Tony Romo (by Derrik Klassen)

No other quarterback in the league is as under appreciated as Romo. For almost the last decade, many Cowboys fans have been calling for Romo’s head and wanting a new quarterback. Even during the 2014 NFL Draft process, those same Cowboys fans wanted Jerry Jones to draft Johnny Manziel. When Zack Martin was the pick, they lost their minds because they were going to be stuck with Romo at quarterback (poor babies, right?) Through all the criticism, Romo has continued to be one of the better quarterbacks in the league.

Above is a collection of four games from the beginning/end of the 2013 season (vs NYG, Kansas City, Chicago, Green Bay). (114/155; 73.5%)

Above is a collection of four games from the middle of the 2013 season (vs Philadelphia, Detroit, Minnesota, New Orleans). (111/145; 76.6%)

(Total: 225/300; 75%)

The one trait that makes Romo unique, if you will, is also the same trait that makes Romo a nightmare. His escapability is Houdini-like. He bobs, weaves, and wiggles away from defenders that try to bring him down. Few quarterbacks in the league have the same uncanny ability to find their way out of a collapsed pocket. Of course, part of what enables Romo to escape so well is his poise. Pass rushers do not phase Romo. Even with rushers closing the pocket, Romo keeps his eyes down field in search of an open receiver. Below is a prime example of his poise under pressure.

Considering the Cowboys receiving corps was a bit of a mess last season, Romo extending plays was a common sight in 2013. While Romo does a wonderful job at keeping calm under pressure and improvising, his best trait is how polished and controlled he is.

Romo’s footwork is in discussion for the best in the league. His drop backs are quick and precise. The execution of Romo’s dropbacks makes timing throws, like slants, outs, comebacks, etc., much easier to complete. Quarterbacks too often think that short outs (or something of the like) can be completed without the meticulous efforts of proper footwork, but very few have the pure arm talent for that. Below is a display of wonderful footwork on a timing route.

Those timing routes are the staple of most offenses and account for a bulk of the passing yardage, but many see them as small inefficient gains as opposed to thinking about the impact of stringing four or five of those plays together on a single drive. Luckily for Dallas, those throws are Romo’s bread and butter. That being said, Romo is accurate all over the field, not just on shorter timing throws.

For the most part, Romo is efficient at throwing to every level of the field. That also ties back into his overall footwork, but it is just as much about his natural arm talent. He consistently displays solid ball placement, as well as flashes of absurd touch. In 2013, Romo had a handful of throws in which only his receiver (typically Dez Bryant) could come down with. Though such spectacular throws are a rarity, the impact that they can have on the entire drive is huge. One stellar throw could quite easily lead to a drive ending in a touchdown. Reversely, a poor throw can have an opposite effect.

More of Romo’s poor throws are a product of his mind set, not his throwing ability. Romo has a tendency to get too confident in his own ability and force throws that should not even been considered an option. Similarly, Romo can be too quick to pick his target. Below, Romo fires without even noticing the blitzing defensive back.

Unfortunately, this becomes even more so when the game is on line. Now, Romo’s fourth quarter mishaps are a bit exaggerated, but it would be a lie to say that he does not make his fair share of mistakes. Also, part of the problem may have been teams blanketing Bryant and forcing Romo to distribute the ball to much lesser talents in crucial situations, but regardless, some of the mistakes are inexcusable.

In retrospect, Romo has one of the most unfortunate football careers of the modern era. He has played at a top notch level for almost a decade, but has been despised by much of the Cowboys community. In fact, 2013 may be the best evidence for that claim. The Cowboys may have only won eight games, but without Romo, they would have won four, at most. Romo is the heart of the Cowboys offense and the team would crumble without him, but his impact will continue to be unappreciated.

