2012 Preseason Report Quarterbacks Week 1: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not?

Week One’s Best Performances

Matt Cassel had a very impressive 1st game in his return to the helm in Kansas City. He missed significant time last year due to injury and one would have thought he needed to knock some rust off, which wasn’t the case at all. He led the entire NFL in week one. Cassel completed 5/6 passes for 67 yds and a touchdown for a passer rating of 152.8.

In his 9 starts prior to injury in 2011,he completed 160/269 passes (59.5%) for 1,713 yds, 10 TDs and 9 interceptions for a passer rating of 76.6. The fact he got sacked 22 times in only 9 games shows just how much KC missed Brian Waters, the veteran guard who they let walk in free agency. Waters was signed by the New England Patriots and made the Pro Bowl in 2011. The poor numbers by Cassel last year were greatly impacted by the poor offensive line play. I look for him to have a better season this year.

The next best rating among starters goes to RGIII. I have to say I was impressed with his debut in the NFL. I am not anointing him yet because it was just one preseason game, but his numbers were pretty good. He completed 4/6 passes (66.7%) for 70 yds and a TD. His passer rating was 145.8. Not bad for his 1st NFL start.

The Indianapolis Colts used the 1st overall pick in the draft to acquire Andrew Luck, who, as far as starters go, would be next on this list. He completed 10/16 passes (62.5%) for 188 yards and 2 TDs for a passer rating of 142.7, which was a solid performance for his NFL debut. However, oddly enough, Colts backup Chandler Harnish had the highest passer rating in the entire NFL. He completed 3/3 passes (100%) for 17.3 yds, netting a passer rating of 158.3. The Colts had the best overall team passer rating at 138.6. Drew Stanton came in at 94.1 after completing 8/11 passes (72.7%) for 83 yds. Had he gotten a TD, his rating would have been higher. It doesn’t appear that the Colts have any QB problems this year. However, I am not anointing Andrew Luck yet, either. It was only 1 preseason game.

Last, but not least, is Alex Smith. He completed 3/3 passes for 16 yds and 1 TD, giving him a passer rating of 128.5. There were questions about his accuracy last year and some believe that if San Francisco had a better QB they would have been hoisting the Lombardi trophy instead of the Giants. I tend to agree with that opinion.

Keep in mind that this article was just a week 1 break down. The order of this list is by no means my ranking of QBs as a whole. In this series I am merely showing the top performers of the week. Another thing to keep in mind is, some of these guys threw less than 5 passes which leaves less margin for error. It will be interesting to see how this list changes from week to week.

I am hopeful, but also doubtful, that we will be seeing Tony Romo at the top of this list any time soon. As I have been preaching all offseason, the offensive line leaves much to be desired in Dallas. If this doesn’t change, Romo will go from a career best season to a career worst season. It really sickened me to see some of the guys on this list be able to step up into a nice solid pocket, have time to make 3-4 reads, and dissect the opposing defenses. In the short time Tony was in the game, he not only took a sack, but once again was forced to run for his life.

It amazes me that Jason Garrett and Jerry Jones keep trying to live this delusion of grandeur that everything is fine up front. Don’t even get me started on their run blocking ability. DeMarco Murray posted a whopping zero yards in the season opener against Oakland. It’s ok to enjoy the win, but don’t think for one minute that Jason Garrett’s offense is going to win many other games only being able to put up 3 points.

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