EJs accuracy

[JESSEFEFFER]

Three points.

 

1) Using a game played in 30+ mph winds where the protection fails on nearly 40% of dropbacks is a not a good barometer of a QBs accuracy. Add in the mystery of apparent missed route adjustments and you have very shakey conditions on which to judge EJs accuracy.

 

2) The "poor" pass to Sammy that came in at his shoe tops was actually slightly tipped by Kendall Reyes. He drove Pears deep into the backfield and had closed to within a few feet of EJ as he swiped his hand right at the release point of the pass. If you have it on high definition, take a look and see if you agree. That's why the flight of the ball looked odd and Tasker mistakenly blamed it on the wind and Buerlein correctly pointed out that the throw was with the wind but incorrectly thought it was just a ball that EJ let get away but without any other cause.

 

3) I've seen lots of windy, run dominated games at the Ralph where the downfield passing game was greatly affected. What Rivers did on his deep throws was rather unprecedented. I thought there was no way that a QB used to playing and practicing in San Diego, probably the best weather anywhere in the continental US, would be able to handle a blustery day at RWS. Maybe Rivers was lucky or just really good or maybe Frank Reich was able to add some actual, game experience wisdom to the equation.

[FireChan]

I think Rivers is just really good, and EJ isn't yet. It's not rocket surgery.

[jumbalaya]

You have to stop making excuses for this guy. The wind was blowing? The other team was rushing hard? Our receivers did not know where to go? Everything is wrong but EJ? Please stop.

 

Any competitive QB would have had this team in contention to win this game. It was a home against a good team but we are also a good team.

 

EJ can't get past his first read and he has limited awareness in the pocket. He has neither down field vision nor medium throw accuracy nor willingness to throw down field. He didn't throw down field against the Chargers till the game was completely lost and then he was horribly off target and that had nothing to do with the wind. Watkins & Woods had stopped looking for the ball by then. I never saw all the receivers just up and quit on their QB like that.

 

Sammy is the only guy he threw to against the Dolphins. Williams only has 5 catches in three games. Hogan, Goodwin and Easley don't have a catch this year -- none! Goodwin the fast guy is thrown to behind the line of scrimmage where he gets lit up like a Xmas tree. Please just send him deep once and heave it.

 

You can look at all the tape you want. Try watching the game. EJ stunk. He was bad in the Chicago game too. He is a helluva nice guy, smart, hard worker, willing to do what it takes and all that, but he is just not a good QB. I thought he was a great choice over Geno but watching Geno changed my mind. Geno has game. Geno has growing issues but he is a competitor and will only get better. The only progress in EJ's game has been backwards.

 

JJ will eat EJ alive Sunday. Here are some excuses you can get ready to use: Richardson is a rookie guard and it was his first start, the receivers were unfamiliar with the turf, the OL couldn't hear the snap counts, it was too hot, Houston is a good defense and they wanted it more, he would have had better stats if the receivers caught the ball....

[Rob's House]

Three points.

 

1) Using a game played in 30+ mph winds where the protection fails on nearly 40% of dropbacks is a not a good barometer of a QBs accuracy. Add in the mystery of apparent missed route adjustments and you have very shakey conditions on which to judge EJs accuracy.

 

2) The "poor" pass to Sammy that came in at his shoe tops was actually slightly tipped by Kendall Reyes. He drove Pears deep into the backfield and had closed to within a few feet of EJ as he swiped his hand right at the release point of the pass. If you have it on high definition, take a look and see if you agree. That's why the flight of the ball looked odd and Tasker mistakenly blamed it on the wind and Buerlein correctly pointed out that the throw was with the wind but incorrectly thought it was just a ball that EJ let get away but without any other cause.

 

3) I've seen lots of windy, run dominated games at the Ralph where the downfield passing game was greatly affected. What Rivers did on his deep throws was rather unprecedented. I thought there was no way that a QB used to playing and practicing in San Diego, probably the best weather anywhere in the continental US, would be able to handle a blustery day at RWS. Maybe Rivers was lucky or just really good or maybe Frank Reich was able to add some actual, game experience wisdom to the equation.

 

You get em, Roy.

[DirtDart]

I think Rivers is just really good, and EJ isn't yet. It's not rocket surgery.

I stated this in another post. EJ seems to be floating the ball instead of firing it. He has a strong arm, and needs to use it, particularly at home when the wind is usually a factor.

