Ryan only sees two starting quarterbacks remaining in the playoffs who play in his mold of a traditional pocket passer
The NFL divisional round in this year’s postseason highlights a changing of the guard of sorts at the quarterback position, at least stylistically.
From the start of the National Football League in 1920 through 2010, there had only been two seasons in league history with quarterbacks throwing for over 3,500 passing yards and rushing for over 500 yards: Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Randall Cunningham in 1988 and Minnesota Vikings quarterback Daunte Culpepper in 2002.
Today, there are now 21 such occurrences of quarterbacks hitting both of those benchmarks in a single season. Twelve of those seasons have come since 2020, and four of those campaigns came this season. The players to do so in the current season are 2024 first team All-Pro Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, 2024 second team Buffalo Bills All-Pro quarterback Josh Allen, 2024 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year favorite and Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels and Arizona Cardinals Pro Bowl quarterback Kyler Murray.
“It’s a prerequisite right now to be able to to run, and that wasn’t the case when I first came into the league, right?” CBS Sports NFL analyst Matt Ryan, the 2016 NFL MVP and four-time Pro Bowl QB with the Atlanta Falcons, said on the phone Wednesday. “There were guys who could do it, but the league was really built on throwing from the pocket. That’s always going to be a part of it, but the ability for these guys to run, to throw on the run, to extend plays, to make off-schedule plays … that’s really becoming what you need from the quarterback position in the league now, and that evolution has happened quickly right? There’s always been guys who could do it, but the depth and the number of guys that can do it now is, is more than ever. The position is changing, and it’s fun to watch.”
Jackson, Allen and Daniels are all still alive in the playoffs as is Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, who has two such seasons with those metrics in 2022 and 2023. That’s half of the eight-team field, but Ryan feels only two of the NFL’s remaining starting quarterbacks in the current postseason field play the game almost exclusively from the pocket like he did in his 15-season career from 2008 to 2022: Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford and Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff.
“if you look across the playoffs, I’d say maybe the only guy left that is kind of in that older mold of pocket passers: Matthew Stafford, and yeah, probably [Jared Goff] in there as well,” Ryan said. “I would say that those two guys are probably the only two that are left [in the playoffs] in that [pocket passer] mold, and that I think is telling because I think that’s very different from even 2016 or 2008, like when I came into the league. I think that part is very different, so the position is evolving. It’s fun to watch, and these guys are incredibly talented.”
While Ryan enjoys any and all NFL action, the one game he’s most fired up for this weekend is Jackson’s third-seeded Ravens visiting Allen’s second-seeded Bills. It makes sense considering their matchup on Sunday will likely end up being only the second playoff matchup between the top two finishers in NFL MVP voting prior to the Super Bowl since the 1970 AFL/NFL merger, per CBS Sports Research. The first such matchup was the 2013 AFC title game in which eventual MVP winner Peyton Manning and his Denver Broncos beat runner-up Tom Brady’s New England Patriots 26-16.
“I think as the seeding started to shake out, maybe three or four weeks ago, and the picture became clearer of what the AFC was going to look like, like this was a collision course, at least it seemed like it, and now we’ve got it. It’s the best, right?” Ryan said. “The quarterbacks drive the narrative in our league, and these are the two who had the best seasons this year, and I can’t wait to watch it.”
Sunday night also features the first-ever playoff game between two starting quarterbacks who totaled at least 40 total touchdowns and under 10 turnovers in the regular season with Jackson (45 total touchdowns, nine turnovers) facing Allen (40 total touchdowns, eight turnovers).
| Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen This Regular Season | Jackson | Allen |
|---|---|---|
|
W-L record |
12-5 |
13-4 |
|
Total TD |
45 |
40 |
|
Total Yards |
5,087 |
4,269 |
|
Turnovers |
9 |
8 |
* First playoff matchup ever between QBs with 40+ total TD and under 10 TO
The numbers for these two passers don’t do their seasons justice because watching them play is a combination of pure athleticism mixed with precision passing. Allen has taken the next step in his progression because of his ability to erase his turnover issue. He led the entire NFL in turnovers (102) in his first six seasons from 2018-2023, but in 2024 he only had eight. Why the decline? Allen was more decisive than he’s ever been before: His average time from snap to pass release (2.93 seconds) was the fastest of his career. That was a big reason why Allen had the lowest percent of plays (4.17%) with a sack, fumble or an interception by any quarterback in a single season since the 1970 AFL/NFL merger, minimum 500 plays, per CBS Sports Research. However, he can still be effective when holding onto the football like he was on his 24-yard, fourth down touchdown pass to running back Ty Johnson in Buffalo’s 31-7 opening round win vs. the Denver Broncos.
“You start with Josh. I think the big play has always been there from the start with him,” Ryan said. “The ability to extend [the play], the arm strength. That’s the thing that jumps off the charts when you watch him. Just the kind of the power with which he can throw the football, the ability to access all part all parts of the field with his arm strength, but also the ability to extend plays, create, all of that. The thing that has taken it to the next level for him is the ability to do all of that and protect the football that is a rare combination. He’s been unbelievable in terms of decision making.”
As for Jackson, no other quarterback in the league can pair accuracy and a dynamic passing ability with the electricity his speed brings in the run game.
“Lamar, it’s the speed. That’s the one thing in the open field that is an absolute game breaker,” Ryan said.
Jackson’s speed — or the threat of it — pulled three or four defenders toward himself on the read-option, 44-yard touchdown run by running back Derrick Henry, which is a key component of what makes Baltimore’s offense so difficult to stop. That same speed also makes him, one can argue, Baltimore’s best run blocker in a way.
“You could see it all over that Pittsburgh tape last week in the run game whether it was him running with the football or the threat of him running with the football,” Ryan said. “He was pulling three to four defenders even when he didn’t have the ball and opening things up for other guys. That’s his way of making guys around him so much better.”
Jackson was also the NFL’s most efficient passer, leading the league in touchdown-to-interception ratio (41-4), passing yards per attempt (8.8), passer rating (119.6, fourth-highest in a season in NFL history) and expected points add (EPA) per dropback (0.31). His improvisation skills as a passer were on full display on his 6-yard touchdown pass to tight end Isaiah Likely in the Ravens’ 41-38 overtime win back in Week 5.
“I think his year throwing the football is really unbelievable,” Ryan said. “The efficiency with which he threw the ball, the explosiveness, and the big plays that have come from it. “A lot of that being from the pocket, but also at any given time, you don’t know the snap that he’s gonna be able to extend to play. “I think back, I think it was Cincinnati where he kind of stiff-armed a guy twice and falling out of bounds, and [he] throws it up and Likely catches the touchdown. That was one of most remarkable plays I saw the entire year.”
Get your popcorn ready for Sunday night.
