The Tape: The Glory of Him Who Moves All

As long as it’s stronger than Chad Pennington’s arm, I’d be okay with it.

since the summer of 2007, I’m pretty sure you know what the ‘status quo’ is on the blogs.

Though I think Carl was trying to say that QBs are hard to evaluate. I believe Dave Cameron wrote an article on successful college hitters and how much use actual scouting of the player had, since every year there are players that hit almost .400 and for one reason or another do not get drafted or get drafted really light. For football, a high completion percentage doesn’t tell you the level of competition, the ineptitude of pass blocking, or the amount of short low-risk dump off passes were thrown. When evaluating a QB, it’s key to evaluate the kind of throws a QB can make, and the kind of decision making he exhibits when under pressure. Just my take on it.

I’m not trying to impress anyone here.

Your perception of what I wrote appears too narrow-sighted (I’m not trying to start an argument or offend anyone). I did say that while I pretty much value statistics, I recognize that it doesn’t tell the whole story, which is why you cannot simplify it as a matter of “statistics junkie” vs. “not looking at statistics”, or as a matter of reconciliation. Also, when responding to CrushedOptimist’s statement of my observations of Stafford throwing with abandon (again, I’ll admit that “abandon” might have been too strong an adjective) didn’t jibe with Stafford’s statistics, I was merely trying to make the point that associating a player’s habit of throwing with abandon by just looking at statistics isn’t going to tell you the whole story, and that in other games besides the Michigan state game, that he makes decisions where he probably shouldn’t have while there were better options present. I’m not sure if that made complete sense, or if I have conveyed my point properly, but it’s 12:30 here in Hawaii, and I’m tired lol.

Anyhow, I already know Stafford’s statistics. That’s another reason why I’m gonna look at whatever video I can find, so as to paint a better picture for myself. If I were to ever judge a prospect, I’d at least like to get as big a picture as I can get, not just part of it. Think Tim Ruskell wouldn’t be doing the same thing?

One of the main reasons I won’t just look at stats, is because they won’t tell me about things like Stafford’s read progressions. They won’t tell me about his ability to read defenses. They won’t tell me about his abilities as a 2-minute quarterback. They won’t tell me about his ability to audible. On and on, it goes. That’s why viewing film is also important.

Even then, I also recognize that it’s not limited to film and stats. Interviews and background checks are necessary, too. Only, it’s practically impossible for someone such as myself to be able to access that kind of information.

Yes, there is invaluable information to be had by viewing statistics, especially situational statistics, but they all, a lot more often than not IMO, meet the same shortcoming of not telling the whole story.

Personally, while I am still not sold on Stafford, I hope I’m wrong. I hope he turns out to be the next Peyton Manning or Tom Brady. I still want the Lombardi Trophy to grace the streets of Seattle during a Super Bowl parade.