Arm strength is hugely overrated anyway.
Playing QB in the NFL is about poise, accuracy, and making quick decisions.
I don't disagree with this bold statement. I just don't believe you can properly evaluate it in college quarterbacks.
I think it was pretty easy to see with Matt Ryan and I think it's pretty apparent with Sam Bradford.Not calling you out specifically Enforcer, (this is more a general statement) but I'm already tired of hearing people talk down Bradford as a guy that's just a "system" quarterback that has all day to throw behind his NFL ready offensive line. It's just not true and the internet is full of that nonsensical chatter.
The reason that most spread offense QBs don't make it is because the spread typically is a one read offense where if the guy isn't open then the QB takes off. Bradford isn't that way. He goes through his progressions and if the play breaks down then he can make a play with his feet and is amazingly accurate on the run.
Having said that, Stafford might be the better QB, but I've seen Bradford much more than Stafford so I can't make a good comparison.
wasn't the biggest knock on Ryan his accuracy? or maybe it was just that he threw too many INTs - but either decision making or accuracy plays a part in that.
Ryan was a little above or below 60% for most of his career, but some of that had to be discounted because he was the whole offense at BC, and he did not have any talented passcatchers or RBs to make plays and take some heat off of him.While the 60% accuracy implies so-so (although Cutler had similar numbers in a similar situation), if you watched Ryan, you saw a guy always trying to put the ball in the perfect window for run after catch, not just "aiming" for the vicinity of the receiver, and you also saw a guy who could put the ball in odd windows from all kinds of platforms, definitely a skill needed in the NFL.
As far as the INTs go, his total of 19 last year was why some were calling for him to be a bust in the NFL, but most of his INTs were the "trying to do too much" variety, and some were throws where he trusted his read of the coverage too much and didn't account for an LB dropping back into coverage or a DB peeling off his man to jump a route. They were all "positive thinking" INTs, as opposed to the Grossman type INT when the QB just throws the ball up for grabs to get it out of his hands because the defense wants to hit the guy with the ball, or the Favre/McNabb INT when the QB just inexplicably throws the ball directly to a defender or to no one in particular.
One of the "mental attributes" I scout in QBs is positive vs negative thinking - is the QB always seeing positive possibilities and trying to make them happen when the play breaks down, or are they trying to avoid negative plays and get caught holding the ball too long or being tentative and missing a possible play. Ben Roethlisberger is a QB who will exhibit both tendencies, sometimes in the same game.
this is very interesting.. we often talk about the intangibles... attitude, intelligence, awareness... other than the lousy wonderlic, there aren't many quantitative evaluations of the "Intangible" hence them being Intangible..
optimism, attitude.. I would appreciate some kind of study around such details.. and evaluations to successful QBs and BUSTs...
what are the common elements to Akili Smith, Matt Ryan, Peyton Manning, Dan Marino, Aikman, Favre, Ryan Leaf, Leinart, Warner, Brady,jim Kelly, Elway, harrington, Carr, .. and their differences..
Attitude, approach to the game, Leadership.. at every level.. I think the the NFL top shelf QBs, have had BOTH Leadership and physical skills, and the intangibles appear to be more successful than the statistical leaders, harbaugh, vs leaf...
Bloom, selfish request, as I am in a contract league, and have no QB in 2009... please devise, or expose us (me) to some method to measure these characteristics...and comparatively evaluate...
thanks