Most of this article is about how QBs are injured more than they used to be and aren’t as good as they used to be. And that’s funny, because both are wrong.
In 1997, the league passer rating was 77.2. In 2002, it was 80.4. In 2007, it was 82.6. In 2012, it was 85.6. In 2017, it was 86.9. In 2022, it was 89.1.
Objectively, QB play is better than it’s ever been. So why is the perception that QBs are getting worse? I think it’s a few reasons. The biggest is that people outside just don’t remember the shit QBs of yesteryear. Yeah, if you compare Daniel Jones to Eli Manning, maybe he comes off looking bad. But then you go back to 2012 and you see guys like Sam Bradford, Josh Freeman, Christian Ponder, Blaine Gabbert, Jake Locker, Brandon Weeden, and Mark Sanchez all being primary starters and it’s easier to remember there’s always been shit QBs. The other thing is that people tend to remember past QBs at their best, but most of the time, they were not at their best. I could talk about Matt Stafford, Andrew Luck, and Ryan Tannehill playing in 2012, but they all sucked in 2012.
Basically, QBs are objectively better than they used to be. If you think QBs used to be better, your memory is simply playing tricks on you and you need to take off the nostalgia goggles. I know how much people hate when this is brought up, but I also think that for some people, there’s a race component. 8 of the top 15 QBs by passer rating this season right now are black, and while it’s not everybody, there is definitely a subset of people who consciously or unconsciously rate those QBs lower than the white QBs of the past.
In 1997, 16 QBs started 14+ games. In 2002, 18 QBs started 14+ games. In 2007, 15 QBs started 14+ games. In 2012, 25 QBs started 14+ games. In 2017, 23 QBs started 14+ games. In 2022, 15 QBs started 15+ games.
This one’s a little trickier. First of all, I want to point out that this article quotes Trent Dilfer and Rich Gannon, who played during the era when QBs got injured/were benched at the same rate QBs are today. 2022 was also an outlier. 2020 had 21 QBs and 2021 had 19 QBs. 2023 has 23 QBs who have started 10-12 games so far. I don’t have the reasons for every QB missing every game, and I’m sure you could use other metrics, but generally speaking, this again appears to be a case where people simply forget the past. It’s a lot easier to remember the seasons where QBs played. It’s more difficult to remember the seasons they missed. It’s even more difficult to remember the seasons where they missed 4 games or whatever. I’d also point out that citing 8 QBs being out this week is a little weird. Tannehill and Garoppolo are healthy, their teams have just already packed it in for this season and they want to take a long look at their young QBs. 3 of the other 6 (Rodgers, Cousins, Jones) were injured on non-contact injuries. Dilfer saying these QBs are “soft” or “more hurt than ever” just isn’t supported by anything. QBs missing games appears to be directly in line with the past.
The reason it’s trickier is that there clearly was a period from 2008-2017 where there was slightly less QB attrition. 2012, 2016, and 2017 were especially good years for QBs playing a lot, but the average throughout that period was a little higher overall. What’s the reason for that? No idea. Probably a variety of factors.
Anyway, this ended up getting longer than I intended. This is all just a really long way of saying people will always yearn for the better days of the past but the better days of the past were rarely better, and this is no exception.
I am in no way an expert in this, but could that also be because the explosion of skilled WRs? They’re faster than ever, getting a ton of separation. I remember the early 00s patriots with patton (rip) and givens. Those were Super Bowl winning wrs. It seems like now, if you don’t have an ultra skilled WR1, you’re toast. Even Mahomes, who doesn’t NEED one, is having a tougher go at it with a weakened WR group. And Josh Allen didn’t explode until he got his WR1. Game is played further away from the LOS nowadays. And I also think that teams trying to fit the run and gun mold of the new NFL without QBs who have that skill set it showing.
Time to nerf defenses I guess.
Defenses play well “The game sucks now”
I don’t know man I enjoy watching good defense.
Zach Wilson not being in this photo is the only win I can expect.
It’s crazy because it’s not just that the bottom of the barrel QBs have looked especially bad this year, but the top guys haven’t looked as elite as usual either. Don’t get me wrong I still think guys like Mahomes, Lamar, Josh Allen, etc. they are still elite but just not quite as sharpe this year…CJ Stroud tho 🔥🔥🔥
Is this actually true or just recency bias?
I thought completion percentage was waaaay up across the league and I definitely notice it when watching games.
Like people are just noticing the dinking and dunking and that makes young QBs afraid to take risks and grow
I’ve said this for awhile and people always hate it, but they basically need to make the QB off limits to hit unless they’re running. Like a sack would be you wrap him up and the play is whistled dead. I get that it would be lame, but is it any more lame than watching a shit ton of backups who can’t play?
Seriously, there’s like 20-25 people in the world who can be a competitive NFL QB. That’s it. After those 25 (and that’s being generous), you get absolute trash. They need to be protected more. This is a billion dollar industry, good QBs are the face of the franchises and they’re rare.
I don’t get this take. We played decades with QBs getting hit and football was still great
You think football is the same now as decades ago? When the DL was a stout 240 lbs and they smoked on the sideline.
I said for decades. Not decades ago. And anywy decades ago could refer to the early 2000s. Getting hit by Ray Lewis then would suck as much as getting hit by anyone now
BOO THIS MAN
Part of what makes quarterbacks cool is that they take the hits, they’re under pressure, they still perform. QBs have to know the play, know the coverage, set protections, and get an accurate pass off in 3 seconds or less, otherwise they get pounded by a 300lbs defensive tackle
Yeah, sometimes the backup has to play. Not every NFL game is going to be a shootout, sometimes your backup comes in and helps the team grind out an important 13-10 win, while the defense shuts down the opposing offense when the team needs it the most
Imagine having bad QB play… I can’t remember the last time the Texans had that…
Front offices and coaching staff grabbing the guys they like as opposed to the guys they should get. Will never change.
Lol
Have the other teams tried having their QB belt out “Here we goooooooo” before every snap?
Don’t do my boy ‘shew like that
Below average offensive line play is leading to QBs with bad fundamentals
i was so excited for this season but it’s been so boring that i don’t care when it ends
The running game hid a lot of average to bad QB play. Now that “all fans want” is deep passes and shit we are seeing how hard it is and why old dudes used to say shit like “2 out of the 3 things that can happen when you forward pass are bad!”. I still think that survey pushing the pass happy rules onto us was made up or something.
Of the 8 backups currently starting that article focuses on, only 2 of them have won the job from a former starter that is now healthy: Levis and O’Connell.
Interesting to read Gannon’s comments on those two, especially in the context about his non-player-specific comments that the article featured, which are mostly about the importance of understanding protections:
Levis: “He’s one of these guys that when you’re the youngest kid in the neighborhood he wants to challenge all the kids to see how far he can throw it, he’s that guy. The accuracy and the decision-making and the lack of experience is a problem.”
O’Connell: “He’s got a lot of the intangibles you like — he’s poised, he’s comfortable in the pocket, he’s got good feet, good mechanics, he makes all the throws, he doesn’t get rattled, when he makes a mistake he’s able to quickly turn the page and come back. I think that kid’s got a chance.”