Is Steven Montez the best quarterback in the Pac-12?

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Colorado quarterback Steven Montez has taken a big jump from sophomore to junior season and his stats reflect that.

The El Paso, Texas native has completed 91-of-120 passes this season, and his 76% completion percentage is the best country, over the likes of Alabama's Tua Tagovailoa and West Virginia's Will Grier.

He's thrown for 1,092 yards through four games, and his average of 273.0 passing yards per game is good for third in the Pac-12. He's thrown nine touchdown passes compared to just two interceptions, and Montez's quarterback efficiency rating of 173.7 is second best in the Pac-12. Montez has also ran in three rushing touchdowns and has seven runs of 10+ yards.

So is Montez the best quarterback in the conference? There are a handful of quarterbacks who would have an argument.

Washington's Jake Browning, Arizona State's Manny Wilkins, Arizona's Khalil Tate, and Stanford's K.J. Costello were a few household names coming into the season and have played well.

Costello's numbers are pretty similar to Montez's. Wilkins has thrown ten touchdown passes and just one interception. Browning is leading a potential playoff team but doesn't seem to be playing up to the level he's capable of. Tate is dynamic but is much more of a pocket quarterback this season and is only completing 53% of his passes.

Again, those four guys are solid quarterbacks, but in my mind, through the first five weeks of the season, there are three quarterbacks who have played the best in the conference.

Oregon's Justin Herbert, Washington State's Gardner Minshew, and Colorado's Steven Montez.

Minshew has attempted 273 passes, which is 103 more attempts than what Manny Wilkins has, and Wilkins has attempted the second most passes in the conference. WSU obviously has an air raid offense and while Minshew has been very good, is he just a system quarterback?

Herbert has been fantastic this season for the Ducks and if he declares for the NFL Draft after this season, he may be the first quarterback off the board, if not the first overall pick. There's no doubting his pro potential. Herbert also has by far the highest Pro Football Focus quarterback grades in the Pac-12.

Below is a table that breaks down the top five quarterbacks in the conference according to the analytics.

What Montez has done this season has been the biggest surprise of quarterbacks in the conference. He's exceeded early expectations and has the Buffaloes as the only undefeated team in the conference.

But to answer who the best quarterback in the conference is at this point in time, I'd have to say Herbert is the guy. None of that really matters as long as Colorado just keeps winning. The Buffaloes control their own destiny in the Pac-12 South, and Montez is the guy to lead them to a second division championship in three years.