Eli Manning (by Nathan Manickavasagm)

Eli Manning is a good quarterback. To some, this may come as a shocker. To others, this is no surprise at all. For me personally, I was impressed with Manning, most of the time. I have not had the pleasure of watching much Manning over the years, so naturally I did not have a good feel for him. Basically all that I knew about him was his interception total, which was the highest in the league last year. That number was shouted from the rooftops and the only people that opposed this were the heavy film-watchers.

Now that I have the time to go over this past year, I can confidently say Manning is a good quarterback, I do not care what the numbers say. A large percentage of his interceptions can be attributed to miscues and tipped passes. That said, I have no true excuse for his play. It may have just been awful luck that he had so many miscommunications with his receivers, and his receivers might have just had a few bad drops. It could also be that either Manning or his receivers did not study the playbook enough, or that his receivers are just bad and can not catch the football. Regardless, Manning's interception total needs to go down this year. 

Above is a collection of four games; two from the beginning of Manning’s games (vs. Dallas, Denver) and two near the end (Detroit, Washington). (101/147; 68.7% accuracy)

Above is a collection of the four middle games of Manning’s games (vs Philadelphia, Minnesota, Green Bay, Washington). (85/115; 73.91% accuracy)

(Total: 186/262; 71%)

Manning is consistent throwing to all levels of the field. He is more accurate than these charts show, mostly because he had an abnormal amount of miscommunications with his receivers. Like I said earlier, this could be luck, or Manning and his receivers just do not know the plays. Again, there is no way for me to tell. I will be focusing on the interceptions and bad throws that I can attribute to Manning.

Manning's problems do not really involve his mechanics/accuracy, they stem from getting him out of comfort zone. When he is frazzled, he tends to make poor decisions and gets lazy with his footwork. However, this is a common problem among quarterbacks. Naturally, if someone is in your face, you are going to be worse off than if there was a clean pocket. The best quarterbaclss can adjust and salvage what they can. This is one thing that separates Eli from his brother Peyton, my top quarterback.

Here is Manning’s first play in 2013. The offensive line lets some rushers through to attempt a screen to the running back. The rushers get in Manning’s face, he fades backwards (very, very bad thing to do) and throws it right to the defender, who is only a few yards away. 

This was my first impression of Manning, and boy, what a terrible one. This is the kind of mistake a rookie makes. I do not know what was going on in Manning’s head here, but he can not do this. 

Below, we are later in the quarter, and another Manning interception is awaiting us. Rueben Randle, the intended target, is running a curl. The Cowboys are running a zone defense with two deep safeties. Manning tries to fit the ball in a very tight window, and it is clear that he did not look anywhere else on this play. The defender plays good defense on Randle and gets right on him, making this a questionable decision by Manning. Not only was it a bad decision, it was also just a terrible throw. He completely overthrows Randle, and a defender in a deeper zone gets an easy interception. I can notdefend Eli here. This is just an awful play for him.

Generally, Manning is a good quarterback. However, he seems to go into slumps where he can not seem to do much right. He makes poor decisions and he lets his footwork get lazy. In the case of this game, Manning bounced back to throw for four touchdowns and 450 yards (adding one more interception). He flipped a switch, and for the most part, delivered good pass after good pass, with the exception of some miscues. Lets look at some good moments.

Here is Manning in week two, vs the Broncos. Manning gets good protection, reads the defender, and throws Hakeem Nicks open. A pretty solid throw, and because of how open Nicks was, he was able to get some yards after the catch, which are very valuable.

Below, Manning rolls out, has two guys in his face, and delivers a ball that only his receiver can get. The play is initially ruled incomplete, but is overturned and counted as a completion. I wish there was a better angle, because it was a beauty. 

As with many other non-top quarterbacks, Manning has two modes: good Manning, and bad Manning. When Eli is good, he consistently puts out good passes, and is on the money all over the field. When he is off, he makes terrible decisions, loses his footwork, and turns the ball over. Look for Manning's numbers to improve this year. I would expect a lower interception total and a slightly higher completion percentage. As for his play, he has already peaked, so it is unlikely that he will just magically get better, but I do not think Manning’s time has come yet. I believe he has still got a few years in him.

