10 Worst QB Performances From Week 5, Including Aaron Rodgers and Deshaun Watson

October 7, 2024

Quincy Milton ranks the 10 worst quarterback performances for Week 5 of the 2024 season. Aaron Rodgers, Deshaun Watson, and others make the list of 10 underperformers.

There was great quarterback play and not-so-great quarterback play on display again in Week 5. Players such as Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, and C.J. Stroud were again excellent. However, some surprising players wound up on this list this week.

As the season wears on, we can start to see trends that will hold for the duration of the season. Players such as Aaron Rodgers and Deshaun Watson are showing signs that they will be repeat offenders on this list all season long.

With the quarterback position so important in the NFL, many teams will have to hope their signal-callers can pick things up. Enough of the delay, let's take a look at the worst performances at the position in Week 5.

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10. Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers

Brock Purdy is the king of consistency, but he struggled in this game. Purdy threw for 244 yards and a touchdown. He also added two interceptions and only completed 54% of his passes. Purdy's second interception squandered any chance the 49ers had to win this game.

Purdy is unlikely to be a consistent presence on this list, but it is concerning for 49ers fans to see him play this way as the team fell to 2-3. Purdy will look to bounce back against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 6.

Brock Purdy throws his second interception of the day.

The 49ers have never won a game when Purdy tosses multiple picks.pic.twitter.com/QnDw5LmZDS

— Underdog NFL (@Underdog__NFL) October 6, 2024

9. Sam Darnold, Minnesota Vikings

Darnold came crashing back down to earth in Week 5. After opening the season with four straight multiple-touchdown games, Darnold completed less than 50% of his passes and committed two turnovers in Week 5.

Even so, the excellent Vikings defense propelled the team to another win. The Vikings now sit at 5-0 and appear to be capable of winning games whether or not their resurgent quarterback plays well.

8. Tyler Huntley, Miami Dolphins

Huntley was a lot better in Week 5 than he was in Week 4. A week practicing with the Dolphins and acclimating to their system likely gave him a jolt heading into the weekend. However, he had a lackluster performance relative to the rest of the league.

Huntley threw for 194 yards, no touchdowns, and an interception in Week 5. He did just enough for the Dolphins to pick up a win. The Dolphins have struggled without Tua Tagovailoa in the lineup but this win is a big step in the right direction.

7. Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills

Allen played maybe one of the worst games NFL fans have ever seen him play. He only completed 9-of-30 passing attempts for 131 yards and a touchdown. He did rack up 54 rushing yards on four carries, but this was not the usual Josh Allen.

The Texans stalled the Bills for most of the game. It was not until the third quarter that Buffalo was able to get anything going on offense. This game was not nearly as close as the score suggests, but Allen did his team no favors in this one.

6. Jacoby Brissett, New England Patriots

Unfortunately, Brissett continues to have issues playing behind a terrible Patriots offensive line. Brissett has yet to throw for more than 168 yards in a game this season. Things are trending toward NFL fans seeing Drake Maye sooner rather than later just based on the recent play of Brissett.

A lot of Brissett's lackluster play is not on him but his numbers have been undeniably bad. Given the poor nature of the Patriots roster, it would behoove this team to continue to hold Maye out until the offense is in a better state as a whole.

Jerod Mayo on #Patriots QB Jacoby Brissett:

“Look, Jacoby’s out there trying to do what we’ve asked him to do from the start. He’s taken some big hits. His toughness continues to show up. Execution from the ENTIRE offense has to be better going forward.” pic.twitter.com/J57T4TKGD7

— Carlos Talks Pats (@LosTalksPats) October 6, 2024

5. Aaron Rodgers, New York Jets

Rodgers followed up a poor Week 4 showing with an uninspiring Week 5 performance. Against a stingy Minnesota Vikings defense in London, Rodgers completed 29-of-54 passes for 244 yards and two touchdowns. However, Rodgers tossed three interceptions, including a pick-six in the first half.

Perhaps the worst part of Rodgers' performance was his 4.5 yards per completion. This is not the same former MVP that NFL fans have come to enjoy watching. He will enter Week 6 at the helm of a 2-3 Jets team against the Buffalo Bills on Monday Night Football.

4. Andy Dalton, Carolina Panthers

Dalton's run of good luck ended in Week 5 when he threw for 136 yards and an interception. After throwing for 220 or more yards and multiple touchdowns in his first two starts of the season, Dalton experienced a hard fall back to earth.

The Panthers found themselves in another blowout, which ultimately led to NFL fans seeing Bryce Young at the end of the game. It was only a matter of time before Dalton's run came to a head and it just so happened to be sooner rather than later.

3. Deshaun Watson, Cleveland Browns

Watson continues to consistently be one of the worst performers at the position each week. The Browns offense was anemic against the Washington Commanders in Week 4. The only difference is that in 2024, the defense has not been able to keep the team in the game enough to make things interesting.

In Watson's defense, his offensive line is not doing a lot to help him. He has been under constant duress all season. The Browns now sit at 1-4 and will travel to Philadelphia in Week 6. It looks like they may be on their way to a 1-5 record. Stay tuned to read about Watson in next week's column.

2. Aidan O'Connell, Las Vegas Raiders

In a week in which quarterback play was pretty good all around, I am going to pull from the same team for this week's column. O'Connell entered the game after Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce had enough of starter Gardner Minshew II. O'Connell did not fare much better than Minshew.

O'Connell finished with 94 passing yards on 20 attempts. He only completed 50% of his passes and threw an interception. If O'Connell wants to be the starter, then he did himself no favors when given the chance in this game.

1. Gardner Minshew II, Las Vegas Raiders

It is pretty tough to get benched and not end up on this list. Minshew was pulled from a game in favor of Aidan O'Connell for the second time this season.

Minshew had a tough outing against a strong Denver Broncos defense. He threw for 137 yards and a touchdown but he tacked on two interceptions. Patrick Surtain II returned one of Minshew's interceptions for a long touchdown. The Minshew Mania could be about over in Vegas after this loss.

The Raiders going from Gardner Minshew to Aidan O’Connell pic.twitter.com/YQUJxiNCf0

— MichaelPenisSZN 🇦🇺 (@MichaelPenixSZN) October 6, 2024

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