Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice grabbed some attention this week by going on 95.7 The Game and declaring that, in his mind, Jimmy Garoppolo of the San Francisco 49ers is a better quarterback than Dak Prescott of the Dallas Cowboys.
"I think [Prescott] would have success (in Kyle Shanahan's system)," Rice said during the radio interview. "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."
So that prompted a debate Wednesday morning on Good Morning Football. Which quarterback is better? Garoppolo or Prescott.
While Nate Burleson strongly disagreed with Rice, Peter Schrager and Kyle Brandt weren't so quick to dismiss the Hall of Famer's take.
"Garoppolo took his team to the Super Bowl last year," said Schrager. "And Garoppolo, when he was the quarterback for the Patriots, won games there, and was right on the heels of Brady. [He] was so good that when they traded Garoppolo, it almost felt like maybe that was a questionable decision, now that we're at this point in both their careers.
"I think Garoppolo could make an argument. You know what? In fact, I'll say it. I think Jimmy Garoppolo is the quarterback I'd rather have right now than Dak Prescott. I've seen him go through it. ... You go into New Orleans last year, Week 14; Saints are everyone's favorite to win the Super Bowl. Jimmy Garoppolo takes the 49ers, who everyone thought was just a flash in the pan, and a couple of big wins early, are going to fall apart late, and beat [the Saints] in New Orleans.
"Then you go into Seattle, Week 17, everything on the line, Garoppolo leads his team downfield and wins in Seattle, in front of the 12 — something the 49ers could never do. And they go on and play in the Super Bowl after dominating in two playoff games. So, I don't understand why this is such a hot take."
As Burleson shook his head in a bit of disbelief, Brandt backed up Schrager. He did, however, feel Rice could have been more confident in his take rather than saying, "That's my opinion, and I could be wrong."
"Dak Prescott was bupkis last year in the games that mattered, the really big games," said Brandt. "Jimmy Garoppolo? I understand he missed the one notable throw to Emmanuel Sanders, but he also was good in the other big games. He did his job, so it's not a wild take.
"If you were to ask a GM right now, or head coach, 'You have one big game to win. Do you want Garoppolo, or do you want Dak Prescott?' I think they'd say, 'Jimmy.' He's done it more recently."