Drew Bledsoe HOF

[Deus Irae]

Bledsoe is a HOF-level player, but he's not a 'lock' sort like a Brady or P. Manning. He and Favre were among the last of the old-style gunslinging QBs, and Bledsoe suffers from the comparison. Whether he gets in or not, only time will tell. Even though he got to the SB as a starter, he didn't win it, and that'll make a difference to the voters.

 

[Brady6]

I know this is probably the minority opinion but I think he will get in someday. I really do. His numbers are comparable with many of his peers in the era that are already in the HOF. As we all know he helped turn a franchise around from a laughingstock to respectability.

He doesn't have the playoff resume that Brady has but he still rescued the Pats in the 2001 AFC Championship game when Tom got hurt. Also might have a SB ring as a starter had his coach's mind not been elsewhere (and I will never forgive Parcells for that fiasco leading up to the game and leading to his exit)

Bledsoe isn't a first ballot HOFer but he will get in IMO.

I give him the nod for suffering the best injury in NFL history; the one that put Tom Brady on the field..

 

[IcyPatriot]

Dan Fouts HOF player vs Drew Bledsoe

Dan Fouts (181 games) & Drew Bledsoe (194 games):

Completions: 3297 (Fouts) and 3839 (Bledsoe)

Attempts: 5604 (Fouts) and 6717 (Bledsoe)

% Completed: 58.83% (Fouts) and 57.2% (Bledsoe)

Yards: 43,040 (Fouts) and 44,611 (Bledsoe)

Pro Bowls Fouts 6 - Bledsoe 4

TD passes: 254 (Fouts) and 251 (Bledsoe)

Interceptions: 242 (Fouts) and 206 (Bledsoe)

Drew Bledsoe averaged 34.6 passes per game in his career, the highest average for any player in NFL history. Next-highest (minimum: 100 games): Dan Marino (34.5), Brett Favre (34.1).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drew_BledsoeWhile

Bledsoe's has thrown for a high number of yards and attempts, a frequent criticism is that they are based on volume (attempts, completions, yards) rather than efficiency (passer rating, TD-to-INT ratio, yards per attempt) proving only that he has thrown a great number of times, not that he has thrown well.[22] According to Don Banks of Sports Illustrated, Bledsoe's large career totals "reveal more about his longevity than about his excellence".[23]

Bledsoe ranks fifth all-time in completions (3,839),
seventh in passing yards (44,611),
and 13th in touchdown passes (251)

. Bledsoe's career (57.2) completion percentage is lower than all recent Hall of Fame quarterbacks with the exception of John Elway.

Bledsoe's NFL career passer rating of (77.1) surpasses nine Hall of Fame Quarterbacks.
Bledsoe's 37 regular season 300-yard passing games ranks 9th in league history.
He also ranks 6th (with 6) in most career regular season 400-yard passing games by an NFL quarterback.
He was selected to the Pro Bowl four times (in 1994, 1996, 1997, 2002).
Bledsoe was eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2011.

 

[sb1]

Dan Fouts HOF player vs Drew Bledsoe

Dan Fouts (181 games) & Drew Bledsoe (194 games):

Completions: 3297 (Fouts) and 3839 (Bledsoe)

Attempts: 5604 (Fouts) and 6717 (Bledsoe)

% Completed: 58.83% (Fouts) and 57.2% (Bledsoe)

Yards: 43,040 (Fouts) and 44,611 (Bledsoe)

Pro Bowls Fouts 6 - Bledsoe 4

TD passes: 254 (Fouts) and 251 (Bledsoe)

Interceptions: 242 (Fouts) and 206 (Bledsoe)

Yup. His numbers (other than obviously rings) also look good against HOFer Terry Bradshaw.

Taken in a vacuum, Drew's numbers aren't all that compared to today. But I just can't use his numbers against his candidacy that way. He's not going to compare statistically to anyone today because the NFL has changed, even from Brady's early years. Compare his numbers to Drew's HOF peers - as that article said - he compares favorably.

He also retired fairly young (35?). His numbers would no doubt be better if he hung around for a bit longer.

One argument used against him is his record as a starter. With Drew as a starter his teams didn't have a great record, I can't remember exactly what it was but it was pretty close to .500... but he did join two gawd awful teams going into the season (93 Pats), 2002 Bills and he had to work with a hideous 2000 Pats team where he was the only offensive weapon they had... it's kind of unfair to expect Drew to turn those teams into 11 or 12 game winners overnight.

How would Bledsoe have done in his later years if Parcells didn't steal Curtis Martin in his prime from the team? We'll never know. How about the fact he had more than one coach and a bunch of OC's? I don't think those things should be held against him either.

I'm on the fence on whether he SHOULD get in, but I think there's an argument to be made that he will.

 

[Nunchucks]

Drew is not a HoF QB. I loved him while he was here, he was awesome, but he is just a notch below HoF caliber.