Nick Foles (by Nathan Manickavasagm)

Nick Foles is a promising young quarterback. I did not study him much in college, but I can say this: He has gotten much better in his time in the league. The improvement is obvious, and for me, if they have gotten better in the past, I tend to believe they have the capacity to get better in the future. That is where I stand with Foles. Going off what little film I had back when Foles was drafted, I thought Foles was pretty mediocre. I did not expect him to do much other than backup Michael Vick (who I was a huge fan of). He has definitely proven me wrong.

It has been said before, but Foles is a great fit for what Chip Kelly wants to do. Kelly’s offense is a little odd, but it seems to play to Foles strengths, which I assume is intentional. Foles’s 27:2 TD:INT ratio was insane, but it is not necessarily indicative of his play. He was very inconsistent, so the fact that he only had two interceptions was shocking. That said, he has played well for how little experience he has, and he has led me to believe he will only get better.

Above is a collection of four games; two from the beginning of Foles’s games (vs Tampa Bay, Dallas) and two near the end (vs Minnesota, Chicago). (87/127; 68.5% accuracy)

Above is a collection of the four middle games of Foles’ games (vs. Dallas, Oakland, Green Bay, Washington). (66/86; 76.74% accuracy)

(Total: 153/213; 71.8%)

I had a much smaller sample size than Derrik did, so it makes sense that Foles's accuracy percentage is higher in my chart. Compared to most of the other quarterbacks we have studied, Foles has a great deep ball. It is probably his biggest strength. He puts the ball where his receiver can go up and get it. He does have a few erratic throws, but for the most part, he is consistent with it. Almost every quarterback is good throwing within 5 yards, so it is no shocker that he did not miss much there. My biggest concern with Foles is his lack of intermediate passes. This is mostly due to the offense, but there were some times where Foles saw an opportunity to drive it into traffic, but chose not to. I can not say that he is bad at throwing in that intermediate level because there is just not enough to go off of. I would like to see him expand the routes he throws to in the future, but as long as Kelly’s offense is working, there is no immediate problem.

When it comes to his mechanics, Foles is really inconsistent. Often times he gets lazy with his footwork or does not follow through all the way in a throw. It is frustrating to watch as many easy completions end up on the ground.

Here, Foles senses pressure that can’t immediately get to him, and rushes a very easy throw. He over-throws a fairly tall Zach Ertz and instead of a few yards, they get nothing. Things like this can be corrected, and Foles definitely needs to work on it.

While I did say that Foles has a good deep ball, he often just misses people. Here, Brent Celek is wide open for a very large gain. All Foles has to do is put it remotely close to him, yet he somehow misses a few yards in front of him. Both of the throws I have shown you so far, Foles has had time in the pocket to make a very easy throw, yet both times he whiffs completely. The first was due to him not following through all the way, but the second one was just him missing. I can not tell you why Foles missed Celek that badly on a routine throw, but it is definitely something worth noting.

One more bad play. I promise Foles is not bad all the time, just have patience. Here… I just… Nick Foles, come on. Look at the space he has to throw into, yet somehow, with no one close to him, he manages to completely underthrow a wide open target for what should be an easy touchdown. Nick Foles? More like Nick Fails.

Now, onto the good. Foles stands in the pocket and takes a monster hit. The best thing is that he delivered the ball with pretty solid mechanics and puts it right in the receivers hands. This is a trait that is hard to teach, and is one of the many reasons I’m optimistic about Foles’s improvement.

Nick Foles absolutely shredded Oakland. (Who didn’t shred Oakland though? Let’s be honest.) Here is one of several deep balls he hit against them. Although the defender fell down, I’m pretty confident this still would have been a completion, and most likely a touchdown.

Foles has a lot of things that he needs to work on, including footwork, staying in the pocket, resetting his feet after scrambling, following through on throws, having confidence to throw into traffic, and more. While he has those weaknesses, he has some strengths that are hard to teach. Not only that, he has also shown improvement in a few areas in his short time in the league, and I believe he will only get better. He might be Nick Fails right now, but in a few years, who knows where he could be.

