Warner: Successful NFL QBs make plays 'inside the pocket'

[StickierBuns]

Interesting insight here from Warner. Totally agree. The vast majority of successful NFL QBs make plays 'inside the pocket'. Vision and accuracy are vital. Now does today's game for QBs also need mobility? Absolutely. But only as a way to get first downs/positive yards or scramble to pass down the field when the rush comes. 

https://www.yardbarker.com/nfl/articles/...3_40717465

[medaille]

I think it’s all about being smart. Knowing what the defense is trying to do. Knowing where their weaknesses are and how to exploit it within the system you are given. I absolutely think that some hyper-athletic but less intelligent QBs can break a lot of defenses for a while, but athleticism doesn’t last as long as intelligence, so their career will be shorter. I think the very best QBs, make the game look boring at times because they make the right choices earlier in the play, so they don’t need the heroics at the end, but then they are also able to will their team to victory if need be.

I think where young guys get in trouble is that they flee too early into an unknown situation and get hit and then get injured. Guys who play hero ball but throw a pick. The common denominator is they don’t understand the defense well enough. If you run to a soft spot, get a first down and out of bounds before getting creamed. Great. Extending the play, and throwing to a wide open guy that just took an extra second to get open. Awesome. Throwing into triple coverage, not so much. Getting blown up and spending the next 6 games hobbling around, not so great.

[Zanary]

The "mobile QB" obsession has been out of control since Vick and maybe earlier, but like Warner says...the most important plays happen in the pocket. This is why I feel like our line, particularly our IOL, has failed our QBs for over a decade: if a play doesn't have at least a couple of seconds to develop, the gains will be minimal and the defense is in your backfield all game long.

We destroyed Ponder, who actually played with some cockiness early on. It was doubly frustrating to watch our arch nemesis "Erin" get called heroic when he regularly had 5-6 seconds to survey the field, maybe learn to read, write, play with LEGOs...then pass the ball. Compare that to a recent QB of ours that kept producing despite being the most, or among the most, battered QBs in the game.

We have great, young OTs. We need that level of play across the line if we want to really compete for championships...because KC, Philly, and other regular playoff teams typically have solid lines.

[StickierBuns]

McCarthy isn't afraid to throw into tight windows in the middle of the field, he's actually very good at it. He looks to throw first, he isn't looking to run at the slightest pressure. And when he does scramble or roll out, he's very accurate throwing. He's got the aptitude, hopefully this potential can be realized and he'll be that 'inside the pocket' guy that has success as a thrower.

[purplefaithful]

I agree with Warner re: in the pocket play. It all starts there.

That said, it's the off-script stuff that can help propel someone to Elite.

Rogers, Mahomes, Lamar are at their most dangerous outside that pocket.

[JimmyinSD]

I think the notion that there are only 2 types of QBs is mis-leading. All you ever hear about is mobile vs pocket, run first, more athlete than QB vs statue is what many seem to think when this subject comes up , but IMO that is grossly overlooking what a the best QBs in the game, and those are the guys that manipulate the pocket by being able to move around in it and keep the defense guessing on their rush lanes and moves. Brady was never much of runner, but what made him so good was his ability to drift, slide, step up to avoid pressures and give his OL a little help and himself a few more ticks... see the same from Mahomes and Rogers, although they have been known to take play that are there with their feet, but they typically are using those legs to buy time and set up a pass, often still in the pocket area. I think Cousins needed more of this and would have been deadly if he had ever learned to move around and help his OL. Hopefully JJM has that ability for us.

[StickierBuns]

I think the notion that there are only 2 types of QBs is mis-leading.  All you ever hear about is mobile vs pocket,  run first, more athlete than QB vs statue is what many seem to think when this subject comes up ,  but IMO that is grossly overlooking what a the best QBs in the game,  and those are the guys that manipulate the pocket by being able to move around in it and keep the defense guessing on their rush lanes and moves.  Brady was never much of runner,  but what made him so good was his ability to drift, slide, step up to avoid pressures and give his OL a little help and himself a few more ticks... see the same from Mahomes and Rogers,  although they have been known to take play that are there with their feet, but they typically are using those legs to buy time and set up a pass, often still in the pocket area.  I think Cousins needed more of this and would have been deadly if he had ever learned to move around and help his OL.  Hopefully JJM has that ability for us.

JMO, but what made Brady good was working in exactly the same offense his whole career and having a great pass blocking offensive line. He 'avoided' pressure because he rarely had to deal with it and when he did, he just had to slide a step over and he was fine. Nobody has had a cleaner pocket in modern NFL history than Tom Brady. His mobility was equal to a wet tree stump. Mahomes and Rodgers have a ton more mobility than Tom Brady.

[MaroonBells]

JMO, but what made Brady good was working in exactly the same offense his whole career and having a great pass blocking offensive line. He 'avoided' pressure because he rarely had to deal with it and when he did, he just had to slide a step over and he was fine. Nobody has had a cleaner pocket in modern NFL history than Tom Brady. His mobility was equal to a wet tree stump. Mahomes and Rodgers have a ton more mobility than Tom Brady.

I agree that continuity over a very long period is what made him so special. Been pounding on that drum for decades. 

But I tend to agree with Jimmy that good QBs don't necessarily have to be especially elusive if they have that 6th sense that allows them to "feel" pressure and avoid it without focusing on it. I think that's a talent that all truly great QBs have had. 

On a related note, I'm curious to see if our IOL performs better this year (at least statistically) with a much more mobile QB behind them. It's probably a wash. While I don't expect either Darnold or McCarthy to have Cousins' uncanny ability to stand strong in the pocket and deliver a strike with inside pass rushers in his face, I do expect them to escape those situations better than Kirk did.

[medaille]

Smart QBs take less hits from whatever OLine is in front of them, because they get the ball out quick and punish the defense for committing too many guys to pressure. They make their OLine look better, and they force the defense into sending less guys.

[JimmyinSD]

JMO, but what made Brady good was working in exactly the same offense his whole career and having a great pass blocking offensive line. He 'avoided' pressure because he rarely had to deal with it and when he did, he just had to slide a step over and he was fine. Nobody has had a cleaner pocket in modern NFL history than Tom Brady. His mobility was equal to a wet tree stump. Mahomes and Rodgers have a ton more mobility than Tom Brady.

Great QBs make their OLs look better than they are also, teams were scared to blitz Brady ( and the other greats) because they would recognize it, and make them pay more often than not.