 

[Ring 6]

Yup.

Taken in a vacuum, Drew's numbers aren't all that for a HOF candidate. But I just can't use his numbers against his candidacy that way. He's not going to compare statistically to anyone today because the NFL has changed, even from Brady's early years. Compare his numbers to Drew's HOF peers - as that article said - he compares favorably.

You can't make the argument that the game has changed since 5 years ago while comparing his numbers to QBs from the 60s and 70s.

He also retired fairly young (35?). His numbers would no doubt be better if he hung around for a bit longer.

He retired because he couldn't get a job. His numbers would be the same if he stuck around and held a clipboard. No one wanted him after he failed in Dallas.

With Drew as a starter his teams didn't have a great record, I can't remember exactly what it was but it was pretty close to .500... but he did join two gawd awful teams going into the season (93 Pats), 2002 Bills and he had to work with a hideous 2000 Pats team where he was the only offensive weapon they had... it's kind of unfair to expect Drew to turn those teams into 11 game winners overnight.

Brady did.
You need to look at the list of HOF QBs and look at the teams they were drafted by. A large majority were drafted onto pathetic teams and were the reason they became great. (Montana, Bradshaw, Aikman, Brady, Griese, Kelly, Warner are a few examples off the top of my head)
Not to mention if you have to make excuses in a HOF argument, you have no argument.

How would Bledsoe have done in his later years if Parcells didn't steal Curtis Martin in his prime from the team? We'll never know. How about the fact he had more than one coach and a bunch of OC's? I don't think those things should be held against him either.

He put together his career. You don't make the HOF based on the argument you would have done better if you were luckier.

I'm on the fence on whether he SHOULD get in, but I think there's an argument to be made that he will.

He does not deserve to get in to the HOF, and it isn't even close. There is zero chance he will.

 

[Oswlek]

It was a forty yard drive, Huard probably could have done that. Bishop was cut in preseason. Bledsoe was 10-21 for 102 yards and that one TD in that game. Career playoffs he was less than 52% completion with twice as many INTs to TDs.

With a dropped pick six put right between an open LB's numbers and a falling hook shot.

I read somewhere that after the team went through the film, they graded Drew as having made a mental or physical error on more than half his throws.

A great initial drive and one of the best rainbows to Brown anyone ever tossed, but other than that he was pretty poor. No chance he makes the hall, nor should he.

 

[Ring 6]

Dan Fouts HOF player vs Drew Bledsoe

Dan Fouts (181 games) & Drew Bledsoe (194 games):

Completions: 3297 (Fouts) and 3839 (Bledsoe)

Attempts: 5604 (Fouts) and 6717 (Bledsoe)

% Completed: 58.83% (Fouts) and 57.2% (Bledsoe)

Yards: 43,040 (Fouts) and 44,611 (Bledsoe)

Pro Bowls Fouts 6 - Bledsoe 4

TD passes: 254 (Fouts) and 251 (Bledsoe)

Interceptions: 242 (Fouts) and 206 (Bledsoe)

Dan Fouts numbers were among the top few in his era, on a consistent basis. Drew Bledsoe's were a bit above average.
You cannot compare 1980 to 1998. The game and the rules were entirely different.

 

[patsinthesnow]

It's been reiterated plenty, but Bledsoe is in the very good category.

IMO, Warner deserves it way more than Drew. Three SB appearances, 1 MVP, 1 ring, and led the Cardinals to the superbowl.

 

[Ring 6]

Bledsoe is a HOF-level player, but he's not a 'lock' sort like a Brady or P. Manning. He and Favre were among the last of the old-style gunslinging QBs, and Bledsoe suffers from the comparison. Whether he gets in or not, only time will tell. Even though he got to the SB as a starter, he didn't win it, and that'll make a difference to the voters.

Then Vinny Testaverde, Dave Kreig, Kerry Collins and all the other compilers belong too.
You don't make the HOF by doing something a lot but by doing it well.

 

[PatsDeb]

He won't make it into the NFL HOF. A very good, but not great, QB in the NFL that helped put the Pats back on the map, and for that I will be forever grateful to him, but his stats speak more to his longevity in the league rather than greatness as a QB.

 

[sb1]

You can't make the argument that the game has changed since 5 years ago while comparing his numbers to QBs from the 60s and 70s.

The game in the 90's was a lot closer to the game in the 70's than the game today. It's a passing league now, with favorable rules for offense, and there's a good reason every passing record is being obliterated. Nobody touched Marino's passing record for years and then the likes of Matthew Stafford are beating that benchmark. Nuff said.

He retired because he couldn't get a job. His numbers would be the same if he stuck around and held a clipboard. No one wanted him after he failed in Dallas.

Actually he retired because he had enough. His quotes about his "favorite time of the year" were very telling. And the Jaguars were interested and he said no. IIRC he also left the Bills because of his salary, not because the Bills didn't want to keep him.