[Buffalo Barbarian]

I stated this in another post. EJ seems to be floating the ball instead of firing it. He has a strong arm, and needs to use it, particularly at home when the wind is usually a factor.

 

EJ likes throwing dirt darts

[DanInUticaTampa]

Even though his accuracy is poor and his throws in general don't have that touch you see the elite QBs have when they throw it, I see improvement from last year by just an eyeball test. Even though we have receivers making tough catches on bad throws now, last year a lot of these throws receivers weren't able to make a play. So yeah, the throwing is nowhere near where it should be, but I think there is still hope his accuracy gets better.

 

I personally am more worried about his ability to read the field. I have seen very little improvement on that part of his game. Hopefully that works itself out, but im concerned

[zazie]

Even though his accuracy is poor and his throws in general don't have that touch you see the elite QBs have when they throw it, I see improvement from last year by just an eyeball test. Even though we have receivers making tough catches on bad throws now, last year a lot of these throws receivers weren't able to make a play. So yeah, the throwing is nowhere near where it should be, but I think there is still hope his accuracy gets better.

 

I personally am more worried about his ability to read the field. I have seen very little improvement on that part of his game. Hopefully that works itself out, but im concerned

 

QBs really need to sit and watch for 2-3 years before starting. the new look league does not allow that. So these guys are all getting thrown into the deep end too early. EJ will be fine, in a couple of years, IMO.

[YoloinOhio]

Three points.

 

1) Using a game played in 30+ mph winds where the protection fails on nearly 40% of dropbacks is a not a good barometer of a QBs accuracy. Add in the mystery of apparent missed route adjustments and you have very shakey conditions on which to judge EJs accuracy.

 

2) The "poor" pass to Sammy that came in at his shoe tops was actually slightly tipped by Kendall Reyes. He drove Pears deep into the backfield and had closed to within a few feet of EJ as he swiped his hand right at the release point of the pass. If you have it on high definition, take a look and see if you agree. That's why the flight of the ball looked odd and Tasker mistakenly blamed it on the wind and Buerlein correctly pointed out that the throw was with the wind but incorrectly thought it was just a ball that EJ let get away but without any other cause.

 

3) I've seen lots of windy, run dominated games at the Ralph where the downfield passing game was greatly affected. What Rivers did on his deep throws was rather unprecedented. I thought there was no way that a QB used to playing and practicing in San Diego, probably the best weather anywhere in the continental US, would be able to handle a blustery day at RWS. Maybe Rivers was lucky or just really good or maybe Frank Reich was able to add some actual, game experience wisdom to the equation.

There are so many factors that explain the outcome of each play. Thanks for the post.

[Best Player Available]

You have to stop making excuses for this guy. The wind was blowing? The other team was rushing hard? Our receivers did not know where to go? Everything is wrong but EJ? Please stop.

 

Any competitive QB would have had this team in contention to win this game. It was a home against a good team but we are also a good team.

 

EJ can't get past his first read and he has limited awareness in the pocket. He has neither down field vision nor medium throw accuracy nor willingness to throw down field. He didn't throw down field against the Chargers till the game was completely lost and then he was horribly off target and that had nothing to do with the wind. Watkins & Woods had stopped looking for the ball by then. I never saw all the receivers just up and quit on their QB like that.

 

Sammy is the only guy he threw to against the Dolphins. Williams only has 5 catches in three games. Hogan, Goodwin and Easley don't have a catch this year -- none! Goodwin the fast guy is thrown to behind the line of scrimmage where he gets lit up like a Xmas tree. Please just send him deep once and heave it.

 

You can look at all the tape you want. Try watching the game. EJ stunk. He was bad in the Chicago game too. He is a helluva nice guy, smart, hard worker, willing to do what it takes and all that, but he is just not a good QB. I thought he was a great choice over Geno but watching Geno changed my mind. Geno has game. Geno has growing issues but he is a competitor and will only get better. The only progress in EJ's game has been backwards.

 

JJ will eat EJ alive Sunday. Here are some excuses you can get ready to use: Richardson is a rookie guard and it was his first start, the receivers were unfamiliar with the turf, the OL couldn't hear the snap counts, it was too hot, Houston is a good defense and they wanted it more, he would have had better stats if the receivers caught the ball....

