In Rush We Trust
Michael Irvin after the Dallas Cowboys win against the Giants on Monday Night Football stated “In Rush We Trust”, referring to backup quarterback Cooper Rush leading America’s team to a victory against their division rivals. The Cowboys starting quarterback Dak Prescott injured his thumb in the first game of the season against the Buccaneers, seemingly denting their hopes and spelling the end of a promising campaign before it had even begun. He was scheduled to miss four to six weeks of fixtures as he recovered from surgery, leaving backup Rush to fill in. Against the odds, he guided them to wins against last year’s Super Bowl finalist Cincinnati Bengals and the New York Giants. This serves as a timely reminder of the need for match-ready backups who can hold the fort whenever required, especially since the inception of 17 game seasons last year. More than ever, squad depth is the currency for longevity in a league renowned for its brutality. Often, health plays a huge role in determining the winner of the Super Bowl.
Another team adequately prepared for the loss of their starting quarterback was the San Francisco 49ers. During pre season, there were many rumblings regarding whether Jimmy Garropolo would be displaced by Trey Lance for the starting berth. Garropolo has developed a reputation for the unspectacular, the good but never the great, enough to make the Super Bowl but not enough to win it all. His untimely moments of carelessness led coach Mike Shanahan to name Lance as the starting quarterback for the 2022/23 season in his second year in the league. This was a vote of confidence and a sign of the commitment from the 49ers to transition the team away from Jimmy G. Yet, rather than releasing or trading him elsewhere, they signed him to a one year 6.5 million deal, which could amass to approximately $16 million including incentives, making him the highest paid backup in the NFL. The decision raised a few eyebrows, but when Lance suffered a season-ending ankle injury in Week 2, their prudence was vindicated. Using another example, the New Orleans Saints best utilized their starting and backup quarterback whereby Drew Brees paired up with the versatile Taysom Hill.The latter was used like a Swiss Army knife through plays as a running back, tight end and quarterback over the course of a game. This allowed for Brees to conduct the offense for the majority of the game whilst receiving support on occasional plays where the speed and dynamism of his counterpart would be useful on 3rd and short scenarios.
The first two cases are examples in this very short season of teams ably prepared to deal with the misfortunes that presents itself during the season. Had they not been in a position to replace their starting QB, their season would have been rendered useless within the space of two weeks. Given the importance of this position, I expect teams to become increasingly committed to securing an able backup ready to take over when called upon. Overall, the usefulness of a backup cannot be ignored and must remain at the forefront of planning for these longer seasons, especially to ensure teams stay fresh and healthy for the playoffs.
The second aspect I wanted to touch on was the rise of the duel threat quarterbacks, particularly the two best players so far this season, Jalen Hurts and Lamar Jackson. Both are known for their tremendous ability to run with the ball and break down defenses on the ground. Previously it was deemed unlikely for a team to be successful with a run dominant QB, but I believe the tide is turning as players become more dynamic and multidimensional. Whilst Hurts and Jackson are anomalies with their reliance on the ground, gifted passers such as Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen are also willing to break the lines through their running game. Increasingly rare are the days where a QB stays in his pocket and remains reluctant to run with the ball. As defensive lineman become shiftier and schemes are geared towards hunting down the QB, the need for speed only increases. Finding the balance between passing versus rushing remains the key determinant for these two players, as an over reliance on running shrinks the field and reduces the likelihood of big plays whereas becoming too fixated on operating like a conventional QB negates their key differentiator. So far this season they have improved their passing accuracy which has freed up greater space to demonstrate their athleticism.
Notwithstanding injury, I expect these two young players to continue dominating the league as they finely balance keeping their receivers happy versus making opposition defenders eat their dust.