Colts’ Week 17 QB Evaluation: Don’t blame Flacco

Due to the nflFastR mission, Professional Soccer Focus and NFL NextGen Stats for the well timed sources of knowledge.

For these of you new to this, I’ll publish key QB stats every week judging how effectively the upcoming opponent QB has carried out. Sure, O-Line, receivers, and play-calling affect these numbers however they’re primarily QB measures. I’ll in all probability modify the charts all through the season. Commentary can be temporary however be at liberty to let me know within the feedback that stats aren’t all the pieces. (click on charts for bigger view)

Let me correctly set the stage. The New York Giants’ passing protection just isn’t good. Coming into week 17, they ranked thirtieth in defensive EPA per dropback and twenty ninth in opponent Go Success Fee. Something in need of dominating them by way of the air would have been a disappointment. Joe Flacco didn’t disappoint.

HOW WELL?

Three turnovers is clearly not good, however since two of them got here after the sport was principally over, they didn’t actually affect the end result that a lot. They did, nevertheless, affect EPA rather a lot. Even so, Flacco ended with a +0.21 EPA/d, which is considerably above the 2024 NFL common (+0.09).

What actually impressed me was his consistency, measured by his 57.5% Go Success Fee, which ranks within the 88th percentile this 12 months. This consistency is what has been lacking with Richardson as his season PSR of 36.7% ranks thirty first of beginning QBs. Whereas it isn’t flashy, merely finishing passes for first downs is the core of a powerful passing offense.

Wanting throughout the season, this sport was essentially the most sturdy within the 4 QB measures which might be extremely correlated with wins.

HOW FAR?

Flacco had an excellent mixture of depths on his throws and maintained a excessive completion price. This led to good yardage effectivity, which led to a variety of first downs.

His common depth of targets was really longer than AR’s within the earlier 2 weeks, as was his common depth of completions.

TO WHO?

He targeted primarily on Pierce and Pittman with Downs having a “down” day. I don’t care if you happen to hate puns, I wrote what I wrote.

This was not a heavy YAC day on a per catch foundation.

Have a look at that, large receivers with longer than common depth and better than common worth.

HOW ACCURATE?

Flacco’s accuracy in comparison with Richardson’s earlier 4 weeks is night time and day. Even underneath stress, Flacco was merely making his throws.

HOW FAST?

There have been solely 6 video games, the place the Colts’ QB removed the ball faster than the NFL common. Flacco was the QB in 5 of them.

TO WHERE?

He discovered success everywhere in the area, however the makes an attempt inside 10 yards is the place he excelled.

DASHBOARD

(Use the right-left arrows to toggle between stats for the week and the season).

arsr,
edp,
opd,
sg%,
oz%,
pr%,
ttt,
adot,
ay/c,
cmp%,
cpoe,
yac,
yacoe,
ypa,
scr%,
ta%,
sck%,
aa%,
aay,
ny/d,
1st%,
td%,
to%,
epa/d,
psr

The Colts ran a balanced offense with an ample run sport (14th edp, 18th arsr)
Flacco took a variety of snaps from shotgun, however not as many as with AR underneath heart (eleventh sg%).
The Giants gave Flacco a variety of man appears to be like (18th oz%).
He confronted a variety of stress although he removed the ball pretty rapidly, however that didn’t cease him from throwing the ball deep (tenth pr%, seventeenth ttt, 4th adot).
A few lengthy completions boosted his avg completion depth and the receivers offered first rate YAC (sixth ay/c, twelfth yacoe). Mix that with an above common completion price and also you get the eighth finest yards per try of the week.
Flacco doesn’t abandon a variety of go makes an attempt and this week was no exception and that saved his general yardage effectivity excessive (twenty third aa%, eighth ny/d).
His essential energy was delivering constant profitable performs (ninth PSR), which resulted in a variety of first downs (eighth 1st%) and saved drives transferring into constant scoring place.
His TD price was OK, however the turnovers had been a giant drag on his general EPA effectivity (18th td%, 2nd to%, seventeenth EPA/d).

It’s essential beat up on unhealthy defenses and Flacco did that. He actually wasn’t good and you can argue that if not for the turnovers, perhaps we win this sport . . . perhaps. However the general level is that he put the Colts ready to win and that’s what you want a QB to do.