Some funny stuff there. After reviewing game tape dating back to EJ's FSU days. I am searching for clues to up his game. My first thought is him eating hot dogs on the sidelines like Sanchez did, to improve accuracy. Look what that did for his game.......Wait................

 

[34-78-83]

Three points.

 

1) Using a game played in 30+ mph winds where the protection fails on nearly 40% of dropbacks is a not a good barometer of a QBs accuracy. Add in the mystery of apparent missed route adjustments and you have very shakey conditions on which to judge EJs accuracy.

 

2) The "poor" pass to Sammy that came in at his shoe tops was actually slightly tipped by Kendall Reyes. He drove Pears deep into the backfield and had closed to within a few feet of EJ as he swiped his hand right at the release point of the pass. If you have it on high definition, take a look and see if you agree. That's why the flight of the ball looked odd and Tasker mistakenly blamed it on the wind and Buerlein correctly pointed out that the throw was with the wind but incorrectly thought it was just a ball that EJ let get away but without any other cause.

 

3) I've seen lots of windy, run dominated games at the Ralph where the downfield passing game was greatly affected. What Rivers did on his deep throws was rather unprecedented. I thought there was no way that a QB used to playing and practicing in San Diego, probably the best weather anywhere in the continental US, would be able to handle a blustery day at RWS. Maybe Rivers was lucky or just really good or maybe Frank Reich was able to add some actual, game experience wisdom to the equation.

 

Thanks for the info - I thought that one pass you spoke of might have been tipped, and sure enough! (I don't have HD still )...

Ignore the haters with their broad sweeping paint brushes and keep posting good stuff. It's appreciated by many.

[thebandit27]

You have to stop making excuses for this guy. The wind was blowing? The other team was rushing hard? Our receivers did not know where to go? Everything is wrong but EJ? Please stop.

 

Any competitive QB would have had this team in contention to win this game. It was a home against a good team but we are also a good team.

 

I found very little of the OP to be excuse-making (although the comparison to Rivers probably qualifies).

 

From your post, I can only gather you did not actually watch the game(s) this year...

 

EJ can't get past his first read and he has limited awareness in the pocket. He has neither down field vision nor medium throw accuracy nor willingness to throw down field. He didn't throw down field against the Chargers till the game was completely lost and then he was horribly off target and that had nothing to do with the wind. Watkins & Woods had stopped looking for the ball by then. I never saw all the receivers just up and quit on their QB like that.

 

If you think any of that is true, you definitely did not watch any of the first three games. A QB cannot make that 38-yard pass play to Chandler against SD if he has no pocket awareness. A QB cannot drop a perfect 50-yard bomb into his WRs hands on his 3rd throw of the game against Miami if he has no downfield accuracy or willingness to throw downfield. You are also completely wrong in your statement about not throwing downfield, as a downfield throw to Goodwin in the 1st Quarter drew a defensive holding flag.

 

He had a bad game; it does nothing to add to your credibility to state things that aren't true.

 

Sammy is the only guy he threw to against the Dolphins. Williams only has 5 catches in three games. Hogan, Goodwin and Easley don't have a catch this year -- none! Goodwin the fast guy is thrown to behind the line of scrimmage where he gets lit up like a Xmas tree. Please just send him deep once and heave it.

 

Um, Sammy was open, quite literally, all day against Miami. If you have a stud #1 WR, and he's open, throw him the ball. To fault your QB for that is insane.

 

Also, please tell me how many offensive snaps Hogan and Easley have combined to play this year (hint: it's less than 1). They have sent Goodwin deep; as I said before, the deep ball to Goodwin drew the defensive holding penalty in the 1st quarter against SD.

 

Also, the play where Goodwin got hurt was 6 yards beyond the LOS, so you are wrong yet again.

 

You can look at all the tape you want. Try watching the game. EJ stunk. He was bad in the Chicago game too. He is a helluva nice guy, smart, hard worker, willing to do what it takes and all that, but he is just not a good QB. I thought he was a great choice over Geno but watching Geno changed my mind. Geno has game. Geno has growing issues but he is a competitor and will only get better. The only progress in EJ's game has been backwards.

 

I could go point by point here, but it's much easier to just tell you that all of this is wrong (with the exception that EJ stunk against SD--that part's true).

 

There's also something incredibly laughable about telling us that a QB that turns the ball over 2 of the first 3 times he touches the ball last game "has game".

