The GOO! Level: Tom Brady and Peyton Manning
Brady and Manning are on the GOO! level because that is the reaction I have each time I watch either of these two quarterbacks play. Each time I see them play they do something I've never seen a quarterback do before. By the end of their respective careers, Manning and Brady may go down as the two best quarterbacks of all-time.
Just about any record set by Brett Favre in the last five years will likely be broken by Peyton Manning in the very near future. Manning is currently trailing Favre by 17,000 passing yards, 119 passing touchdowns, and 138 interceptions. At Manning's current pace two of those records will take about 4 years to break and the other one will take 8 years to break, let's just say Favre's interception record is probably safe for a long, long time. I know he has had playoff troubles, but he is still extremely effective and most of the reason why the Colts are ever in the playoffs to begin with. Manning helped usher in the recent quarterback revolution, which has led to an increasing number of quarterbacks calling plays at the line of scrimmage and an ever-increasing number of weird sounds and hand-motions. The things Manning does as a "quarterback" are more like the activities of a coach or offensive coordinator and require a level of sophistication previously unneccessary to play the quarterback position.
Like Manning, Brady is also one of the smartest quarterbacks in the league and runs the Patriots offense to perfection. The Patriots' offense is dependent on Brady's skills and ability to spread the ball around the field to all of his receivers. Brady is able to get the absolute most out the talent around him including castoffs and late-round picks. With Brady at the helm, the Patriots are 97-30 in the regular season and 14-5 in the postseason. Tom Brady wins football games. It's as simple as that. He is a winner in every sense of the word and his leadership has led the Patriots to three Super Bowl victories.
Though it isn't easy to choose between the two and there are definite arguments for each quarterback, it is very easy to see that these two quarterbacks are on a level by themselves and the rest of the league is trying to catch up.
The "I can't wait until I get to higkh school" Level: Aaron Rodgers
As an avid Brett Favre hater, I have been cheering for Rodgers since the moment he became the Packers starting quarterback. Rodger's arm is ridiculous and his intelligence is phenomenal. I would love to put him on the same level as Manning and Brady, but I simply cannot do it yet because of his lack of playoff experience and Super Bowl rings. He just simply has not been in the league quite long enough, but with his skill set there is no doubt in my mind that in a few years we will see him rise to the same level as Brady and Manning and has already begun to do so this postseason. Rodgers brings a swagger and confidence to the Packers that every team needs to have, even if his swagger is a bit undeserved. (Sure he's never won a championship, but I have no problems with a little cockiness.) (Also, anyone who has ever looked like this, this, or this has significantly more confidence than anyone on this Earth has ever needed. Yup, that was a double parentheses.)
The Jackpot Level: Drew Brees and Philip Rivers
Drew Brees and Philip Rivers are on the "Jackpot" Level of the pyramid because that is the feeling you get as a fan of the New Orleans Saints and San Diego Chargers. Brees was a bit of a late bloomer, but his blooming has resulted in one of the best quarterbacks in the league. Like Manning and Brady, Brees manipulates defenses and calls a lot of plays at the line. He throws the ball all over the place and puts up a lot of numbers, but experienced somewhat of a down year this season. Standing only 6 feet tall, Brees lacks the prototypical NFL body that both Brady and Manning possess. I'm not saying that Brees still can't make all the throws, but I think his lack of size makes being an NFL quarterback a bit more difficult for Brees than other elite quarterbacks.
The Chargers took a huge gamble in drafting Eli Manning to use him as trade bait in the 2004 NFL drafter and with Rivers, they have hit the Jackpot. Rivers is a superior quarterback to Eli Manning because of his decision making and overall skills. Rivers has an absolute rocket arm and can make just about any throw. The thing that helps put Rivers on the same level as Brees is his leadership. Though some people call his trash talk childish and the tantrums he throws immature, I believe that the passion he puts into the game is invaluable to his team and helps push them to a different level. In his time in San Diego he has yet to win a ring, but with an injury-plagued team returning to top form next season the Chargers will certainly have a good chance at next year's Super Bowl.
The "You know how badly I could beat you, right?" Level: Ben Roethlisberger
Ben Roethlisberger may have been the hardest quarterback on this entire list to rank. I truly don't think that he is better than the next level of quarterbacks from a skill standpoint, but the intangibles Roethlisberger brings to the table makes him one of the best quarterbacks in the league. He was given his own level essentially for his playoff success. There was no way I could not reward Roethlisberger for winning big games every year and being on the verge of winning his third Super Bowl ring, which would give him as much hardware as Tom Brady. That is impressive no matter how average your skills as a quarterback may be.
