Ranking the NFL's 32 Quarterbacks

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After watching the launch of ESPN's new system for rating quarterbacks last night, and seeing how it compares to the ancient QB Rating system, it really got me thinking.......Gold jacket? Green jacket? Who gives a shit?

But I'm never one to trust my first instinct, so then I decided to make my own list ranking all of the NFL's quarterbacks. So I will take the projected starter of each and every team heading into 2011 (there really isn't much competition within teams at the QB position this year. Denver? One-sided Neckbeard. Washington? Starter is bad, but not Rex Grossman bad. Seattle? Probably most legit, but they already announced Tarvaris Jackson as the starter. Carolina? Probably the only unknown heading into Week 1, but there's no need to include Derek Anderson in this list just to rank him last.). To be clear, this list is my projection of how the QB's will fare THIS SEASON.

And then, I will determine which rating system is best, ESPN's brand spankin' new Total Quarterback Rating or the now-39-year-old QB Rating system (of all passers with atleast 20 career passing attempts, try and guess who has the highest QB Rating of all time - answer in the notes below), by comparing them to my personal rankings.

Yes, I realize this doesn't make logistical sense (should be ranking the QB's according to last year's play). No, I don't care (that's how I roll).

Find 2010's Total Quarterback Ratings here.
Find 2010's old QB Ratings here.

On to the list...

1. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers
2. Tom Brady, New England Patriots
3. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints
4. Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers
5. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts
6. Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers
7. Matt Schaub, Houston Texans
8. Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons
9. Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions
10. Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys
11. Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens
12. Donovan McNabb, Minnesota Vikings
13. Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles
14. Matt Cassel, Kansas City Chiefs
15. Sam Bradford, St. Louis Rams
16. Ryan Fitzpatrick, Buffalo Bills
17. Kyle Orton, Denver Broncos
18. Eli Manning, New York Giants
19. Josh Freeman, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
20. Mark Sanchez, New York Jets
21. Kevin Kolb, Arizona Cardinals
22. Jason Campbell, Oakland Raiders
23. David Garrard, Jacksonville Jaguars
24. Jay Cutler, Chicago Bears
25. Colt McCoy, Cleveland Browns
26. Carson Palmer, Cincinnati Bengals
27. Chad Henne, Miami Dolphins
28. Alex Smith, San Francisco 49ers
29. Matt Hasselbeck, Tennessee Titans
30. Cam Newton, Carolina Panthas
31. Tarvaris Jackson, Seattle Seahawks
32. John Beck, Washington Redskins

Notes:

*The top 6 QB's are in a division of their own. That's a huge bitch between 6 and 7.

*Matt Schaub over Matt Ryan null and voids the Matty Ice nickname for the 2011 season.

*Obviously, I think Matthew Stafford is the QB who takes "the leap" this season.

*I've got McNabb outperforming Vick this season. I'm cool with you not understanding right now (and am fully prepared to eat crow by season's end). Although, I hope my hatred for Vick has been made painfully obvious by now.

*My fall from grace prediction goes to Eli Manning. Just a hunch.

*My favorite bumpkin QB is Ryan Fitzpatrick, who sneaks his way into the top half of the list.

*My fluke of 2010 goes to Josh Freeman. I've counted him out many times before, and I will continue to do so. Nice fro though.

*The NFL's top backup, Detroit's Shaun Hill, would rank 14th on my list. Seriously.

*List of QB's who could be affected from last season's Playoffs: Cutler, Ryan, Roethlisberger (in that order).
*List of QB's who could be affected by offseason happenings: Garrard, Palmer, Orton (in that order).
*The answer to the QB with the highest NFL rating of all time (over 20 attempts) IS....Antwaan Randle El (career: 22-27, 323 yards, 6 TD's, 0 INT's, QB Rating of 156.1).

Old QB Rating vs. Total QB Rating

The unscientific, illogical, irrational results are in AND.....

Old QB Rating = Difference of 133 / 25 QB's = 5.32
Total QB Rating = Difference of 130 / 27 QB's = 4.81

Winner - Total QB Rating

Lets go eat a snack,
His dirkness

NFL Parity and Power Rankings

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It's the return (the turn, turn). The return (turn, turn). It's the return. It's. The. Return. You're welcome OutKast fans. Thankfully, the aspect that the NFL strives to promote so greatly has returned to the league for the 2010 season: Parity.

