Some Observation Of Our QB

[scrock]

I like to look at stats, while checking on guys like Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees and comparing their numbers I saw some things...

I opened up Joe's stats and I saw a few things, some good things and some things that worry me a little bit, not anything with his play or the low completion %...because I already know the reason for that. I'm talking about the fact that we are throwing the ball more than we ever have before, that's why our run game has steadily dropped, in the first 3 weeks we were a top 5 running team, now we are in the 20s somewhere. Get this, Joe is on pace to throw for over 600 attempts !!!! That would be quite a big jump from the 489 he threw last year.

Because Joe is throwing it more frequently that also explains why his completion % has taken a hit, they have to attempt more passes because more are going incomplete, more are being dropped because of the young guys or for whatever reason, also..because he is throwing more his INT% has dropped from a year ago when he threw 10 INTs all year, its the half way point and he has throw 6 but his INT% dropped from 2 last year to 1.9 this year..so thats good news!

Also, those guys like Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees...I checked to see how many big plays of 20+ yards and 40+ yards they've made..and well, our boy Joe stacks up just fine compared to those guys.

Rodgers: 20+ (30), 40+ (9)
Brees: 20+ (33), 40+ (6)
Joe: 20+ (26), 40+ (5)

What this tells us, since we are throwing more and going deep more there are more incompletions but we are also making those big plays and slowly but surely Joe's completion % is going to go back up, once these young guys and Joe get on the same page, and if the OL can stay healthy...our offense is trying to be explosive and with change their are growing pains, hopefully we have gotten past it and become more consistent

He's throwing for more yards, less INTs, more big plays...but for whatever reason the TDs aren't there...in the redzone the offense seems to lock down, we either run it or dont seem sure of ourselves. That is one area Cam could really get better at his play calling...its only the half way point but Joe is on pace to set some career highs once again

....i was bored and felt like writing, you don't have to read it

[scrock]

i probably could have worded things better especially the part trying to explain the completion %...but its one of those things where it made sense in my head and i felt good enough to write all that but not good enough to take that extra step to explain myself any further....

[Ravenslifer]

As far as the touchdowns go, it's obvious that this team likes to run the ball in the redzone. And remember, there have been quite a few drops/plays that should have been touchdowns that weren't. Against our last two opponents I'm pretty sure I remember Flacco could have easily had 3 TDs against AZ if not for some drops, and there was another one in the Steelers game, I think, so Joe would have had 2 touchdowns instead of one. Besides, I don't really care. In two of the Patriots superbowl winning seasons, Brady threw for 18 and 23 TD passes, respectively, and he didn't cross the 30 TD threshold until that ridiculous 2007 season when he was 30 years old (he's only crossed 30 TDs twice in his career). Joe's on pace to throw for over 4000 yards, and that's a lot of production. Here's something else to consider: in both of the Steelers' Superbowl wins, Roethlisberger only threw 17 TDs in the regular season, and had the lowest QB rating of his career in 2008 when they won for the second time. Last year again he only threw 17 TDs, and they made it to the Superbowl but lost.

[Tank 92]

Joe's attempts are way up mainly because of the last 2 games. We had to throw out of necessity in the second half of the cards game and we knew they were going to try to stop the run first last week. As teams realize that we now actually have a legitimate passing game, it should open things up much better for the run. Ahhh..... The offensive balance we've been looking for.

[nextgen_RavensFan]

I agree with the entire post. I also see the need for better red zone play. Great post. Always like reading your thoughts. Would play action help at all ? Maybe joe even running the ball in. I always get worried when i see Ngata lining up on the O'line in the red zone.

[Crabcakes&Football]

Stats are stats are stats, they are nice for spectators to debate and argue over, but in the end the only stat that matters is the one in the W/L column. And if Joe continues playing like he did last week, he could have the worst stats in the league and it wouldn't bother me.

[Guest ArmyRaven52]

Unfortunately, this is the way the NFL is going, not too many teams with great running games are in the playoff hunt. It is about the QB and passing game. Pats, Colts (with manning o'course), packers. Running backs are falling by the wayside.

[redrum52]

Tds # is deceiving because of PI calls as well. Boldin should have had 2 against the Cards and I think there have been other games as well where there were either drops or penalties.

[The King]

I think that the TD/INT ratio is the most concerning stat right now. The completion percentage was hurt by a lot of drops and a lack of separation, especially in the Jets and Jags games, but TD/INT wasn't a result of something like that. That's a result of ineffective red zone execution by the offense.

[rlh445]

[quote name='Crabcakes&Football' timestamp='1321124811' post='864687']Stats are stats are stats, they are nice for spectators to debate and argue over, but in the end the only stat that matters is the one in the W/L column. And if Joe continues playing like he did last week, he could have the worst stats in the league and it wouldn't bother me.[/quote]

If he continued playing like he did last week, he wouldn't have the worst stats in the league.

[Free Agent]

[quote name='scrock' timestamp='1321112594' post='864505']

Also, those guys like Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees...I checked to see how many big plays of 20+ yards and 40+ yards they've made..and well, our boy Joe stacks up just fine compared to those guys.

[b]Rodgers: 20+ (30), 40+ (9)[/b]
[b]Brees: 20+ (33), 40+ (6)[/b]
[b]Joe: 20+ (26), 40+ (5)[/b]

[/quote]

I find that amazing, when you consider the wide receiver corps of the Packers, Saints, and Ravens. Rodgers and Brees obviously have two of the best WR corps at their disposals, while Flacco is working with Boldin, Torrey, and LaQuan. None of the other Ravens WRs have caught a pass, except for Lee Evans, who has obviously been out.

