Tag: rating

Washington has No. 1 ranked Defensive DVOA through two weeks

Though it didn’t always seem like it on Sunday against Arizona, Washington has the No. 1 ranked defensive DVOA so far this season.

If you’re searching for a stat to get excited about in Washington, look no further than the fact that Football Outsider’s DVOA ranks them as the No. 1 defense in the league after two weeks.

For those who don’t know what DVOA is — Defense-adjusted Value Over Average — it’s a way to compare teams to the mean production of the rest of the league, using each individual play and the situation. For a defense, having a negative DVOA percentage is the best, because it means that you are allowing the least amount of production from the offense.

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For Washington, their current DVOA through Week 2 is -35.5 percent, which just edges out the Pittsburgh Steelers by .4 percent. Their pass defense is the best in the league at -51.4 percent, while their rush defense is lacking a bit, at -8.1 percent. Before you ask all of your questions about how Washington’s secondary is ranked even close to No. 1 in the league, remember that most of this top ranking can be attributed to the front-line, who routinely gets after the QB and is responsible for an NFL high 11 sacks through two weeks.

Washington’s percentage may have been buoyed a bit thanks to their Week 1 performance against the Eagles, but they did a decent job against Kyler Murray on Sunday, and will yet again have a solid test against Baker Mayfield and the Cleveland Browns a week from now.

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Watch: Michael Thomas reacts to sky-high ‘Madden NFL 21’ grade

New Orleans Saints WR Michael Thomas was pleased to join the 99 Club in “Madden NFL 21,” making him one of the best players in the game.

Reactions are usually mixed among NFL players when they learn their grade in the latest iteration of the “Madden” franchise from EA Sports. Oftentimes, they’re motivated to work even harder and earn more respect after a perceived slight from a rating lower than what they think they deserve.

Other times, though, they reach the limit of what’s possible within the popular video game series. That’s the case for New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas, who was selected as the fifth member of the 99 Club in “Madden NFL 21” after his record-setting 2019 season.

And fans got a look at Thomas in real time as he learned that he’d be joining that exclusive group from a video shared by the official Saints Twitter account, with some help from Thomas’s barber. See it for yourself:

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Seahawks Russell Wilson ranks No. 2 among Madden NFL 21 quarterbacks

The Madden NFL 21 quarterback ratings were released and Seattle Seahawk Russell Wilson ranked second place behind Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes.

 

The NFL quarterback ratings for the video game Madden NFL 21 were released on Monday and Seattle Seahawks signal-caller Russell Wilson was ranked the second-highest in the league, behind only Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs.

Wilson was given a rating of 97, second to Mahomes’ 99, and ranking ahead of Lamar Jackson, Drew Brees, and Tom Brady among others. He is widely considered to be the second-best quarterback in the league behind Mahomes entering the 2020 season.

Throughout his career, Wilson has received recognition as one of the most efficient passers in NFL history as well as a threat in the rushing game when he breaks free, but perhaps only recently as one of the best in the game. Still, he has yet to receive a single vote for the league’s Most Valuable Player.

Being ranked behind a transcendent talent like Mahomes is certainly nothing to complain about, and it must be gratifying among 12s to see Wilson get his due.

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Drew Brees ranked 22nd in the NFL for deep-passing performance

New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees was graded harshly by Pro Football Focus for his scarcity of deep throws during the 2019 NFL season.

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There isn’t much to complain about how Drew Brees plays quarterback, and for good reason. The New Orleans Saints living legend has shattered records, and won a Super Bowl championship for a city that few dreamed would ever see it happen.

And he’s gotten better with, continually raising the bar for accuracy. But there’s one area of Brees’ game that has trailed off in the twilight of his career: throwing deep, typically defined as 20 yards or more down the field.

While he’s made it work despite taking fewer and fewer shots downfield each year, Brees’ performance on those big-time throws might be a weakness opponents can exploit. According to a ranking put together by the team at Pro Football Focus, the Saints quarterback was effective when he did go deep, but his lack of attempts in stretching the field are cause for concern. PFF’s Sam Monson wrote:

Few players throw a better deep ball than Drew Brees when he’s at his best, but as he ages, his effectiveness and frequency of deep passing has declined. Only Garoppolo threw deep less often, even adjusting for the games he missed injured, and by late in the year his arm looked alarmingly weak. Does Brees still have this string to his bow? The Saints likely need it if they are to win that elusive second championship.

Brees posted one of the better completion percentages (48.4%) and passer ratings (107.2) you’ll see on this list, but his average yards gained per attempt (13.0) was pedestrian. That suggests that he wasn’t creating chunks of yardage in the way that, say, Patrick Mahomes (18.1) or Deshaun Watson (15.1) were. Interestingly, Teddy Bridgewater averaged 15.7 yards per attempt on his throws deep downfield.

Now that he’s had more time to establish chemistry with seam-threat Jared Cook and added a few new weapons (like Emmanuel Sanders, Adam Trautman, and Ty Montgomery), Brees should have more opportunities to test defenses out past the first-down marker and beyond. Whether his arm will hold up late into the season remains to seen.

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