Robert Griffin III (by Derrik Klassen)

The 2012 rookie quarterback class had a collectively impressive first season in 2012, but while the others progressed in 2013, Griffin took a step back. Granted, his lingering knee issues played an important role in the setback. At the end of the 2012 season, Griffin had suffered an ACL tear in the final minutes of Washington’s playoff game against Seattle. Unfortunately for him, that meant spending time in rehab as opposed to learning the playbook, refining his skill set, and watching film.

To be fair, the Griffin we saw in 2013 is not an accurate depiction of who he is and can be. Griffin’s tools are phenomenal and can allow him to be a solid quarterback, and his 2012 season was a testament to that. 2013 was just a train wreck of a season due to unfortunate circumstances. Although, regardless of the situation, Griffin was one of the league’s worst starting quarterbacks in 2013 and that can not be disregarded.

Above is a collection of four games from the middle of the 2013 season (vs Chicago, Denver, San Diego, and Philadelphia). (76/124; 61.3%)

Above is a collection of games from the beggining/end of the 2013 season (vs Philadelphia, Green Bay, San Fransissco, NYG). (85/111; 76.6%)

(Total: 161/235; 68.5%)

Despite losing progress in the mental aspect of football and not developing as a passer, Griffin’s athleticism is still quite the sight. When he gets into the open field, Griffin turns on the burners and races past defenders, proving that his 4.41 40-yard dash time is no fluke. On top of his straight line speed, Griffin’s lateral quickness leaves defenders having to turn around and chase Griffin. Of course, that is often a lost cause due to his previously praised speed. Although, Griffin still needs to become a safer runner. Below is an example of Griffin letting his body get destroyed.

Athleticism aside, Griffin has one other incredible tool. Griffin’s pure arm strength is one of the best in the league. Whether or not he is accurate with such a cannon of an arm is a different topic, but at the least, having the velocity and range that Griffin has opens up opportunities that few quarterbacks have access to. It can make throwing into tighter windows much easier, as well as allow the field to be stretched farther. Griffin also has the gall to put his wonderful arm to use.

Unfortunately, he has a tendency to get too confident when throwing and force disgusting throws. Being a reckless decision maker is what got Griffin in more trouble than anything else. Even if Washington’s offense is moving efficiently, Griffin bites off more than he can chew and derails the drive. Such mistakes tended to be through the air, but there was also plenty of occasions in which Griffin ran himself into a poor situation. Again, this is likely related to Griffin’s stunted mental development. Since he struggled to fully understand concepts, he threw at anything. Of course, that is not an excuse, but a simple observation.

Much like his mental progress, Griffin’s footwork also seemed to have not progressed. Griffin takes long, lanky strides when dropping back into the pocket. Such steps take too much time to finish the drop back, which leads to disrupted timing. The conundrum with footwork is that even a half of a second longer on drop backs can be enough to close a passing window, so quarterbacks have to be quick. At this point in his development, Griffin is not. As one would expect, his footwork after drop backs is sloppy as well. Griffin is terribly slow to reset, and when doing so, he tends to not place his feet in good enough position for him to generate torque and spin the ball. His footwork was another key reason that his accuracy percentage was embarrassingly low. Although, some of Griffin’s inaccuracies were a product of nothing more than Griffin not being capable.

Below, Griffin misses his intended receiver by a mile because he failed to reset his feet and transfer his weight properly.

For the most part, Griffin’s 2013 season was a disaster. There were flashes of the player he could be, especially through rare displays of incredible poise amidst a broken pocket, but Griffin was abysmal as a whole in 2013. With that said, he is far from a finished project. Griffin will only be a third year player in 2014. He still has plenty of time to develop into the player he can be. After an offseason without rehab in which he can focus on getting better and smarter, Griffin will be a better player than he was in 2013.