Flacco is doing extremely well with the WRs he has. If we could get Lee back, and our WR group could develop some consistency, we could have a very good passing attack.

[scrock]

[quote name='Crabcakes&Football' timestamp='1321124811' post='864687']
Stats are stats are stats, they are nice for spectators to debate and argue over, but in the end the only stat that matters is the one in the W/L column. And if Joe continues playing like he did last week, he could have the worst stats in the league and it wouldn't bother me.
[/quote]

while this is true and wins should matter most thats not how things work, as we have seen..and I'm sure if Joe was winning but playing like he did against Jacksonville he would be run out of town in a matter of weeks...its all about stats these days

I still think the run game is important though, Joe doesn't need to be throwing some 600+ attempts..thats too many, once we start becoming more consistent and consistently completing those deep balls and the later it gets in the season the more we will lean on the run game as well

I think Joe can be a bigger part of the offense, we currently rank 12th in passing and have been improving in that area while the rush yards per game has steadily dropped..we need to be balanced, which i think we will be

[scrock]

[quote name='Free Agent' timestamp='1321158170' post='864939']

I find that amazing, when you consider the wide receiver corps of the Packers, Saints, and Ravens. Rodgers and Brees obviously have two of the best WR corps at their disposals, while Flacco is working with Boldin, Torrey, and LaQuan. None of the other Ravens WRs have caught a pass, except for Lee Evans, who has obviously been out.

Flacco is doing extremely well with the WRs he has. If we could get Lee back, and our WR group could develop some consistency, we could have a very good passing attack.
[/quote]

yes he is, and for people to think he struggles throwing those intermediate/deeper routes is just plain silly ...I firmly believe and have for a while that Joe can make all the throws

[scrock]

[quote name='The King' timestamp='1321146640' post='864860']
I think that the TD/INT ratio is the most concerning stat right now. The completion percentage was hurt by a lot of drops and a lack of separation, especially in the Jets and Jags games, but TD/INT wasn't a result of something like that. That's a result of ineffective red zone execution by the offense.
[/quote]

the INT% is excellent, Joe is throwing more often and being picked off a lower rate than he was last year....yes, he has thrown 6 INTs at the half way point and he threw 10 all last year...but Joe is on pace to obliterate his passing attempts and he's throwing picks less frequently

[RayRiceRunningfortheRavns]

the receivers are more of the issue than joe is. So many catchable balls sail past or bounce off hands and jerseys and that really hurts joe's stats.

[Blex64]

[quote name='scrock' timestamp='1321160623' post='864966']

the INT% is excellent, Joe is throwing more often and being picked off a lower rate than he was last year....yes, he has thrown 6 INTs at the half way point and he threw 10 all last year...but Joe is on pace to obliterate his passing attempts and he's throwing picks less frequently
[/quote]

The TD/INT ratio is also slightly worse, at least on paper, then it is in actuality.

In the Arizona game, Joe threw for 3 TDs 0 picks. The paper shows 0 TDs 1 pick. He made the throws fine, and the receivers were either held for a penalty (because they were going to get TDs) or bobbled the ball and got picked (the INT).

I don't know off the top of my head if there are any other passses like that but its something to keep in mind.

[The King]

I think that all QBs sort of have moments like that where there receivers have drops in the end zone or get interfered with. I'm as wacko for Flacco as anyone, I'm just saying that would be an area of concern for me simply because it's an important metric for judging a QB. TD/INT ratio is a significant measure of passer efficiency.

Another big one is YPA, which for Joe Flacco is 6.6, good for a ranking of 25th in the NFL, tied with Andy Dalton. If you want to consider a QB elite, I think this a category in which you would want him to be in the top 10.

I agree with people who say that the most important statistic is wins, but that's a team measurement. Other statistics are used to determine whether a player is helping the team win or if the wins occur in spite of him. While Flacco has been good so far, it's tempting to say that, if the team isn't winning in spite of him, he is fairly neutral in the wins area on a season scale.

[The Raven]

Ya know, stats can tell alot about a player, especially quarterbacks. But I think Flacco is outplaying his stats. I personally think he's doing better than his stats indicate.

[BenDufusberger]

Think about the very things we worried about going into the season - an offensive line that would need several games to "gel" ; the loss of Heap and Mason , two of Joe's most trusted targets ; a brand-new rookie WR in Torrey , and TEs who had limited experience.

Our worries were justified , as these factors undoubtedly affected the offense , and only now are becoming less of a concern. Add the loss of Evans , then of Grubbs , a vital player in our OL , and you can see how Joe's stats might be 10-20% worse than would be expected in the absence of these factors.

Also , how much of Joe's performance was related to him dragging around that living , breathing anchor by the name of Cam ? Zorn might have been the guy keeping that anchor from getting stuck . That's another adjustment Joe and the offense have had to deal with

He had a couple stinker games , no doubt , but you have to think he's still at least as good a QB as his average stats over his first three years would suggest , and those numbers are all much better than his 2011 stats to date. I think it's a pretty safe bet that his second half stats will beat those of the first half by quite a bit , and bring his overall numbers in range with his career averages.

.

[BloodRaven]

He can only get better, and that Steelers drive was as good as good a place as any to start.

Let's go Flacco.

Edit: I believe!