After watching the Patriots and Colts dominate the AFC for the last ten years, and lasting through the undefeated stints of the Saints (13-0) and Colts (14-0) in 2009, the 2010 NFL season is void of any true favorite (Yes, the Patriots, Colts, and Saints are still around, but not in the same dominating ways of the past). This is when the NFL thrives. It's a league that depends on the names on the front of the jersey. And it's a league that's designed to give every team a chance at the Super Bowl. We remember the 1999 Rams as fondly as the 49ers/Cowboys/Patriots dynasties.

Despite promoting parity, there has been a certain disparity in the league the last ten years. It seems nobody was ready to handle the salary cap upon its inception in the mid 90's. Teams didn't understand how to build around the cap, which ensured that great teams didn't last more than a handful of years. Then the Patriots and Colts figured things out, got star QB's, and broke the NFL mold by contending for championships every year. Since then, teams have slowly caught up (although, still not all the way), and their franchise QB's have grown older. Suddenly new quarterbacks are mentioned in the same breath (Brees, Rivers, Rodgers, Thigpen - still nobody mentions Ben Roth Biglisberger).

This will inevitably lead to an exciting finish to the season with all the close division races, and a playoffs that's wide open to all 12 teams (well, 11, minus the NFC West winner). So when all you young'in's are ordering rounds of shots this weekend, make sure you toast to parity, the most underrated aspect in all of sports, and the difference between a good NFL season and a great NFL season (there are no bad NFL seasons, although 2009 was as close as it gets).

Previous NFL Power Rankings:

• Week 3
• Week 7

Week 13 NFL Power Rankings:

1. Atlanta Falcons
2. Pittsburgh Steelers
3. New Orleans Saints
4. New York Jets
5. New England Patriots
6. Philadelphia Eagles
7. Green Bay Packers
8. Baltimore Ravens
9. San Diego Chargers
10. Chicago Bears
11. New York Giants
12. Kansas City Chiefs
13. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
14. Indianapolis Colts
15. Miami Dolphins
16. Jacksonville Jaguars
17. Cleveland Browns
18. Oakland Raiders
19. Washington Redskins
20. St. Louis Rams
21. Houston Texans
22. Buffalo Bills
23. Tennessee Titans
24. Minnesota Vikings
25. Seattle Seabags
26. Detroit Lions
27. Dallas Cowboys
28. San Francisco 49ers
29. Denver Broncos
30. Arizona Cardinals
31. Cincinnati Bengals
32. Carolina Panthas

Power Ranking Statistical Analysis:

Biggest Risers (compared to my Week 7 Rankings):
1. San Diego Chargers +14
2. Cleveland Browns +12
2. Oakland Raiders +12
4. Jacksonville Jaguars +11
5. Buffalo Bills +10
5. Chicago Bears +10

Biggest Fallers:
1. Tennessee Titans -14
2. Cincinnati Bengals -12
3. Minnesota Vikings -10
4. Seattle Seahawks -8
5. Indianapolis Colts -7

Most Overrated Teams (compared against ESPN's Power Rankings):
1. Baltimore Ravens -4
2. Tennessee Titans -4
3. Houston Texans -4

Most Underrated Teams:
1. Cleveland Browns +7
2. Detroit Lions +5
2. Buffalo Bills +5

H'dirkness

NCAA Tournament Thoughts

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The brackets have just been released and I'm debating whether my favorite sports time of the year are the days between Selection Sunday and the first game tip-off, or the actual first four days of the Tournament. I love me some brackets. They get me feeling like this....

I plan on doing many entries over the next week, so for now I'm just going to throw down some early thoughts and discoveries on what we got here:

~I'll start by stating for the record just how against the idea of Tournament expansion I am. I think its a terrible, terrible, terrible, turrrrrible idea. You're altering the most perfect thing in sports if you do.

~All I hear about is how tough a job the selection committee, but I think they gave a lame effort, especially concerning the 1-2 seed matchups. Matchups should go 1-8, 2-7, 3-6, 4-5 in terms of overall rankings. Yet, somehow, the two best 2 seeds (West Virginia and Ohio St.) got matched up against the top two overall seeds (Kansas and Kentucky.) The chairman even admitted that West VA was the top rated 2 seed in the tournament, yet drew the second overall team in Kentucky. Matchups should have been as follows: KU-Villanova, Kentucky-Kansas St, Duke-Villanova, Syracuse-Ohio St. I'm available and would love a seat on the committee by the way...

~I don't understand why the committee removed the use of teams' last 10 games as a part of the evaluation process. Opposed to College Football, where I believe the season should be judged as a whole, College Basketball is all about the Tournament, and the teams playing the best right now should be selected.

