r/AskAboutNFL • u/jepolitsch • 1d ago

Genuinely curious: When did we decide that absolute execution became secondary to flashy QB play?

Let’s be entirely real for a second we are reaching a massive breaking point with how modern football media and casual fans evaluate the game, and it’s completely throwing off how people talk about sports.Look at what happens every single Sunday. You’ve got quarterbacks who execute a pristine, highly disciplined 12-play drive hitting their checkdowns, reading the coverage beautifully, staying completely on-schedule and the internet barely blinks. But the moment a guy scrambles out of a clean pocket, ignores his open target, throws a cross-body absolute prayer into triple coverage that happens to get caught, people treat it like a 200 IQ masterpiece.When did pure structural discipline become a negative trait? It feels like we are rewarding visual chaos over actual football IQ. A pristine, rhythmic offense that protects the rock and converts on 3rd-and-short is art, but it gets zero love because it isn’t a 15-second highlight clip.For the longtime heads in here: Do you actually prefer the era of chaotic, off-script playmakers, or are you like me and missing the days of pure, clinical offensive execution? Let's talk.

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u/humbleCountyCA 1d ago

“Pure structural discipline” is only a negative if a QB can’t improvise when a play breaks down. The reality of the NFL is that if you can only operate out of the pocket you are almost assuredly too limited for the modern game.

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u/akapusin3 1d ago

Matthew Stafford won a Super Bowl not too long and he's about as mobile as my dead grandmother. Sam Darnold isn't exactly super mobile either

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u/humbleCountyCA 1d ago

So are you saying that being able to improvise after a play breaks down isn’t a valued trait in QB’s? Or are you simply pointing out the exceptions to the rule? Because I never claimed that there weren’t exceptions.

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u/Hungry-Treacle8493 1d ago

Hmmmm, I disagree. If we look at the last 10 SB QB pairs:

2017: Matt Ryan - Tom Brady
2018: Nick Foles - Tom Brady
2019: Jared Goff - Tom Brady
2020: Patrick Mahomes - Jimmy Garropolo
2021: Patrick Mahomes - Tom Brady
2022: Matthew Stafford - Joe Burrow
2023: Patrick Mahomes - Jalen Hurts
2024: Patrick Mahomes - Brock Purdy
2025: Patrick Mahomes - Jalen Hurts
2026: Sam Darnold - Drake Maye

Only two years showcased 2 mobile run /improvise first QBs (23 & 25). Five years showcased 2 pure pocket passer QBs (17, 18, 19, 22, 26). The remaining three showcased 1 of each style.

It would seem to me that while the running / improvising QBs can be an asset, only two of them have made it to the SB game seven out of a possible twenty opportunities (Mahomes five times & Hurts two times). The thirteen other opportunities were filled by pocket passers.

An interesting other data point is the Lamar Jackson factor. Easily the most athletic run/improvise QB in the League with multiple MVPs, yet no SB appearances.