I saw that. If a D2 undrafted rookie can recognize pressure and get the ball out to avoid sacks, then Fields can too. He seemed to be getting better at just throwing the ball away in the more recent games. I have to believe Fields knows this is one area where he is hurting the team. Those sacks put the team in long-yardage situations that kill drives. The OL needs to clean up the penalties that also do the same thing. The good thing is that this is fixable... and I think Fields was definitely doing better in recent games. The OL penalties I haven't paid much attention to as far as knowing if they're getting better or not. But that too is fixable for these remaining 7 games.
LINK "Among the 33 quarterbacks with enough dropbacks to qualify, Bagent ranks first in the NFL, having been sacked on just 3.4 percent of his dropbacks. Fields ranks 32nd, the second-worst in the NFL, having been sacked on 12.9 percent of his dropbacks.
Fields, now in his third NFL season, hasn’t progressed in his ability to recognize pressure and get rid of the ball quickly. He’s a good runner who can make plays with his legs when he’s pressured, but too often he relies on his legs when he needs to stay in the pocket and throw the ball."
I saw that. If a D2 undrafted rookie can recognize pressure and get the ball out to avoid sacks, then Fields can too. He seemed to be getting better at just throwing the ball away in the more recent games. I have to believe Fields knows this is one area where he is hurting the team. Those sacks put the team in long-yardage situations that kill drives. The OL needs to clean up the penalties that also do the same thing. The good thing is that this is fixable... and I think Fields was definitely doing better in recent games. The OL penalties I haven't paid much attention to as far as knowing if they're getting better or not. But that too is fixable for these remaining 7 games.
LINK "Among the 33 quarterbacks with enough dropbacks to qualify, Bagent ranks first in the NFL, having been sacked on just 3.4 percent of his dropbacks. Fields ranks 32nd, the second-worst in the NFL, having been sacked on 12.9 percent of his dropbacks.
Fields, now in his third NFL season, hasn’t progressed in his ability to recognize pressure and get rid of the ball quickly. He’s a good runner who can make plays with his legs when he’s pressured, but too often he relies on his legs when he needs to stay in the pocket and throw the ball."
This is obviously concerning as Fields should be further along than this. He’s not seeing the field nor reading what’s happening out there. Can he run - sure. But eventually, he’ll have to be able to play in the pocket more.
This season is all about evaluating him with no excuses. So far, meh. He needs to finish the season strong.
I saw that. If a D2 undrafted rookie can recognize pressure and get the ball out to avoid sacks, then Fields can too. He seemed to be getting better at just throwing the ball away in the more recent games. I have to believe Fields knows this is one area where he is hurting the team. Those sacks put the team in long-yardage situations that kill drives. The OL needs to clean up the penalties that also do the same thing. The good thing is that this is fixable... and I think Fields was definitely doing better in recent games. The OL penalties I haven't paid much attention to as far as knowing if they're getting better or not. But that too is fixable for these remaining 7 games.
LINK "Among the 33 quarterbacks with enough dropbacks to qualify, Bagent ranks first in the NFL, having been sacked on just 3.4 percent of his dropbacks. Fields ranks 32nd, the second-worst in the NFL, having been sacked on 12.9 percent of his dropbacks.
Fields, now in his third NFL season, hasn’t progressed in his ability to recognize pressure and get rid of the ball quickly. He’s a good runner who can make plays with his legs when he’s pressured, but too often he relies on his legs when he needs to stay in the pocket and throw the ball."
A QB who holds the ball too long in the pocket makes the offensive line look worse than it is, and a QB who gets the ball out fast makes the offensive line look better than it is.
I posted this elsewhere, but this relates to the conversation
Interesting that Mahomes and Fields are close to opposite corners here. Under pressure, Mahomes creates and Fields gets sacked. Bagent is close to Mahomes. If he had Fields physical ability, we’d have our QB1!
I posted this elsewhere, but this relates to the conversation
Interesting that Mahomes and Fields are close to opposite corners here. Under pressure, Mahomes creates and Fields gets sacked. Bagent is close to Mahomes. If he had Fields physical ability, we’d have our QB1!
This is what HAS to change for him to be a solid QB1 in the NFL. He has so many great attributes. But this one is pretty much a "must have" - I don't know what you call it... but you can't just hold on to the ball for the sack and/or fumble.
Interesting that Mahomes and Fields are close to opposite corners here. Under pressure, Mahomes creates and Fields gets sacked. Bagent is close to Mahomes. If he had Fields physical ability, we’d have our QB1!
This is what HAS to change for him to be a solid QB1 in the NFL. He has so many great attributes. But this one is pretty much a "must have" - I don't know what you call it... but you can't just hold on to the ball for the sack and/or fumble.
I wish that had this "Create Rate" value last season. I wonder how Fields would have ranked? Clearly Fields isn't creating like he did last year. Sack numbers matter, but what matters even more is explosive plays. An explosive play cancels a sack out like *snap* that. Fields isn't doing that this season for whatever reason.
Interesting that Mahomes and Fields are close to opposite corners here. Under pressure, Mahomes creates and Fields gets sacked. Bagent is close to Mahomes. If he had Fields physical ability, we’d have our QB1!
This is what HAS to change for him to be a solid QB1 in the NFL. He has so many great attributes. But this one is pretty much a "must have" - I don't know what you call it... but you can't just hold on to the ball for the sack and/or fumble.
Did you see that article in The Athletic by Jahns today? It is 7 things that will determine Fields fate. He quotes Flus, “ Taking care of the ball is the quarterback’s #1 job.” If Fields causes turnovers in these 7 games, he’s gone. If Drake Maye is as good as I’m hearing, Fields may be gone anyway.
This is what HAS to change for him to be a solid QB1 in the NFL. He has so many great attributes. But this one is pretty much a "must have" - I don't know what you call it... but you can't just hold on to the ball for the sack and/or fumble.
Did you see that article in The Athletic by Jahns today? It is 7 things that will determine Fields fate. He quotes Flus, “ Taking care of the ball is the quarterback’s #1 job.” If Fields causes turnovers in these 7 games, he’s gone. If Drake Maye is as good as I’m hearing, Fields may be gone anyway.
Very, very preliminary here and I reserve the right to change my mind later based on further research, but right now I want Maye > Caleb.
What Fields has to do the last 7 games to hold onto the job is hard to quantify (we will know it when we see it) but I will take a shot at it here:
200 yards/game passing minimum (call it 250 min combined pass/rush yards) 65%+ completion rate 3:1 TD:Turnover ratio (yes that TDs running + passing and Turnovers INTs+Fumbles) STAY HEALTHY ALL 7 GAMES
It would sure help if Fields could win a couple games in the 4th quarter on must-have-it drives. That's something he hasn't done nearly enough in his career