 

JJ will eat EJ alive Sunday. Here are some excuses you can get ready to use: Richardson is a rookie guard and it was his first start, the receivers were unfamiliar with the turf, the OL couldn't hear the snap counts, it was too hot, Houston is a good defense and they wanted it more, he would have had better stats if the receivers caught the ball....

 

Once again, I'll point out to folks: the team is 2-1 and tied for 1st place in the AFC East...clearly, something has been going right. I'm curious, will you be coming back here to recant your guaranteed "eating" of EJ by J.J. Watt if indeed Buffalo triumphs this Sunday?

[Webster Guy]

We tried hard in FA and the draft to improve our Oline. Its tough to judge a qb or running back behind a weak line.

 

The best way to assess EJ is to give him another half dozen games, and if the film shows a lack of reasonable progress you put in Orton for a few starts and see how a proven average NFL guy runs the offense. If he doesn't elevate the team you go back to EJ who at least has upside potential.

 

As far as Geno Smith being a better quarterback I disagree. He lost the game for the Jets on some horrible throws monday night, as he's done many times for them.

 

The one thing Geno has going for him is that Rex Ryan lets him play full throttle. He runs and takes hits, gets in the flow of the college type game where he thrived. Our coaches don't let EJ do anything like that because they're so paranoid about another injury.

 

The quarterback scramble for a first down is a staple of most teams that move the ball. Peyton and Brady don't do it, but Rodgers, Brees, Cutler, Rivers, wilson, Kap, Cam-- all of those guys keep their offense of drives alive with their legs when necessary. we've taken that away from our quarterback but he's not good enough yet for that kind of restriction.

 

I think he's being over coached.

[shane nelson]

He was projected as a 3rd round pick, a bit of a project with a strong upside. Accuracy was always a question mark. So far that appears to be his on field performance. I cannot understand at this stage why he has such poor footwork and does not drive forward off his back foot on every throw; this was one of the biggest differences between EJ and Rivers last Sunday. He appears to be a great kid and wants to be a winner, I just wonder if the Bills brass had a “hallo” effect on EJ driven by the caliber of the person versus playing ability. I really like EJ and hope he can make it, but his mechanics require a major upgrade to be consistent winner in Buffalo especially in November and December

[EasternOHBillsFan]

You have to stop making excuses for this guy. The wind was blowing? The other team was rushing hard? Our receivers did not know where to go? Everything is wrong but EJ? Please stop.

 

Any competitive QB would have had this team in contention to win this game. It was a home against a good team but we are also a good team.

 

EJ can't get past his first read and he has limited awareness in the pocket. He has neither down field vision nor medium throw accuracy nor willingness to throw down field. He didn't throw down field against the Chargers till the game was completely lost and then he was horribly off target and that had nothing to do with the wind. Watkins & Woods had stopped looking for the ball by then. I never saw all the receivers just up and quit on their QB like that.

 

Sammy is the only guy he threw to against the Dolphins. Williams only has 5 catches in three games. Hogan, Goodwin and Easley don't have a catch this year -- none! Goodwin the fast guy is thrown to behind the line of scrimmage where he gets lit up like a Xmas tree. Please just send him deep once and heave it.

 

You can look at all the tape you want. Try watching the game. EJ stunk. He was bad in the Chicago game too. He is a helluva nice guy, smart, hard worker, willing to do what it takes and all that, but he is just not a good QB. I thought he was a great choice over Geno but watching Geno changed my mind. Geno has game. Geno has growing issues but he is a competitor and will only get better. The only progress in EJ's game has been backwards.

 

JJ will eat EJ alive Sunday. Here are some excuses you can get ready to use: Richardson is a rookie guard and it was his first start, the receivers were unfamiliar with the turf, the OL couldn't hear the snap counts, it was too hot, Houston is a good defense and they wanted it more, he would have had better stats if the receivers caught the ball....

 

Can I get an AMEN?!?! My God, you'd think EJ was a saint and the conditions make him out to be bad... ridiculous. He's not getting any better, and locking onto Sammy and Chandler won't help, that's for sure. I'm sure Hackett is pulling hair out of his head because the execution has been poor for both EJ when he has time and the O-line in pass protection. Anyone blaming Hackett clearly isn't watching the games.

[Maddog69]

Even with his horrible accuracy, EJ miraculously completes almost 2/3 of his passes.

[BillsVet]

Even with his horrible accuracy, EJ miraculously completes almost 2/3 of his passes.