~My rank of the toughest regions overall: 1. Midwest, 2. East, 3. West, 4. South

~I think Kentucky got stuck with the toughest path to the Final Four, when examining possible Texas-Wisconsin-West Virginia path. They have to hope Texas doesn't regain their swagger (or find where Dexter Pittman is hiding). They will be forced to play fundamentally sound against Wisconsin, led by the most underrated coach in the country, Bo Ryan. West Virginia comes next, and lets just say that last night I imagined my National Championship matchup to be Kentucky-West Virginia. I hope that showdown occurs. It reminds me of the Michigan St-Iowa St Elite Eight game from 2000, where the two best teams may have met before the Final Four (Shout-outs to Mateen Cleaves and Marcus Fizer).

~~No idea how Duke got a higher seed than Syracuse with more losses in a way worse conference. Then they are awarded with the easiest region? Despite that, I will not be picking Duke to go far.

~Greg Anthony embarrassed himself on national television by picking all 1 and 2 seeds to make the Elite Eight right after they were announced on CBS. Greg, you realize a robot could make those picks right? Anyone sharing the same picks as Greg: Please don't talk to me the next four days. That includes you Digger.

~4 of the 5 Chalk Monsters on ESPN picked Kansas to win it all. Scary. If they can overcome the high expectations by, lets say, atleast getting to the Final Four, then it is inarguably time to separate KU's questionably soft stigma into Roy Williams-era Jayhawks and Bill Self-era Jayhawks.

~Beware of the upsets that are being overpicked, especially the ones called out on the Selection Show. Remember, those teams are watching the show, which can provide an edge in motivation throughout the week.

More coming this week including a breakdown of KU's path to the Final Four, first round upsets that I like, and possible second round matchups that have me excited.

Mike Leach/Mark Mangino Situations

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POWER!


I don't normally like to talk about off the field situations in sports, because I believe ESPN over analyzes them to death, but I had some thoughts to share on the Mike Leach/Mark Mangino troubles currently unfolding.

I believe this is the start to what will be a continuing trend in college sports, the first of many to come. This disturbs me. It feels like a power struggle between players and coaches. The Mark Mangino situation gave student athletes everywhere the feeling that they have the power to produce action on their coach. We've already had a second instance only a few weeks later now with Mike Leach getting suspended by Texas Tech. These are two high profile coaches that have now been accused of wrongdoing by players and will face severe consequences because of it.

I can't really remember another coach being fired by how he is treating his kids before this. All the power to this point has been with the coaches. Now is it a bad thing that the players now have something of a voice in the matter? Yes and no. I do believe it's unfair for them not to have any say, but its also putting power into kids' hands. Kids (along with their parents) are looking out mostly for themselves. There are reasons this is not the typical practice when delegating power. Kids are more likely to abuse that power to what they think will help their situation. My main concern is the question of what is stopping a kid, or group of kids, to expand on a minor incident to make a coach that isn't giving them any playing time look bad? And how many kids that aren't playing would agree with the coach's decision of who is playing? There are too many players, and not enough PT to keep everyone satisfied.

Now I'm not saying that I think Mangino or Leach is in the right or the wrong. I don't know exactly what happened in either situation, nor do I in any locker room or practice field across the country, which makes it nearly impossible to take a side on the issue. What I am saying is that the student athletes now have the power to take advantage of an overreacting, overprotective, hypersensitive society (which stems from the media). Without the tabloids of ESPN being on 24/7 "News" coverage, neither of these instances occur.

This brings us back to the Mike Leach situation. The kid that made the accusations is Adam James, son of ESPN/ABC game commentator, Craig James. This brings us full circle to the issue at hand, power. Does any of this occur if Craig James doesn't have a voice (his job) and the power that comes with it (speaking to the nation without debate)? I say no. Texas Tech does not want to go head-to-head with the most powerful sports network over this situation. They wouldn't stand a chance, leaving them little choice and forcing their hand into suspending Leach.

This makes it sound like Craig James is now committing an abuse of power in the situation, which I would tentatively agree with (with what we know). So, the real question may be: Can we trust anybody with power? Will power always lead to corruption? I'd like to think not, but see little evidence to support my hope.

Power? None for me, thanks.

