Because there is nothing happening in professional football and because I wanted to put something on the site, I started breaking down some passing game statistics this morning. Why? I wanted to see in what specific areas of the passing game the Chicago Bears struggled and what separated them from the elite teams in 2008. My verdict? I’m not sure I have one. So how about I give you the numbers and you figure it out.
Note: I took total passing stats. Not just starting quarterbacks. I compiled them here.
Let’s take the best in the conference…
ARIZONA CARDINALS
418 – 630, 66.3 %
4,875 yards
75 completions to running backs
11.7 yard per catch
31 touchdowns
Kurt Warner: 30 TD / 14 INT
26 sacks
Let’s take a middle of the road passing game…
NEW YORK GIANTS
298 – 491, 60.3 %
3,353 yards
52 completions to running backs
11.3 yards per catch
23 touchdowns
Eli Manning: 21 TD / 10 INT
27 sacks
Let’s take the Chicago Bears Football Club…
CHICAGO BEARS
304 – 528, 57.6 %
3,229 yards
71 completions to running backs
10.6 yards per catch
20 touchdowns
Orton/Grossman: 20 TD / 14 INT
27 sacks
Jay Cutler was sacked only eleven times, behind a mediocre offensive line. Aside from that, where does he make the passing game significantly better? In what areas must the offense focus? What do all the damn numbers mean?