We’d like to officially welcome Jared Goff to the the 2016 NFL QB class debate. From now on, any Dak Prescott-Carson Wentz debate MUST also include Goff.

But seriously, the first-overall pick in the 2016 NFL draft has looked like a first-round quarterback this season after struggling during his rookie campaign.

Goff has been better, but how does he compare to Wentz and Prescott? And how do those two stack up with one another? Let’s check in on the 2016 QB class and figure that out…

Before we get into each quarterback individually, let me just get my ranking of the three out of the way

1. Prescott

2a. Wentz

2b. Goff

That gap is not a mistake. Prescott has separated himself from the other two early this season. While Goff and Wentz look very much like second-year quarterbacks, Prescott looks like a seasoned vet. And the Cowboys offense is designed as such, while the Eagles offense and, to a lesser extent, Rams offense have been pared down to fit the strengths and weaknesses of the quarterbacks.

Wentz is running the simplest offense of the three. The Eagles rely on quick drops, college-style run-pass options, screen passes and simple half-field concepts. They’ll also take plenty of deep shots off of play-action, but there isn’t much of an intermediate passing game. The offense is designed to get the ball out of Wentz’s hands quickly and simplify his reads to a certain extent.

Prescott runs a more fleshed out offense. The Cowboys passing game attacks all levels, which requires the second-year pro to read the entire field. He’ll also run his fair share of run-pass options, though Dallas does not throw nearly as many screen passes as the Eagles do.

The Rams system is somewhere in the middle. Goff will chuck it all over the field, but his reads are more defined than Prescott’s. He also doesn’t have as much pre-snap responsibility as the other two.

Mechanically, Prescott is lightyears ahead of Wentz and Goff. His footwork is much improved from what we saw during his rookie season. His feet are now fully in sync with his eyes as he goes through his progressions.

This is where Wentz needs the most work. His eyes can get ahead of his feet, which look as if they’re stuck in cement at times.

Goff’s feet are a little better than Wentz’s at this point, but he has a tendency to drift back in the pocket and not step into throws.

Goff is at his worst against pressure. He’s not a play-maker like his two draft-mates and hasn’t quite learned how to navigate an NFL pocket to find space to throw. He’ll also just chuck the ball away into dangerous spots in order to avoid a hit.

He may not be able to create with his feet, but Goff is able to make things happen with his eyes. He’ll look off safeties and linebackers in order to open up throwing lanes. He nearly had the game-winning throw against Seattle thanks to that ability, but Goff just missed the throw.

This is another area where Wentz is lacking. He’ll stare down receivers and lock onto his first read. Here’s an example…

The Cardinals have the front-side concept covered. Wentz has time in the pocket to look to his right where he has some options open. He doesn’t and tosses it to a covered receiver for a minimal gain. That’s not a terrible play, but it does leads to plays like this…

Once Wentz looks to his left, the free safety takes off knowing that it’s unlikely he’ll throw the other way. That allows him to get a fantastic jump and pick off the pass.

Prescott has no problems in this area. He’ll go from his first option to his second and third options in an instant, which makes it hard for defenses to jump his passes.

While Wentz has a ways to go mechanically, he has the best physical skill-set of the the three. He can shake off pass rushers thanks to a big, strong frame and either scramble or hit on big passes downfield thanks to his undeniable arm talent.

Prescott is no slouch in this department. He continues to make plays behind an underachieving offensive line…

But he isn’t quite as elusive as Wentz and does not have a comparable arm.

One more thing to keep in mind when comparing these three: Goff doesn’t turn 23 until October; Prescott just turned 24 in July; and Wentz turns 25 in December. Factoring in their ages and what their teams are asking them to do, my long-term rankings would actually look like this…

1. Prescott

2. Goff

3. Wentz

Prescott is the clear No. 1 at this point, and Wentz and Goff are interchangeable for me. But all three teams have found special quarterbacks who will only get better from here.