Don't get me wrong, I know that Roethlisberger has a big arm, but his accuracy is very average. Let's just say if I needed to pick a quarterback to throw a ball through a 2'x2' square from 40 yards away, Roethlisberger would not be the quarterback I would choose. But if you would tell me that I need a touchdown with 53 seconds left and it's 3rd and 17 from my own 40, I am picking Ben Roethlisberger to get the first down to keep that drive alive and eventually score that touchdown. Roethlisberger just finds a way to make the plays he needs to make. If you need proof, just check out his Super Bowl game-winner to Santonio Holmes or his game-winner-setter-upper to Antonio Brown against the Ravens.
As soon as Roethlisberger gets to the playoffs, he becomes a different player and as far as I'm concerned that's what I want in a quarterback. I want my quarterback to play his best games on the biggest stages. This past weekend, I kept hearing people say that the Jets needed to blitz more and get pressure on Roethlisberger, but the sad thing was the Jets were blitzing. Roethlisberger is just unbelievably good at avoiding a rush. He doesn't have the quickest feet or the best moves, but his awareness of the pocket around him and when to get outside of the pocket are uncanny. Put all of these intangible skills together and you have a quarterback that is unlike any other in the league.
The "R-O-C!-K" Level: Joe Flacco, Matt Ryan, Matt Schaub, and Michael Vick
I could not find this link on the Internet and I was deeply saddened. So for those of you who don't know, this is a reference to the scene in which Billy's father tells him that he rigged a spelling bee in the 2nd grade for Billy to win. He then questions Billy's spelling of the word rock. When Billy doesn't realize that rock is not spelled R-O-K, he yells "R-O-C!-K". (Much funnier viusally than in writter word. That explanation just made me realize why Billy Madison was never converted into novel form.)
These four quarterbacks are all on the R-O-C!-K level because they are just one "C" away from spelling rock correctly and becoming top tier quarterbacks. For Flacco, the letter C represents consistency. To Flacco's credit, he is becoming a better quarterback each year he has been in the league. This can be a very tough thing to do on a winning team like the Ravens because with a team built to win championships, Flacco is rarely given a chance to develop his skills as a passer and his skills as a winner. With a great defense behind him, Flacco has never been asked to go out and win a game for his team by throwing it over 40 times in a single game and this has made his development as a quarterback much slower than most other quarterbacks. (Flacco has thrown 40 or more times only twice in his three-year career, while Aaron Rodgers has done it 10 times in the exact same period of time.) Though he has consistently gotten better, he has yet to be consistently good. When you average out his stats, Flacco is certainly a good quarterback, but instead of a consistently straight horizon, there are hills and valleys from game to game.
To correctly spell rock, Matt Ryan needs to get a championship. The record Matt Ryan has put together in his first three seasons as starting quarterback of the Atlanta Falcons has certainly been impressive. I can honestly say that I didn't believe Ryan would be a successful NFL quarterback, but he has proved me wrong from the second he got in the league. Ryan was drafted third overall in the 2008 NFL draft and asked to be the franchise quarterback of the Falcons from day one and has put together a professional record of 33-14. Ryan looks a bit more comfortable as a passer than Flacco and really looks to have found his stride this season. With a 20-1 home record under Ryan going into this season's playoffs, it was a bit surprising to see the Falcons lose so convincingly to the Packers, but, like Flacco, Ryan is still in a very good position with a great team for next season.
Clutch represents the "C" that Matt Schaub is searching for. In the past few years, Matt Schaub has developed into a top-tier quarterback...in fantasy football. Unfortunately for Schaub, fantasy is far from reality. Though Schaub has put up some huge numbers as the quarterback of the Houston Texans, his ability to win games, or lack there of, has killed the Texans' playoff chances year after year. This season was an absolute nightmare for Schaub as the Texans lost close game after close game simply because of a lack of execution at the end of games. The most striking example of this came during the Texans' Monday Night loss to the Ravens when Schaub threw a pick six (interception returned for a touchdown) to lose the game for the Texans. To become a top-tier quarterback, Schaub needs to learn how to win games and close out victories.
Michael Vick is searching for control to spell rock correctly. As I have stated previously, Michael Vick might not have what it takes to be an elite quarterback or a game manager, but it isn't physical tools that hold him back. The leaps and bounds Vick made as a quarterback this season prove that Vick is still learning how to play the position and can only get better under Andy Reid. The main problem with Vick is attempting to control his legs. For most of his career, everyone has focused on how well Michael Vick can run and the plays he makes with his legs, but since becoming a Philadelphia Eagle, Andy Reid has attempted to make Vick focus on his arm. Vick has an absolutely incredible arm and can throw the ball just about anywhere on the field, but at times his accuracy is questionable because his footwork or concentration is just a little bit off. If he can learn how to control his legs and continue to harness the ability of his arm, he can become a better quarterback and possibly even elite. (I am not advocating for Vick to stop running. I am simply advocating for him to begin using his arm and use his legs as a last resort instead of vice versa. This should help to continue improving his passing ability.)