Brady did.

And that right there is the fundamental problem with the argument to keep him out. Bledsoe is being compared to a benchmark set by the likes of Brady and Manning, two of the best of all time, two guys who are locks for the HOF. That's an awfully high bar to set for induction especially since there are players already in who are several notches below those two.

You need to look at the list of HOF QBs and look at the teams they were drafted by. A large majority were drafted onto pathetic teams and were the reason they became great. (Montana, Bradshaw, Aikman, Brady, Griese, Kelly, Warner are a few examples off the top of my head)

The 1994 Pats were good and the 1996 Pats were the AFC Champs. So it's not like Bledsoe had no impact on them.

Not to mention if you have to make excuses in a HOF argument, you have no argument.

Fair enough, but I'd say there are guys already in the HOF who we could have this same discussion.

He does not deserve to get in to the HOF, and it isn't even close. There is zero chance he will.

"Isn't even close"? Let's not get carried away. He's close.

 

[QuantumMechanic]

It was a forty yard drive, Huard probably could have done that. Bishop was cut in preseason. Bledsoe was 10-21 for 102 yards and that one TD in that game. Career playoffs he was less than 52% completion with twice as many INTs to TDs.

And don't forget the pass he drilled to a Pittsburgh linebacker's breadbasket that was thankfully dropped, as well as the play when he threw the ball backwards over his head as he was about to be sacked.

Don't get me wrong -- I'm glad for Drew that he had his mini-Super Bowl in that game before moving on to other pastures, but after that one 40yd drive when he first came in he didn't play that well.

 

[QuantumMechanic]

I was thrilled to see Bledsoe throw that TD against the Steelers, after all he did for the team. But it did not take long to see why he did not stay on the team once Brady returned. This video summed up his time with the Pats, and is all about that Steelers playoff game.

That's a great video. And you're right, it really does sum on Bledsoe's career in a single game.

 

[sb1]

And don't forget the pass he drilled to a Pittsburgh linebacker's breadbasket that was thankfully dropped, as well as the play when he threw the ball backwards over his head as he was about to be sacked.

Don't get me wrong -- I'm glad for Drew that he had his mini-Super Bowl in that game before moving on to other pastures, but after that one 40yd drive when he first came in he didn't play that well.

I also recall at least a couple of Bledsoe throws were dropped in that game including what would have been a perfectly thrown 65 yard TD bomb to Patten...

We can cherry pick and nitpick that performance all we want, I'm just grateful he was there to come off the bench and do his part to help this team win that game.

 

[Oswlek]

I also recall at least a couple of Bledsoe throws were dropped in that game including what would have been a perfectly thrown 65 yard TD bomb to Patten...

We can cherry pick and nitpick that performance all we want, I'm just grateful he was there to come off the bench and do his part to help this team win that game.

It isn't cherry picking, he didn't play well. Really, you have to cherry pick the good throws to make a case in Drew's favor.

 

[sb1]

That's a great video. And you're right, it really does sum on Bledsoe's career in a single game.

OT... but Patten's TD catch looked awfully similar to a certain drop made by a certain former Patriots player. Just sayin..

 

[PatsForever25]

I think the HOF is turning into something it was never intended to be. The HOF should be the "great" players. Drew Bledsoe was probably the first athlete I ever "loved", he was the first jersey I ever bought. His statistics are good for his time, but as stated earlier, he was mediocre in the playoffs. I respect what he has done for the Patriots and I am glad that he was elected to the Patriots HOF. I just don't think he is worthy of the NFL HOF. Think of some of the "great" contemporaries that he had. Young, Favre, Elway, Marino, Aikman would probably be thought of as the best of the 1990's. Same argument as Donovan McNabb, a good player who did a lot of positive things in the NFL but not HOF caliber.

 

[Ive_Killed_People]

Why change the standards for Bledsoe? Why make it tougher for him? He had a better career than a bunch of HOF QBs.

Example:

Pass attempts 3,762
Pass completions 1,886
Percentage 50.1
TD-INT 173–220
Passing yards 27,663
QB Rating 65.1

Playoff Record 2-1

HOF QB Joe Namath


Don't act like it's the Hall of the very best, Namath was below average Bledsoe was above average. So dont come with hallof very good bs cause it dont hold up.

Bledsoe> Moon(he was in the minors for a reason and it wont racism)
Bledsoe>Fouts
Bledsoe>Namath


Deal with it.

 

[sb1]

And don't forget the pass he drilled to a Pittsburgh linebacker's breadbasket that was thankfully dropped, as well as the play when he threw the ball backwards over his head as he was about to be sacked.

Don't get me wrong -- I'm glad for Drew that he had his mini-Super Bowl in that game before moving on to other pastures, but after that one 40yd drive when he first came in he didn't play that well.

I forgot that was Joey Porter. Eff that guy.