It’s been almost inescapable to notice the high amount of injuries in recent seasons to high-profile quarterbacks around the league. Which is why, particularly this year, it is important to have quality backup quarterbacks on your roster that can lead your team sufficiently. It is remarkable to see how these backups, along with the newcomers, are keeping their teams afloat for the playoff chase. This is a phenomena that is certainly positive for the National Football League.
NFL Competitive Balance: In defense of football
Retired NFL legend Tom Brady made waves recently when he spoke out against the quality of play in league. Appearing on Stephen A. Smith’s show, he was quoted as saying:
“I think there’s a lot of mediocrity in today’s NFL. I don’t see the excellence that I saw in the past,”
That comment created a whirlwind of reaction from across the football world. Although many agreed and supported his views, one notable dissent was from former QB Alex Smith.
Regardless of how one feels about Brady’s musings and/or Smith’s retort, one thing that is hard to ignore is how many teams are still in contention for the playoffs. As of the end of Week 15, only 6 teams in total have been eliminated from playoff contention. Furthermore, a plethora of teams are chasing only a handful of available division titles and wild-card births in both conferences. So although Tom Brady and others are complaining about the level at which the games are played, there’s no denying that the aspect of competitive balance has certainly returned to the NFL. Without a doubt, I believe that is a good thing for the sport.
Backup quarterbacks leading to parity in the NFL?
As previously stated, this year in particular has seen an alarming trend of injuries to fan-favorite quarterbacks. But amazingly, some of these teams have continued their strong play. Backup quarterbacks for Cincinnati, Cleveland and Seattle led their teams to victory in Week 15. Even teams on the outside looking in of the playoff picture, like the Las Vegas Raiders, were impressive under the stewardship of backup Aiden O’ Connell as they posted a whopping 63 points in their Thursday Night win against the Chargers.
On the flip side, some teams that are relatively healthy and that are expected to be contenders have been struggling as of late. The Eagles have lost 3 straight, leading to Jalen Hurts questioning the team’s effort. Meanwhile, the defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs just had their coach and QB fined after criticizing the officiating after a close loss to Buffalo, which followed another loss to Green Bay two weeks ago.
What can be gathered from all of this information? Well, it seems that the race towards the Super Bowl is as wide open as it has been recent memory. It is not a top-heavy league, but instead there are a sizeable number of very good teams with serious flaws that can be exposed by anyone at any time. And one of the reasons for this parity, as unintentional as it may be, is the strong play of backup QBs in the AFC and NFC that are keeping teams not just relevant, but very much competitive.
Fresh faces and future stars: leading the league into the next generation
Last week, I wrote about how both both Justin Fields and Jordan Love could very well be the future of the sports. One of the reasonings behind that line of thinking was that they were fresh faces in a league in need of new stars. With Brady and Brees retiring, and Aaron Rodgers likely to do the same in the next few years, the NFL would benefit from having new superstars and new teams becoming perennial contenders.
Well, that is exactly what these backup quarterbacks are doing right now. No matter how unlikely their journeys, from the Vikings’ Joshua Dobbs to the Giants’ Tommy DeVito, they have made every week in the National Football League mandatory viewing.
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