The "I'll turn this bus around. That'll end your precious little field trip." Level: Josh Freeman, Matt Cassel, David Garrard, Jay Cutler, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Tony Romo, Eli Manning
These quarterbacks all take on the craziness of Chris Farley's character because you never truly know what these quarterbacks are going to do. On any given day at any given time, these quarterbacks may turn the proverbial bus around and ruin your field trip by making any variety of terrible decisions. These are the quarterbacks who throw into double and triple coverage. These are the quarterbacks that decide to throw off their back foot and try to make the big play instead of just throwing it out of bounds. And these are the quarterbacks that leave you shaking your head after most of these plays. Notice though that I said most of these plays. About 75% of the time these boneheaded decisions will turn out badly, but for a few games every year these quarterbacks will look like the best in the entire league, simply because somehow their terrible decisions turn into great catches by the talented playmakers around them. Just take a look at Eli Manning's game log from this season to understand just how varied his performances are from week to week.
The "I know how you kids like 'em EXTRA SLOPPY!" Level: Matthew Stafford, Mark Sanchez, Colt Mccoy, Sam Bradford, Kyle Orton, Chad Henne, Jimmy Clausen, and Tim Tebow
Each of these quarterbacks is on the "EXTRA SLOPPY" Level because that is just about the only type of game each one of them can win. None of these quarterbacks are going to have a four touchdown masterpiece like Brady or Manning, but they are extremely capable of winning a game 19-14 or 21-17. I'm not saying that these quarterbacks will never hop up to another level because some of them are very capable of making a jump (particularly Bradford and Stafford), but as it is right now these guys just don't know how to be great NFL quarterbacks yets.
(On a sidenote, I'm very intrigued with what Tebow can become. Not because he has a great skill set or an NFL body, but simply because he just works too hard not too be successful. I know a bunch of you just read that and rolled your eyes because all NFL players work hard, which would therefore make it seem like Tebow is nothing special, but I'm not sure anyone is like Tebow. It's just something about him and the way other players immediately connect with him and follow him that makes me think he will be successful.)
The "Who would steal thirty bagged lunches?" Level: Matthew Hasselbeck, Donovan McNabb, Carson Palmer, and Kerry Collins
(Another sidenote: Why has Matt Hasselbeck decided that after 11 NFL seasons that he likes to be called Matthew? Isn't that something he would have told people much earlier in his career? Is he planning a post-football career as a Shakesperean actor and being called Matt wouldn't earn him enough respect? The whole situation really boggles my mind.)
These four quarterbacks comprise this level, not because they are sasquatches, but instead because of the expectations put on them. After many great and even some elite NFL seasons, these quarterbacks are now a nearly constant disappointment. Matt
Kerry Collins has the 11th most passing yards in NFL history. That is not a mistake. He really does. And he's not very good, which really makes it perplexing how he managed to pass for the 11th most yards in NFL history.
The "T-T-T-Today Junior!" Level: Alex Smith and Jason Campbell
No one is really too sure when either of these quarterbacks will develop into legitimate quarterbacks, but the 49ers and Raiders are both hoping that it will be t-t-t-today. Coming out of Utah, Smith was a product of Urban Meyer's spread offense, which NFL scouts have since become very critical of. The spread offense can create a very sound passing attack and strong offense in college, but it definitely doesn't produce talented NFL quarterbacks. As far as Campbell is concerned, after being drafted 25th overall by the Washington Redskins in 2005, he has shown brief glimpses of talent, but has never been able to sustain the effort over a full season. Luckily for him, Al Davis has fallen in love with him, which means he will likely be the Raiders' starting quarterback until Davis dies...or is he already dead? I'm not really sure anymore.
The Recap
Things you'll notice:
- I'm not very good at making pyramids on Powerpoint. I did try really hard, though, which should count for something.
- I've put "I'll turn this bus around. That'll end your precious little field trip." Level and the "I know you kids like 'em EXTRA SLOPPY" Level on the same level, but divided them like they were fruits and vegetables. I did this because both these two levels are very similar and deciding between them is a matter of personal preference. I happen to like game managers more than guys that have the potential to give me a huge game, but some people don't feel the same way.
- If Roethlisberger ends up winning his third Super Bowl next weekend, the "You know how badly I could beat you, right?" Level will move on top of the "Jackpot." Level. There is just no way I can have a guy with three Super Bowl rings that low in the pyramid.
- This idea is extremely convoluted and if you've read this far, I applaud you.
- Billy Madison is a great movie.
- It's about time for me to end this post.
Whew, Bradford and Tebow in the same cat. !?
ReplyDeleteRoethlisboerger should be on the "So hot, want to touch the hiney, owwwuuuu" level....for obvious reasons (and the fact that's got 2 rings)
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