Dak Prescott or Jimmy G? Jerry Rice Says Who’s Better
It’s not a question of who’s the GOAT. Jerry Rice, Hall-of-Fame wide receiver for the San Francisco 49ers was posed a simple question during a recent radio interview. Rice was asked how he thought Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott would do in the San Francisco 49ers’ offensive system. Rice had a pretty strong opinion when comparing Prescott to 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.
Dak Prescott’s NFL career
If Dak Prescott does nothing else in his NFL career, he’s already surpassed expectations. Prescott played his college football at Mississippi State. He was a fourth-round pick by the Dallas Cowboys in the 2016 NFL draft.
Prescott wasn’t expected to do much at all in his rookie season, if he even made the team. When veteran quarterback Tony Romo went down with a significant injury, Prescott climbed up the depth chart. Backup quarterback Kellen Moore also was injured and Prescott started the first preseason game and shined. He was named the starter for the regular season and hasn’t looked back.
Prescott has started every game in his four years with the Cowboys. He made the Pro Bowl as a rookie when he threw for 3,667 yards and 23 touchdowns. The Cowboys went 13-3 under the rookie quarterback. Prescott made the Pro Bowl again in 2018, leading Dallas to a 10-6 mark. For his career, Prescott has completed 65.8% of his passes and had tossed 97 touchdowns in the regular season.
Jimmy Garoppolo’s NFL career
Like Dak Prescott, nothing much was expected from Jimmy Garoppolo early on in his NFL career. Garoppolo, after playing college football at Eastern Illinois, was a second-round pick of the New England Patriots in 2014. Garoppolo was drafted as an immediate insurance policy and future replacement for Tom Brady.
When Brady was suspended four game sin 2016 for his role in Deflategate, Garoppolo began the season as the starter. He had a strong game against the Miami Dolphins in Week 2, throwing three touchdown passes before injuring his shoulder. In October of 2017, Garoppolo was traded to the San Francisco 49ers for a second-round pick in 2018.
Garoppolo started five games for the 49ers in 2017 and the team went 5-0. In 2018, he tore his ACL in Week 3 and missed the rest of the season. In 2019, Garoppolo started all 16 games for the 49ers and led them to a berth in the Super Bowl. He finished the regular season with 3,978 passing yards and 27 touchdowns.
Jerry Rice says Garoppolo is the better quarterback
In a radio interview with 95.7 The Game, former San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jerry Rice was asked to compare Dak Prescott to Jimmy Garoppolo based on their systems. He was then asked how Prescott would do in the 49ers system under Kyle Shanahan. Rice said he thinks Prescott would be successful, but said he’s no Jimmy G.
“I think (Prescott) would have success,” Rice said. “But I don’t think he would be like Jimmy G. Overall, I think Jimmy G is the better quarterback than Dak. I’m sorry. I’m just going to call it. That’s just my opinion. That’s my opinion, and I could be wrong, but I think, right now, with Jimmy G, he’s the better quarterback than Dak Prescott.”
Rice said he heard Jimmy G has been outstanding in camp and is looking forward to another strong 49ers season. “Jimmy G, he’s going to blossom this year,” Rice said. “He’s only going to get better, and the sky is the limit for this guy. I think when you’ve got an offensive coordinator like Kyle Shanahan, who’s going to put you in a position where you can win, I think everything goes to his corner.”
