Resources & Glossary

Key football statistics definitions and further reading

Glossary of Key Statistics

Passer Rating (QB Rating): A composite metric (scale 0–158.3) that evaluates a quarterback's passing performance using completion percentage, yards per attempt, touchdown percentage, and interception percentage. A rating above 100 is considered excellent.
Completion Percentage (Comp%): The percentage of pass attempts that are completed. Calculated as completions divided by attempts, multiplied by 100. League average typically falls between 63% and 66%.
Passing Yards (Yds): Total yards gained through completed forward passes. This is a volume stat that reflects both opportunity (number of attempts) and efficiency (yards per completion).
Touchdowns (TD): The number of passing touchdowns thrown by the quarterback. A touchdown is scored when a receiver catches a pass in the opposing team's end zone.
Interceptions (INT): Passes thrown by the quarterback that are caught by a defender. Interceptions are a key indicator of decision-making and ball security. Fewer interceptions generally signal smarter play.
Yards Per Attempt (Y/A): Average yards gained per pass attempt, including incomplete passes and interceptions. This efficiency metric strips away volume to show how productive each throw is. A Y/A above 8.0 is considered elite.
Sacks: The number of times a quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage while attempting to pass. Sack totals reflect offensive line quality, pocket awareness, and play design.
Games Played (GP): The number of regular-season games in which the quarterback appeared. Important context for evaluating counting stats — a QB with fewer games may have lower totals but similar per-game production.

How Passer Rating Is Calculated

The NFL passer rating formula combines four components, each capped between 0 and 2.375:

Component A: Completion percentage — ((Comp/Att) × 100 − 30) / 20

Component B: Yards per attempt — ((Yds/Att) − 3) / 4

Component C: Touchdown percentage — (TD/Att) × 20

Component D: Interception percentage — 2.375 − ((INT/Att) × 25)

The final rating is: ((A + B + C + D) / 6) × 100. A perfect passer rating of 158.3 requires elite performance across all four categories.

Data Sources

Statistics used in this analysis were sourced from publicly available NFL records and sports reference databases for the 2025 regular season. All data reflects regular-season performance only and does not include playoff statistics.

Key sources include Pro Football Reference, NFL.com Stats, and ESPN NFL Statistics.

Glossary of Key Statistics

How Passer Rating Is Calculated

Data Sources

Further Reading