Quote
Ramsfsninmd
....yes, some really good QBing, but football is 7 on 7 now with almost all the rules favoring the offense and so many PI
I think this is the biggest factor. The rules and protection of QB's is as favorable as it's ever been. So much so that 40+ year old QB's are still out there having success. That isn't because they are so much better than guys from the past, it's because they don't take the beatings that those guys did.
Can't touch their head. Can't hit them low. Can't hit them late. Can't hit them if they slide. Can't touch their WR's. You think if Marino had those luxuries he wouldn't be doing the same things? Or Montana? Or Aikman? Or whoever. Those guys were all scrambled or hobbled by the end of their careers.
Now the by product is QB's that can play 20+ seasons and a heavily diminished focus on the running game. It may seem like there are more good QB's than ever but if many of these guys tried playing in the '90's or earlier, they wouldn't even have a job, much less be the starter. Hell, I don't think Brady would have survived back then either. He starts to fall apart if his jersey gets a grass stain on it and has all day to throw.
Which is something else to consider. Back then, passing all the time, much less on first downs was RARE. Most teams were "run, run, third and long" and in obvious passing situations. They weren't padding their completion % and overall numbers with glorified long hand-offs.
There are some good ones now playing but the numbers are very misleading IMO.
