ESPN article claims NFL execs still think Brady is top QB

203Pat · Jul 2, 2014

Tom Brady Tops ESPN's List Of QBs Ranked By Anonymous NFL Insiders | NESN.com

Tom Brady Tops ESPN’s List Of QBs Ranked By Anonymous NFL Insiders

ESPN.com has changed its mind — Tom Brady is a top-five quarterback after all.

Brady tied for No. 1 on ESPN’s list of starting quarterbacks ranked by anonymous NFL insiders. The New England Patriots quarterback tied with the Denver Broncos’ Peyton Manning, Green Bay Packers’ Aaron Rodgers and New Orleans Saints’ Drew Brees.

ESPN’s Mike Sando asked 26 anonymous NFL insiders (eight general managers, two former GMs, four pro personnel evaluators, seven coordinators, two head coaches, two position coaches and a top executive) to put each starting quarterback in a tier from one to five. Brady received 25 Tier 1 scores and one Tier 2 ranking — that pro personnel evaluator placed Manning as his lone Tier 1 QB.

“Brady did a lot of good things with limited resources, but I saw holes when they put the onus on him to carry it all, as you saw when Denver beat him,” the pro personnel evaluator said. “Brady has to have more of a running game at this stage. He cannot line up with five wides and win it as consistently as before. I still think Brady is a top-five quarterback, but I would not say he is the best right now.”

One offensive assistant ranked Brady as a Tier 1 quarterback because “he does it with the least every year.” Brady’s top targets last season were wide receivers Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola, Aaron Dobson and Kenbrell Thompkins and running back Shane Vereen.

ESPN.com stirred up controversy last month when it published an article by Pro Football Focus’ Sam Monson stating Brady no longer belongs in the Mount Rushmore of NFL starting quarterbacks.

ESPN’s latest piece puts Brady where he rightly belongs: at the top.

Kontradiction · Jul 2, 2014

He's still the best quarterback in the league. Manning wouldn't have been able to drag that team to the AFCCG last season and I highly doubt Brees would have either. Maybe Rodgers, but that's debatable as well.

BradyManny · Jul 2, 2014

Full quote from one of the assistant coaches:

One offensive assistant shared this sentiment with Sando, "Brady might be the best because he does it with the least every year, just about. To me, there is no falloff with that guy. If he played with what Rodgers and Peyton and Brees have played with, it would not even be close."

It's a relief to know he doesn't suck as bad as Sam Monson thinks he does.

Jackson 2 · Jul 2, 2014

BradyManny said:
Full quote from one of the assistant coaches:

It's a relief to know he doesn't suck as bad as Sam Monson thinks he does.

It's also a relief and gratifying to know that Sam Monson does suck as much, if not more, than we thought he did.

patfanken · Jul 2, 2014

What I found telling here is that only ONE guy out of 26 had Brady as a 2nd tier guy, yet THAT was the guy whose comments get highlighted.

Deus Irae · Jul 2, 2014

patfanken said:
What I found telling here is that only ONE guy out of 26 had Brady as a 2nd tier guy, yet THAT was the guy whose comments get highlighted.

You know what else was highlighted?

One offensive assistant shared this sentiment with Sando, "Brady might be the best because he does it with the least every year, just about. To me, there is no falloff with that guy. If he played with what Rodgers and Peyton and Brees have played with, it would not even be close."

This was in there, too:

"As soon as I said two, I was like, 'Really?' " the evaluator said. "Arm strength is such an issue at this point and the smart teams are going to neutralize him easier than others, but he is a one."

Manning received his only Tier 2 grade from a GM concerned that the QB's age had hampered his ability to avoid the rush.

and

One evaluator questioned whether Brees could hang with the other Tier 1 players when his team fell behind by 21 or 28 points. Since 2010, counting the playoffs, Brady is 2-1 and Manning is 1-3 when their teams fall behind by 21-28 points. Their QBR scores were exceptional in those situations (90.9 for Brady and 88.3 for Manning). Rodgers went 0-2 in those games, but played respectably (64.6 QBR). Brees, meanwhile, had an 0-5 record in these games and a 52.6 QBR.

The only one of the top 4 QBs who got off without any real negative written in the article was Rodgers

Deus Irae · Jul 2, 2014

What stood out to me was that they had Luck passing Rivers and Roethlisberger. That will be interesting to follow, as they may have jumped the gun a bit there.

Well, that and the ridiculous contortions they made to pump up Eli.

Brady_to_Moss · Jul 2, 2014

of course he is...still #1 or #2 in the league

Raymond · Jul 2, 2014

So wait. Brady tied for first place with the other 4 QB's we'd also put in the top five?

No respect.

RecoveringCowboy · Jul 2, 2014

Anyone wonder what the Patriots record last year would have been if the Broncos offence was grafted on it? 19-0?

Jackson 2 · Jul 2, 2014

RecoveringCowboy said:
Anyone wonder what the Patriots record last year would have been if the Broncos offence was grafted on it? 19-0?

Not a chance with our injury-depleted defense.

PATSYLICIOUS · Jul 3, 2014

I think I'd rather go into the season with everyone thinking he's the 8th best QB right now or whatever the other people were saying

supafly · Jul 3, 2014

PATSYLICIOUS said:
I think I'd rather go into the season with everyone thinking he's the 8th best QB right now or whatever the other people were saying

Not that it would have mattered in the least, but I think there have been enough whispers this offseason to keep that fire lit pretty well.

Boy, would it be nice to have gotten one more receiving target--but it should be improved from last season (IMO).

thenepatsrule · Jul 3, 2014

190-0 Baby!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (2014-2023)

Danger Zone · Jul 3, 2014

203Pat said:
"Brady did a lot of good things with limited resources, but I saw holes when they put the onus on him to carry it all, as you saw when Denver beat him,” the pro personnel evaluator said.

Let's go find this pro personnel "evaluator" and beat him black and -er I mean taunt his suspect lineage.. :montypythonmobwithpitchforks:

PatsFanSince74 · Jul 3, 2014

Why is this news?
Why do we care?

203Pat · Jul 3, 2014

PatsFanSince74 said:
Why is this news?
Why do we care?

Because it's the offseason. What else do we have to do?

Kontradiction · Jul 3, 2014

PatsFanSince74 said:
Why is this news?
Why do we care?

Correct. There are many happenings in the Patriots organization as well as within the NFL right now that we should be sinking our teeth into and talking in depth about.

dales804 · Jul 3, 2014

Jackson 2 said:
It's also a relief and gratifying to know that Sam Monson does suck as much, if not more, than we thought he did.

RecoveringCowboy · Jul 3, 2014

PatsFanSince74 said:
Why is this news?
Why do we care?

Because ESPN and others are on 24/7 and will report anything to fill time.

Has reporting every burp and slip of the tongue, benefited? I don't think so.

ESPN article claims NFL execs still think Brady is top QB

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