Grossman\u2019s recent performance in his pre-season debut with the Redskins got me to thinkin\u2019; can this guy really be better than I thought? Yeah sure it\u2019s a preseason game, but I expected to see fumbled handoffs, interceptions and stalled drives the moment McNabb took his pads off. I think we all felt the same thing; Buffalo must be really bad if they can make Rex Grossman look like our starter.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s easy to have doubts about the abilities of Rex Grossman even though he\u2019s played in a Super Bowl. Everyone knows that Grossman made his way into that Super Bowl on the backs of his defense. When you think about Grossman you see a QB rating of 59.7 since he achieved that rating twice in his career with the Bears.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I\u2019ll admit that I\u2019m still not entirely clear on how a QB rating is calculated, but I think they give you 59.7 just for showing up.<\/p>\n
The other major stat to look at are his career TD\u2019s and INT\u2019s. He has 33 TD passes and 36 INT\u2019s for his career. In the Bears last Super Bowl year, Grossman threw 23 touchdowns, 20 interceptions, and was sacked 21 times. It was also the only year that Grossman played all 16 games.<\/p>\n
Is it possible that maybe, just maybe, some of Grossman\u2019s struggles are because he was playing for a team that did not have a very good offensive system? Could Grossman\u2019s abilities be more than what his stats seem to show?<\/p>\n
Chicago has a history of QB\u2019s on the hot-seat. For the Bears you have to go all the way back to 1993 to find a QB that kept his starting job for longer than two years (Jim Harbaugh 1990-93). During Grossman\u2019s time with Chicago he was part of a QB committee that included Kyle Orton and Brian Griese. Not including 2006 (the only year Grossman started 16 games and coincidentally the only year the Bears made it to the Super Bowl) Grossman averaged only four games per season while he was with the Bears.<\/p>\n
In the two years that Grossman was rated at 59.7 he only played a combined total of six games (two in \u201905 and four in \u201908) and only started a combined two games (one each year).<\/p>\n
Now I know what you are thinking. \u201cBob, if the offensive system is bad, it\u2019s usually because you have a bad QB.\u201d Certainly, QB\u2019s can make their own luck in an offensive system, but sometimes the players around the QB can have an impact on their performance. In other occasions it\u2019s the scheme, and in some cases it\u2019s the coach.<\/p>\n
Kyle Orton and Jay Cutler swapped teams in 2009. Whereas Orton went on to have a career year in Denver, Jay Cutler set records for career lows in Chicago. Not only did Cutler\u2019s QB rating drop nearly 10 points from his average (87.5 in three years with Denver to 76.8 his first year with Chicago) but he also threw more interceptions (18 interceptions in 2008 with Denver, 26 INT\u2019s with Chicago) and was sacked far more times (27 sacks in 2007, 35 sacks with Chicago).<\/p>\n
When you compare Grossman\u2019s full year in 2006 with Cutler\u2019s in 2009, the Stats are surprisingly similar. Cutler still comes out ahead, but you see what I mean when I say that an offensive system can bring down a QB\u2019s production.<\/p>\n
Now I\u2019m not lobbying for Grossman to be our starter over McNabb, but I think I\u2019m starting to see that maybe Kyle Shanahan has seen what Grossman can really do. It\u2019s possible that the younger Shanahan has found a way to bring out the best in Grossman. After digging through the stats, I\u2019m starting to feel a little more confident with Grossman as our backup.<\/p>\n
No offense, Rex, I hope we never have to see you during the regular season, but for now I\u2019m satisfied that the Shanahan\u2019s know what they are doing.<\/p>\n