The NFL is definitely a quarterback driven league. While that minor point really in contention, it is important to figure out which quarterbacks might be able to take the next step towards elite status.
Two weeks isn't long enough to come to a conclusion, but is darn sure is a start. Today's article is going to give you five quarterbacks that have surprised out of the gate thus far in 2012.
Alex Smith: 70.2 completion percentage, 437 yards, four touchdowns, zero interceptions and a 115.9 rating.
In his last five games, Smith has thrown 10 touchdowns compared to zero interceptions. He is currently in the midst of the best stretch for a 49ers’ quarterback since Steve Young was flinging the ball around Candlestick in the late 1990s. That is saying something right there.
Smith has thrown 216 consecutive regular season passes without an interception, a San Francisco 49ers record. Amazing considering that they have had Y.A. Tittle, John Brodie, Joe Montana and the aforementioned Young at quarterback in their history. If you take into account the postseason, Smith has actually thrown 284 passes without a pick.
In terms of fantasy value, he might give you consistent production but will not go for that 30 point week too often, if at all. So if you have a strong presence outside of quarterback it does make some sense to have Smith as your QB1. If not, he is a solid QB2 option here.
Andy Dalton: 67.6 completion percentage, 539 yards, three touchdowns, two interceptions and a 93.9 rating.
Dalton might have struggled to an extent in the Bengals’ season opening loss to the Baltimore Ravens, but he came through big time against the Cleveland Browns last week. Dalton seems to have taken ahold of CIncinnati’s offense and can put up large chunks of yardage in an instant.
A lot of this has to do with the Bengals ability to get production from receivers not named A.J. Green. For example, Brandon Tate, Armon Binns and Andrew Hawkins combined for 10 receptions on Sunday against Cleveland.
As Cincinnati makes the decision to open it up more, you can expect Dalton to put up more yards and touchdowns as the season progresses. It appears that Jay Gruden and Co. have not put their trust in the second-year quarterback. That bodes well for 2012 and beyond.
Robert Griffin III: 70.9 completion percentage, 526 passing yards, three touchdowns, one interception, 111.6 rating, 124 rush yards and two touchdowns.
RGIII proved himself to be a mere mortal on Sunday against the St. Louis Rams. He threw an ill-advised interception and wasn’t able to lead Washington back for a game tying field goal in the last minute. While some of that blame goes to Josh Morgan and his dumb personal foul penalty, RGIII actually faced the first criticism of his short career.
Still, what the Baylor product has done through two games is pretty extraordinary. He has led a previously dormant Redskins’ offense to 34 points and 466 yards per game.
Expect the young quarterback to continue to excel and complete a high percentage of passes. The accuracy, field awareness and game management aspects are there. I am expecting over 4,000 total yards and 30 touchdowns. Definitely a fantasy stud moving forward.
Philip Rivers: 73.8 completion percentage, 515 yards, four touchdowns, one interception and a 110.7 rating.
Rivers probably shouldn’t be on this list because of the success we have seen from the Pro Bowl quarterback in the past. That being said, he is coming off a disastrous 2011 performance and is facing a great deal of pressure leading a previously under-performing San Diego Chargers teams.
Through two games Rivers has completed nearly 75 percent of his passes and thrown a single interception in 65 pass attempts. He is doing so with Ryan Mathews, who missed the first two games due to injury, as well as recently departed Vincent Jackson. Not to mention that Antonio Gates missed the Tennessee Titans game on Sunday.
There is no reason to believe that Rivers will revert back to 2011 form. Instead, I would bet the bank on him continuing this performance and becoming one of the best quarterbacks in the AFC once again.
Christian Ponder: 75.8 completion percentage, 515 yards, two touchdowns, zero interceptions and a 110.6 rating.
If you looked closely at Ponder last season as a rookie you could see that he was progressing really nicely for the Minnesota Vikings. His pocket awareness, accuracy and timing all started to get better as the season progressed. However, the numbers weren’t there to suggest progression.
Through the first two games of the 2012 season Ponder has excelled any previously set expectations. He has gone 62 attempts without an interception and completed nearly 76 percent of his passes.
Expect Ponder to continue his upward climb, especially considering that Adrian Peterson appears to be back at full health and Percy Harvin is quickly becoming a consistent force on the outside.