Quarterback EPA per Dropback Leaders
Quarterback EPA per Dropback — 2018 NFL leaders, updated Aug 13, 2026. Patrick Mahomes (KC) led the league in expected points added per dropback at 0.36, ahead of 36 other qualifying players. Based on verified 2018 play-by-play data (nflverse); Half-PPR scoring. Through the 2018 season.
Expected points added per dropback asks what each pass attempt was worth; success rate asks how often the attempt simply worked, with no credit for the size of the gain. Read them together. A quarterback high in the first and low in the second lives on explosive plays and disappears for stretches; high in both is the profile of an offense that stays on schedule. The dropback is the honest denominator because it charges a passer for the snaps that never became throws — a sack and a scramble are both quarterback outcomes, and a passer whose per-attempt line looks tidy because he takes the sack instead of testing the coverage is exactly who this separates.
| # | Player | DB | EPA/DB | Success% | Total EPA | Scr% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Patrick Mahomes | 634 | 0.36 | 52.2% | 226.6 | 4.4% |
| 2 | Drew Brees | 512 | 0.28 | 55.9% | 143.8 | 0.8% |
| 3 | Philip Rivers | 552 | 0.23 | 50.9% | 125.1 | 0.9% |
| 4 | Jared Goff | 615 | 0.20 | 51.1% | 121.5 | 3.3% |
| 5 | Ben Roethlisberger | 713 | 0.19 | 50.1% | 135.6 | 1.7% |
| 6 | Russell Wilson | 500 | 0.17 | 47.4% | 86.7 | 5.8% |
| 7 | Matt Ryan | 672 | 0.17 | 51.0% | 116.3 | 2.5% |
| 8 | Ryan Fitzpatrick | 284 | 0.17 | 50.3% | 48.1 | 8.1% |
| 9 | Mitchell Trubisky | 497 | 0.15 | 49.3% | 75.8 | 7.2% |
| 10 | Tom Brady | 595 | 0.15 | 51.3% | 88.9 | 0.8% |
| 11 | Andrew Luck | 679 | 0.14 | 50.7% | 96.2 | 3.1% |
| 12 | Jameis Winston | 443 | 0.13 | 49.7% | 59.3 | 8.1% |
| 13 | Aaron Rodgers | 680 | 0.11 | 46.6% | 76.7 | 4.9% |
| 14 | Deshaun Watson | 620 | 0.11 | 48.9% | 69.3 | 9.3% |
| 15 | Nick Mullens | 289 | 0.11 | 46.7% | 31.8 | 0.4% |
| 16 | Carson Wentz | 447 | 0.09 | 50.1% | 40.4 | 3.6% |
| 17 | Nick Foles | 205 | 0.08 | 44.9% | 17.1 | 1.0% |
| 18 | Cam Newton | 527 | 0.07 | 48.8% | 36.5 | 4.9% |
| 19 | Andy Dalton | 396 | 0.06 | 47.5% | 25.5 | 3.0% |
| 20 | Baker Mayfield | 532 | 0.06 | 45.7% | 29.8 | 3.2% |
| 21 | Dak Prescott | 611 | 0.05 | 45.0% | 29.9 | 4.8% |
| 22 | Marcus Mariota | 408 | 0.04 | 46.6% | 18.4 | 8.3% |
| 23 | Eli Manning | 631 | 0.04 | 42.8% | 22.9 | 0.6% |
| 24 | Joe Flacco | 398 | 0.04 | 44.7% | 14.1 | 1.3% |
| 25 | Matthew Stafford | 610 | 0.00 | 43.1% | 0.7 | 2.1% |
| 26 | Derek Carr | 606 | -0.00 | 47.7% | -0.7 | 1.3% |
| 27 | Lamar Jackson | 203 | -0.01 | 46.3% | -2.7 | 8.4% |
| 28 | Josh Allen | 395 | -0.02 | 41.5% | -8.9 | 11.9% |
| 29 | Alex Smith | 370 | -0.02 | 44.9% | -8.6 | 5.7% |
| 30 | Case Keenum | 632 | -0.03 | 43.5% | -18.9 | 1.9% |
| 31 | Kirk Cousins | 665 | -0.03 | 47.8% | -21.5 | 2.6% |
| 32 | Jeff Driskel | 206 | -0.04 | 39.3% | -7.3 | 5.8% |
| 33 | Sam Darnold | 459 | -0.05 | 42.0% | -23.1 | 3.3% |
| 34 | Blake Bortles | 475 | -0.07 | 42.3% | -35.4 | 8.2% |
| 35 | C.J. Beathard | 200 | -0.14 | 45.0% | -28.4 | 5.5% |
| 36 | Ryan Tannehill | 315 | -0.17 | 41.0% | -52.9 | 2.2% |
| 37 | Josh Rosen | 452 | -0.33 | 36.3% | -147.4 | 3.3% |
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- Target Share
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- Completion Percentage Over Expected
- Adjusted Net Yards per Attempt
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- Defensive Blitz Rate
- Quarterbacks vs Man and Zone Coverage
- Pass Rate Over Expected
- Clean-Core Rating
- Usage vs Production
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- Air Yards Share
- Stacked Box Rate
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- Weighted Opportunity Rating
- Snap Share
- Pass-Snap Share
- Receiving Yards per Pass Snap
- Availability
- Tight End Receiving Efficiency
- Tight End Average Depth of Target
- Stat Stickiness
- Play-Action Rate
- Pre-Snap Motion Rate
- Drop Rate
- Contested Catch Rate
- Interception-Worthy Throw Rate
- Quarterback-Fault Sack Rate
- Quarterback Intended Air Yards
- Team Air Yards and Passing Volume
- Receiver Separation and Cushion
- Wide Receiver Receiving Efficiency
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