Tier 1

1a. Aaron Rodgers, Packers

1b. Tom Brady, Patriots

1c. Drew Brees, Saints

That’s right; a three-way tie at the top. I’m taking the coward’s way out, because all three of these guys have been that good this season. Brady came back to the pack after a down game on Thursday night. He was off on far too many throws, including his first interception of the season. Rodgers was an actual wizard in Dallas, and Brees was on a bye.

Tier 2

4. Alex Smith, Chiefs

5. Dak Prescott, Cowboys

6. Russell Wilson, Seahawks

7. Cam Newton, Panthers

8. Matthew Stafford, Lions

9. Philip Rivers, Chargers

It’s getting harder and harder to deny what Smith is doing this season. He’s still a little too quick to drop his eyes in the pocket, and his supporting cast has done a lot of the heavy lifting, but Smith is making plays we are not used to seeing him make.

Prescott jumps into the top-five after matching Rodgers throw-for-throw in a losing effort. Newton also makes a big jump after torching the Lions defense, which led to his completion percentage jumping up to 68% on the season. Both Stafford and Rivers got off to slow starts before finishing strong.

Tier 3

10. Kirk Cousins, Redskins

11. Matt Ryan, Falcons

12. Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers

13. Jared Goff, Rams

14. Carson Wentz, Eagles

15. Trevor Siemian, Broncos

16. Sam Bradford, Vikings

Roethlisberger probably didn’t deserve to throw five interceptions and his stat line was far worse than his actual performance, but he hasn’t been very good all season, so Tier 3 is an appropriate landing spot.

Goff stays put thanks to a valiant and somewhat unlucky effort against Seattle’s vaunted defense. Wentz is right behind him after his best game to date. Cousins, Ryan and Siemian were on bye. Bradford probably should have gotten a bye week of his own. His knee clearly wasn’t ready.

Tier 4

17. Eli Manning, Giants

18. Jameis Winston, Buccaneers

19. Carson Palmer, Cardinals

20. Tyrod Taylor, Bills

21. Andy Dalton, Bengals

Manning is starting to creep up after a rocky start to the season. We’ll see how long that lasts after he lost his three top receivers on Sunday. Winston’s accuracy issues on Thursday dropped him down to Tier 4. Dalton jumps up a tier after a decent performance. He was unlucky on one of this picks but Bills defenders did drop two of his passes.

Tier 5

22. DeShaun Watson, Texans

23. Joe Flacco, Ravens

24. Jay Cutler, Dolphins

Watson put up ridiculous numbers but mostly in garbage time. Flacco took advantage of clean pockets to bounce back a little after a horrid start to the season. Cutler isn’t playing well but is getting absolutely no help from the rest of his team.

Tier 6

25. Jacoby Brissett, Colts

26. Josh McCown, Jets

27. EJ Manuel, Raiders

28. Blake Bortles, Jaguars

29. DeShone Kizer, Browns

30. Mitchell Trubisky, Bears

31. Brian Hoyer, 49ers

32. Matt Cassel, Titans

The bottom tier is getting awfully crowded. Three of these quarterbacks probably won’t be starting next week. Brissett is doing a fine job as Andrew Luck’s placeholder. Bortles is being asked to not screw things up and still kind of struggling in that role. Trubisky showed off his accuracy and athleticism but never looked comfortable in the pocket during his debut.

Best throw of the week

This was an absolute dime from DeShaun Watson. Great pass. #KCvsHOU pic.twitter.com/bx1kshuBje — Ben Krimmel (@BenKrimmel) October 9, 2017

Deshaun Watson shows off the poise he has lacked at times this season, keeping his eyes downfield as he eludes the rush before uncorking a perfectly-placed deep ball.

Worst throw of the week

"Matt Cassell is way better than Colin Kaepernick" pic.twitter.com/608DEya09k — Jessie 🇰🇪 (@JMKTV) October 8, 2017

What was that?