When the Tampa Bay Bucs moved up to select quarterback Josh Freeman in the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft, the reason was simple: the NFL is a quarterback-driven league.
Most successful teams have a dynamic quarterback, and that's especially true this year.
Look at the teams that are sitting atop their divisions. Now look at their quarterbacks:
In the AFC East: Buffalo and New England are tied at 4-1.
There's no question that the Pats' Tom Brady is one of the game's elite quarterbacks, but hats off to the Bills' Ryan Fitzpatrick, who ranks only behind Brady in the AFC.
In the AFC North, Baltimore's Joe Flacco is becoming more than a capable finisher.
In the AFC West, San Diego's Philip Rivers is a Pro Bowl quarterback.
In the NFC South, New Orleans' Drew Brees can put his name among the best in the league.
In the NFC North, Detroit's Matt Stafford is proving he belongs in the discussion, as he would have a higher rating than anyone in the AFC other than Brady.
Also in the North, we didn't forget Aaron Rodgers, who is in the discussion of the best quarterbacks in the league today.
Now, there are some quarterbacks who are on the cusp of being among the best (Houston's Matt Schaub) and others who are asked not to lose the game for their teams (San Francisco's Alex Smith).
There are also two quarterbacks who are not thought highly of but have their teams atop their divisions: Washington's (and ex-Gator) Rex Grossman and Tennessee's Matt Hasselbeck. Grossman was a former Heisman Trophy candidate, so he's not bad; and Hasselbeck is a former Pro Bowl quarterback, so he's not horrible.
Through Week 5, NFL teams have combined for 3,566 points in 2011, the most points through five weeks in NFL history.
Rodgers is the first player in NFL history with a 110-plus passer rating in each of his first five games to start a season. If he has another this year, he would become just the second quarterback with at least six such games in three straight seasons. Steve Young was the other.
And if Brees throws for 350 yards today against Tampa Bay, he would be the first player in league history have 350-plus yards in four straight games.
Bottom line: great teams have great quarterbacks.
When the Tampa Bay Bucs moved up to select quarterback Josh Freeman in the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft, the reason was simple: the NFL is a quarterback-driven league.
Most successful teams have a dynamic quarterback, and that's especially true this year.
Look at the teams that are sitting atop their divisions. Now look at their quarterbacks:
In the AFC East: Buffalo and New England are tied at 4-1.
There's no question that the Pats' Tom Brady is one of the game's elite quarterbacks, but hats off to the Bills' Ryan Fitzpatrick, who ranks only behind Brady in the AFC.
In the AFC North, Baltimore's Joe Flacco is becoming more than a capable finisher.
In the AFC West, San Diego's Philip Rivers is a Pro Bowl quarterback.
In the NFC South, New Orleans' Drew Brees can put his name among the best in the league.
In the NFC North, Detroit's Matt Stafford is proving he belongs in the discussion, as he would have a higher rating than anyone in the AFC other than Brady.
Also in the North, we didn't forget Aaron Rodgers, who is in the discussion of the best quarterbacks in the league today.
Now, there are some quarterbacks who are on the cusp of being among the best (Houston's Matt Schaub) and others who are asked not to lose the game for their teams (San Francisco's Alex Smith).
There are also two quarterbacks who are not thought highly of but have their teams atop their divisions: Washington's (and ex-Gator) Rex Grossman and Tennessee's Matt Hasselbeck. Grossman was a former Heisman Trophy candidate, so he's not bad; and Hasselbeck is a former Pro Bowl quarterback, so he's not horrible.
Through Week 5, NFL teams have combined for 3,566 points in 2011, the most points through five weeks in NFL history.
Rodgers is the first player in NFL history with a 110-plus passer rating in each of his first five games to start a season. If he has another this year, he would become just the second quarterback with at least six such games in three straight seasons. Steve Young was the other.
And if Brees throws for 350 yards today against Tampa Bay, he would be the first player in league history have 350-plus yards in four straight games.
Bottom line: great teams have great quarterbacks.
Copyright 2011 TheLedger.com - All rights reserved. Restricted use only.
All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be re-published without permission. Links are encouraged.
Source:
No comments:
Post a Comment