2009 Big XII Championship: Nebraska-Texas Fallout

I have let the emotions wear down a bit so that this wouldn't be an angry passage of writing, but instead one of pride, which is a more evolved emotion. Believe me, I am still angry though. I feel there were injustices that didn't entirely lead to the game's outcome, but they were still present and they affected the game in Texas' favor. The worst part, is that I feel there are still more to come (cough cough heisman). The game was a heartbreaker of epic proportions. I'm a big Sports Guy reader from ESPN, and I'm not sure where this game ranks in his levels of losing, but I would put it pretty high up on my list. There were three HUGE letdowns just on the final drive with the kick out of bounds (eerily similar to a Chiefs playoff-squashing loss to the Raiders), the horse collar (called too much), and the clock running out (thanks technology!). And i didn't even include the actual field goal (or the Pass Interferences from earlier in the 2nd half). Ouch. However, I was incredibly proud of the performance that Nebraska put on the field. They may not have been victorious, but nobody can deny they are once again relevant on the national stage, which is underrated in terms of importance. I'll put it this way, I wore Nebraska gear all day Sunday and plan to continue for the rest of this week. I believe they were the tougher team on Saturday, especially in the 4th quarter, proved by Gomes just stealing the ball away from a Texas receiver that set up Nebraska's last field goal. And I believe Alabama to be tougher than us, not to mention a whole lot more talented. Good luck Texas!

Colt McCoy- His heisman campaign is a joke. It is based off preconceived notions that he hasn't done anything to lose the heisman (and i refuse to capitalize the word heisman). He had a bad start to the year, mediocre middle, good ending followed by falling flat on his face in the biggest game. Make no mistake, Texas won this game in spite of him, not because of him. Who do I blame for this? None other than Kirk Herbstreit. I don't want to see this guy leading heisman campaigns anymore. He announces the primetime game every week (usually the best and most important) and he gets on their rambling about how whoever the best team's quarterback leads his team and blah blah blah from the very first week of the season. He has too much power with being heard so much. The heisman trophy should be an award that is played out in front of you and then you select the winner at the end. It's like analysists these days aren't smart enough to form their own complete thoughts, so they need a preseason cookie-cutter like mold to sound educated, to the point where you just fill in the best team and that team's quarterback to the prewritten story of the season. This is more of a big picture hatred towards the entire sports media's NOW NOW NOW attitude, but they could still choose to bring their own opinions into play once in a while. And Kirk Herbstreit had the gall to say that McCoy was having his heisman moment in the 4th quarter of Saturday's game!!! Herbstreit lame, heisman lamer.

Ndamukong Suh- 12 tackles. 7 tackles for loss. 4 and 1/2 sacks. Wait, what's that? You were looking for a possible heisman candidate to step up in the biggest game of the year? If Suh does not get an invitation to the heisman Ceremony (he did), i personally refuse to ever watch or support it again (with the small exception of a Nebraska player going back, which I would have to watch then). People are calling Suh the best defensive lineman in the last 15 years, not in a sense for professional potential, but actual results on the field in college! Combine that with the fact that nobody stands out very highly this year in the crop of quarterbacks or running backs, and the best I am looking for is just an invitation?? Does anyone see anything wrong here? Wasn't this one of the most prestigious awards of all time, up there with the Stanley Cup for coolest trophy of all time?? Why is there nobody on TV screaming about this to help get this fixed? It's very fixable, once we get Herbstreit and fools off TV ramming their cream of the crop, pretty boy, elitist team quarterbacks down our throat! Sorry, it had to be said. The point being, if Suh doesn't show up on your ballot, you don't know football. Period. Exclamation point!

This may have gotten more angry than I had initially intended, but I hope that only drives home my point of how passionate I am about this. Too much conformity in thought is accepted in Sports Journalism and i want to be part of the revolution that stands up against it. Sports are a beautiful thing because of how anything can happen, which is because the variable of human performance is involved. This is why we watch. And yet, we have everybody putting out the exact same thoughts, predictions, and insights 24 hours a day on ESPN. I would like to see people representing all forms of thought- a variety of ages, races, and social classes- because craziness should be represented (hello Beano Cook!); it happens all the time in sports, things that NOBODY SAW COMING, and that's what makes them beautiful.

I got a little off track, so lets bring things back towards the game from Saturday. I believe Bo Pelini has taken enormous strides in his two years under the helm for Nebraska. They are sitting pretty under him, and I believe will win a National Championship at some point in his tenure at Nebraska. It's ridiculous to think that his defense has gone from finishing 117th overall (out of 119 teams) in 2007 to what could be the best defense in the country this year. Not Florida. Texas maybe. We'll see how Alabama fares against Texas' offense. And they all have way better offenses to help control games. Another big plus is that Nebraska might have found a way to kill the spread that was taking over the Big XII, dominating the Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas offenses, with only Kansas finding some success. Football was at its best before the spread, before having to score on every drive, and before defenses became inconsequential. Strategies go in waves like fads, with so many coaches out to create new ones and defeat the old ones at all times. I think we may see the spread die down a lot in the next few years, which is one of many reasons that I feel personally thankful for the 2009 Nebraska team- a defensive team living in a defenseless world.

Roll Tide,
His Dirkness