to not wonder what Oakland could've achieved in the playoffs with No. 4 under center, but this team's future appears quite promising. Same story with the Cowboys.
Carr is still just 26 years old. Prescott will be 24 in July. Given that these two signal callers front a pair of storied franchises with high hopes in the coming years, a simple question emerges:
Who do you think will end up with more Super Bowl rings: Derek Carr or Dak Prescott?
**1)** Who is the best QB?
Derek Carr wins that at this point.
**2)** Who has the best head coach and staff? I will call that even.
**3)** Which organization has done the best job obtaining players? Clearly, both teams have done well here, but I will give the
Raiders the edge.
Carr and the
Raiders win two of my three categories, so the Oakland QB gets my vote. But everyone in the entire league will have to wait for Bill Belichick and
Tom Brady to hang it up!
When I look at Oakland, most of the major players are already in their prime and I don't know how much longer that can go. With the exception of
Amari Cooper, everyone on offense is older. I just think Dallas is better prepared to have a long run, so I'm going with Prescott.
In all seriousness, Derek and the
Raiders have the edge right now because they have game changers on both sides of the ball -- with a number on offense and
Khalil Mack on defense. With Dallas, I don't see a defensive player right now who can change the outcome of a game. Until the
Cowboys get someone who can, I'm giving the one-ring edge to Derek.
So while I expect both to make it to the big game, Prescott might have the better shot at multiple rings.
So, yeah. I was stalling. Because it's really tough to figure out an answer to this question. I mean, it's so hard to win a Super Bowl. And, at times, somewhat random. I mean, jeez, Brad Johnson and Trent Dilfer are Super Bowl quarterbacks. Dan Marino is not. Peyton Manning was carried to a Super Bowl 50 victory by a great defense. So it's not always on the quarterback. And yes, I'm stalling right now because I'm really having a tough time trying to reach a decision here. I like both quarterbacks. I feel like Derek will have many battles with Marcus Mariota to represent the AFC in future Super Bowls. Dak will be going up against Jameis Winston.
Give me Derek. Mostly because I don't want
Cowboys fans to be happy. Am I incredibly biased? Yes. But at least I'm up front about it.
The last 14 Lombardis have been claimed by just eight quarterbacks: Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Russell Wilson, Drew Brees, Ben Roethlisberger, Eli Manning, Aaron Rodgers and Joe Flacco. Over that stretch, lots of would-be saviors and their fan bases have been left unsatiated. Cam Newton's already six seasons into a Hall of Fame-but-Lombardi-less career. Andrew Luck has a half-decade of service under center, but still hasn't gotten over in the AFC Championship Game. Matt Ryan, Alex Smith, Sam Bradford and Carson Palmer were all expected to get it done as No. 1 overall picks. (ICYMI, they haven't.) One-time QB revolutionaries RGIII and Colin Kaepernick don't even have jobs in the league, and -- as you may have heard -- neither do Tony Romo and Jay Cutler. And what about poor Phil Rivers?!
None of the above is intended to diminish Carr, Dak or any of the other ring-less QBs. It's just that winning a Lombardi is hard, Trent Dilfer notwithstanding.
And while both the Raiders and Cowboys have young stars on offense and rock-solid offensive lines, Oakland has something Dallas doesn't: a defensive cornerstone in Kahlil Mack. With such promising talent to build around on both sides of the ball, Derek Carr has a better shot to conquer the iron throne and collect more rings than Dak Prescott.