The Tale of the IAYPA Tape

Ok, season's over, why pollute the IAYPA stats with meaningless final game performances?

The Honor Roll

1. B. Roethlisberger (7.5) - Only 252 attempts (Manning had 451) but he made them count with the highest YPA in the league and only 7 interceptions. He played hurt, he threw the ball deep effectively, and he didn't turn it over. A perfect example of a professional foot-ball quarter-back.

2. P. Manning (7.2) - I predict someday people recognize what a fine quarterback Peyton Manning is.

3. M. Hasselbeck (6.7) - Like the Lord, Hasselbeck cometh like a thief in the night. He's been in the top ten most of the year, but crept steadily up these ratings during the second half, edging out Trent Green, Jake Plummer, and Tom Brady (all at 6.6) for the Bronze.


See You Next Year (Not)

1. Kyle Orton (3.3) - Lowest YPA with an INT percentage (3.7%) well above the league average. What's to like?

2. B. Favre (3.9) - Not as good as his 9th-worst pass rating (70.5) suggests. Always a risk taker, Favre this year led the league in interception percentage while achieving a below-average YPA of 6.4.

3. J. Harrington (4.1) - Detroit, the home of management-in-denial, brings you a guy who got nothing done this year. He started badly, played badly in the middle, and finished badly. Bonus points for costing Mariucci his job.


What Happened?

1. D. Bledsoe (5.8) - Finished in the top 10 in pass rating (BFD), but dropped to 13th in IAYPA after spending most of the season in the top 10. Still a fine player, but he gets into some ugly streaks.

2. D. Culpepper (4.5, TKO) - It's one thing to play badly, another to play badly, get indicted for lewd behavior, get hurt, then see your team come on strong in your absence with Brad Johnson at the helm. John Madden used to talk about what a great player Culpepper was. The statistical evidence of superior skill is ... not immediately apparent.


I've been getting a lot of letters on this, so here is what you've all been wanting to know: Chris Simms (5.4) beats out Eli Manning (5.1), though Manning had roughly double the attempts. Expect both men to play for a long time - they're playing average football in their rookie years, which ain't easy.