33 QBs played in NFL football games this past Sunday. ESPN ranked them all using their new \u201cTotal QBR\u201d system. The results are in, and they are very stupid.<\/p>\n
Before I get started, let me stress that this will not simply be about our own Mark Sanchez being ranked 30th<\/sup> by this system, although that will obviously play a role.<\/p>\n According to ESPN\u2019s system, Ryan Fitzpatrick of the Buffalo Bills was the best quarterback in the NFL in week one. Now everyone who knows me knows I am no fan of Tom Brady. While I begrudgingly admit he is a great QB, I do not put him in the same class as Peyton Manning and I think he is pretty freaking far from being the best QB of all time. That being said, any system that says that anyone other than Tom Brady was the best QB in week one is completely flawed.<\/p>\n The guy had a game for the ages. He threw for 517 yards and four TDs, including a 99-yard TD pass to scrappy little Wes Welker. It was the sixth best single game by yardage and only the third time ever that a QB threw for 500 yards and four TDs in a game. I hate the guy with every fiber of my being but he was undoubtedly the best QB in the NFL in week one. ESPN\u2019s Total QBR ranks him third! \u00a0And I feel so completely dirty for defending this whiny pretty boy.<\/p>\n Now that I\u2019ve deloused myself, let\u2019s examine the rest of ESPN\u2019s ratings shall we?<\/p>\n Aaron Rodgers was ranked 2nd<\/sup> by ESPN. Hey guys, they actually got one right!<\/p>\n Now, I\u2019m not going to pretend to completely understand this new system yet but ESPN has stressed what they call \u201cclutch plays\u201d and that plays are weighted based on how much they contributed to a win. Please then explain to me how Cam Newton, Drew Brees and Chad Henne were all ranked in the top 10 when they lost. If you lost, technically zero of your plays contributed to a win.<\/p>\n Michael Vick, who completed only 44% of his, passes ranked 11th<\/sup>. Tony Romo, who had almost identical statistics to Mark Sanchez and personally lost the game with a late fumble and a back breaking INT that led to the Jets game-winning FG, ranked 13th<\/sup> while Sanchez ranked 30th<\/sup>.<\/p>\n 30th<\/sup>? Out of 33 QBs? Behind Donovan McNabb who threw for less than 40 yards? Behind Tavaris Jackson and Colt McCoy who were both terrible? Behind Matt Ryan who had arguably the worst game of his career?<\/p>\n I think even the biggest Mark Sanchez hater alive can admit he was better on Sunday than all of those guys. If I can admit Brady was the best over the weekend, you can admit that Sanchez was better than a guy who threw for 36 yards.<\/p>\n Another big issue I have with these rankings (and Football Outsiders participation in developing them) is their refusal to allow for defensive adjustment. If you\u2019re going to create a \u201ctotal quarterback rating\u201d you have to take everything into account if you want to accurately rate the player\u2019s performance.<\/p>\n