Monday, December 26, 2011

Comparing Matt Stafford to greatness

It was an honor to watch Drew Brees set the single-season passing record tonight. He is an amazing talent who has had an exceptional career.

But, along with Matt Stafford's stellar season, it makes me wonder where Stafford compares at this point of his career compared to the greats, like Brees.

Like usual when I get into one of these moods, I've decided to waste my time with countless research to try and prove a point. I want to compare Stafford's first 28 career games with Brees, Brett Favre, Peyton Manning, Dan Marino and Tom Brady. Again, this is ONLY comparing the first 28 games of their careers. We will see how this goes ... and if my point is proven -- that Stafford compares favorably to some of the top quarterbacks to ever play the game.

(Writers' note -- playoff games are determined by how many each player had at the time of their 28th career game)

Matt Stafford -- 643 of 1,077 (59.7%) 7,320 yards 55 TD 35 INT (0 playoff games)

Drew Brees -- 540 of 909 (59.4%) 5,613 yards 29 TD 31 INT (0 playoff games)

Brett Favre -- 514 of 822 (62.5%) 5,346 yards 31 TD 30 INT (0 playoff games)

Peyton Manning -- 574 of 971 (59.1%) 8,951 yards 48 TD 42 INT (0 playoff games)

Dan Marino -- 548 of 884 (61.9%) 7,453 yards 68 TD 25 INT (4 playoff games -- 1 Super Bowl appearance)

Tom Brady -- 565 of 880 (64.2%) 5,942 yards 42 TD 23 INT (3 playoff games -- 1 Super Bowl victory)

It's clear that out of these six names, Marino is in a league of his own in every statistical category (other than yards). The touchdown to interception ratio is unbelievable, along with his playoff success. Right behind him -- and actually more successful in the playoffs -- is Tom Brady.

But, can you argue that Stafford has been just as good as any of these other quarterbacks? Of course. Don't forget that Stafford joined a Lions team that was coming off the worst season in NFL history and had to overhaul the entire roster (only 10 current players were on the 2008 team).

Is Stafford going to have the career that Favre, Brees, Manning, Marino or Brady have had? We won't know for probably quite some time. But, at this point of Stafford's career, he has shown that he may become one of the best to ever play the quarterback position.

Oh, and for those still doubting, these numbers should end any question whether the Lions got the first pick in the 2009 draft right.

18 comments:

  1. Dan Marino's completion percentage is lower than Brett Favres was, do I don't think he was in a league of his own there. Otherwise, interesting stuff and a good read. - Skylar

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  2. How many of those guys had the luxury of throwing to the best receiver in the NFL. Calvin is the reason why Matt's numbers look better than they actually are. Don't get me wrong, he's a good QB, but lets not go overboard.

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  3. How many of those players joined a team that went 0-16 the year before, had to overhaul their entire roster and didn't have any type of running game to help balance the offense?

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  4. Your point? Stafford barely played his first 2 years. If he didn't get injured his first two years, and actually played on a bad team like Manning did, his numbers would be even worse. He got the benefit of sitting out, and playing on a better team. And he has no running game, that's why he passes a ton, and puts up big numbers. Come on, you're better than that.

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  5. Why not include Rodgers in the discussion?

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  6. So are they running the ball now? No, they're not. Is their offensive line any better? No, it's not.

    And what about last season, you don't think his numbers would actually be better? In his three games (although it wasn't a full three games), he threw six touchdowns and only one interception.

    What's going overboard? The facts are there. You probably still want Aaron Curry on the team.

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  7. And you honestly believe that no running game makes a quarterback's numbers better? Haha, give me a break.

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  8. What makes you think I want Aaron Curry? I like Stafford, and think he's probably a top 8 QB in the NFL. But for the love of God get off his jock. He has the 2nd most attempts in the NFL, and has the best WR in years. It's a great benefit when you can throw it up to Calvin, and have him come down with all those great catches. Learn something about sports, before you go off comparing Stafford to these all time great QB's of the past 10 years.

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  9. How many times has he just "thrown it up" to Calvin?

    Also, challenging my knowledge of sports? Tough talk coming from a guy named "Anonymous". He has the second most attempts this season, but is also completing 62% of his passes, has limited his INT (other than three games with a broken index finger) and even the "experts" are beginning to believe he may be right there with the top quarterbacks in the league.

    Oh yeah, did I mention he was only 23 years old? Peyton Manning was that age during his rookie season.

    Maybe it's you, "Anonymous", that needs to get a clue.

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  10. Then again, you think the lack of running game helps a quarterback because it allows him to throw the football more. That statement proves to me you are the one who lacks any knowledge on the subject.

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  11. Well if the Lions can't run the damn ball, are they going to keep running it, or throw it more? Of course a lack of running game, is going to force him to throw the ball more. Do you actually watch the games, or just look at the box scores? You seem really ignorant on football, stick to something you're more knowledgeable about.

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  12. I need to have a talk with Rob, and to tell him to stop re-tweeting idiots, that know nothing about the game of football.

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  13. If they can't run the football -- which they can't -- then it allows defense to put a minimum amount of defenders in the box and play the pass. This is why the offensive line struggles with pass blocking at times -- defensive lines can rush, without fear of a run. Now, when a team plays for the pass, it makes it more difficult to throw the football. Hmm, interesting eh?

    Then again, keep staying "Anonymous". Typical internet tough guy! Haha!

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  14. Except that you're wrong. Although the Lions suck at running the ball, they still run it around 20 times a game. So on 1st and 2nd down, defense are still going to have to play accordingly. And the Lions have done a great job of protecting the pass this year. They are only giving up a sack 5% of the time for each passing play.

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  15. Hey Anonymous, why not go to a Packers forum to spew your Packers fanboi opinion?

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  16. Okay, now I'm a Packers fan. Nice rebuttal

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  17. Anonymous- the point of the article is to compare Stafford at this point of his development to other great Qbs. No one is saying he is Brady or Brees, if we did this comparison with Harrington it would be a joke. The main point is the Lions have a very good Qb that could be a great one. He's young and if Mayhew continues to draft well and stock with complimentary Free Agents then the he could be a Hall of Famer one day. I can't wait to see what he does in the playoffs to see what he does when the stakes are higher and hopefully he can string a couple of these healthy seasons together.

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  18. get a life u fat fuckin ginger piece of shit attention whoring bastard

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