 

So far in his NFL career, after about 400 pass attempts EJ's completing slightly less than 60% of his throws. Some may say this is acceptable given his lack of playing time, but considering his 6.6 average yards per attempt on (which in 2013 puts him in the 27-29 range of QB's) it's not really something to highlight. This year, he's averaging a little over 7 yards per pass and completing 63%, which are improvements.

 

What should be concerning is the performance on Sunday where at one point in the 4th quarter he was 17-27 (63%) for 163 yards (6.04ypa). That's not going to win games even with a stellar defense in today's passing dominated league.

 

Stats can be skewed to support or oppose a position. The question to ask oneself is whether EJ trends back up or continues to slide as he did this past week.

Edited September 25, 2014 by BillsVet

[Fadingpain]

Even with his horrible accuracy, EJ miraculously completes almost 2/3 of his passes.

 

You write this as though this is an impressive statistic.

 

EJ is currently 23rd in the league among QBs in terms of completion percentage.

 

He is 24th in the league in terms of average yards per pass, at a whopping 7, including YAC. So he doesn't throw very far, which undoubtedly further skews the data on completion percentage. It makes him worse.

 

When you make a whole lot of throws to a target somewhere close to the line of scrimmage, and your completion % is 23rd in the league, there isn't a lot to celebrate.

Edited September 25, 2014 by Stopthepain

[thebandit27]

So far in his NFL career, after about 400 pass attempts EJ's completing slightly less than 60% of his throws. Some may say this is acceptable given his lack of playing time, but considering his 6.6 average yards per attempt on (which in 2013 puts him in the 27-29 range of QB's) it's not really something to highlight. This year, he's averaging a little over 7 yards per pass and completing 63%, which are improvements.

 

What should be concerning is the performance on Sunday where at one point in the 4th quarter he was 17-27 (63%) for 163 yards (6.04ypa). That's not going to win games even with a stellar defense in today's passing dominated league.

 

Stats can be skewed to support or oppose a position. The question to ask oneself is whether EJ trends back up or continues to slide as he did this past week.

 

This is the most important point. Let's see if he can continue his pattern from 2013 of rebounding well after poor games.

 

You write this as though this is an impressive statistic.

 

EJ is currently 23rd in the league among QBs in terms of completion percentage.

 

He is 24th in the league in terms of average yards per pass, at a whopping 7, including YAC. So he doesn't throw very far, which undoubtedly further skews the data on completion percentage. It makes him worse.

 

When you make a whole lot of throws to a target somewhere close to the line of scrimmage, and your completion % is 23rd in the league, there isn't a lot to celebrate.

 

He's 18th in YPA, not 24th.

 

http://espn.go.com/nfl/statistics/player/_/stat/passing/sort/yardsPerPassAttempt

 

Also, it's not a bad thing to rely on YAC in the passing game. Guys like Manning and Brady execute drive after drive operating that way; the important thing is to be able to hit downfield throws when necessary. That's something EJ needs to work on.

[All_Pro_Bills]

He was projected as a 3rd round pick, a bit of a project with a strong upside. Accuracy was always a question mark. So far that appears to be his on field performance. I cannot understand at this stage why he has such poor footwork and does not drive forward off his back foot on every throw; this was one of the biggest differences between EJ and Rivers last Sunday. He appears to be a great kid and wants to be a winner, I just wonder if the Bills brass had a “hallo” effect on EJ driven by the caliber of the person versus playing ability. I really like EJ and hope he can make it, but his mechanics require a major upgrade to be consistent winner in Buffalo especially in November and December

I too hope EJ works out but why did the Bills braintrust 'reach' for a guy they more than likely could have picked in the 2nd and maybe the 3rd while using that 1st rounder to address another area? I seriously doubt any other team had Manuel rated as high. To me that's an element of the evaluation of his performance.

 

From where I sit, he just doesn't play the position the way I expect a 1st round choice to play and while others claim to 'see' some incremental improvement I am not so sure. I think many of the negative views on EJ are judged not solely on his performance but his performance relative to where he was selected in the draft. If he was a 3rd round choice would we judge his performance in the manner we do or would our views be adjusted to expectations of a 3rd round choice vs. a 1st round choice.

 

The way I see it part of the frustration and disillusionment is the inability of this organization to identify and acquire a competent player at the QB spot. And I think we take out some of that frustration on EJ when he just is what he is.