Does anyone consider what defenses and QBs that Jacoby Brissett went up against?
ARI 28.7 points allowed minus IND 24.2 points allowed = +4.5 ppg
6. IND - +4.5 ppg --- Daniel Jones
7. GB - +7.6 ppg, Jordan Love
8. - (-1.4 ppg) Dak Prescott
9. - +11.5 ppg, Sam Darnold
10. SF - + 5.9 ppg, Brock Purdy
11. JAX - + 7.9 ppg, Trevor Lawrence
12. - + 4.5 ppg, Baker Mayfield
13. LAR - + 8.3 ppg, Matthew Stafford
14. HOU - +11.3 ppg, C.J. Stroud
15. ATL - +5.1 ppg, Kirk Cousins
16. (-0.2) ppg, Joe Burrow
17. -+8.3 ppg, Matthew Stafford
Fact is the Cardinals were not favored in any one of Jacoby's starts.
The only two teams Jacoby faced with defenses that gave up more ppg than the Cardinals' were DAL (-1.4 ppg) and CIN (-0.2 ppg) (Joe Burrow missed 9 games earlier but was cooking late in the year and in turn their defense was improving).
Look at how better the opposing defenses were. Then look at the lineup of QBs.
Given these odds how could anyone expect a higher win total and scoring average? Seriously.
People act like it should have been easy. Those are some kickass defenses, and all of the opposing QBs have made Pro Bowls, including this year's NFL MVP, Matthew Stafford, whom Jacoby faced twice.
Teams kept their starters in versus Brissett regardless of score:
The Houston Texans with the #1 defense and a commanding lead kept their starters in the whole game against the Cardinals during their 40-20 win. Michael Wilson's 4th quarter TD pass from Jacoby was made possible when he beat Derek Stingley Jr. on a 3rd and long dig route. Then the TD pass was a perfect back shoulder versus Kwamie Lassiter. To discount this TD as trash is bogus. And ithers like it. Like all of Trey McBride's 10 TDs from Jacoby.
A number of teams like the Colts, Packers, Cowboys, 49ers, Jaguars, Texans, Falcons and Bengals kept their starters in the whole game.
841 of Jacoby's 3,366 passing yards came when the score was out of reach. That's 25.1%. It's an insult to him, Trey McBride, Michael Wilson and a makeshift offensive line (missing 2-3 starters each game), to claim "most" or "all" of Jacoby's passing yards came at "garbage" time.
Here are Mathhew Stafford's and Jacoby Brissett's passing stats over the last 12 games: (note: let's not forget the healthy WR, RB, TE, OL talent and HC/OC Stafford happened to be working with.
Stafford 2025: 3,243 yards, 65.0 %, 34 TD, 4 int., 108.2 RTG
Brissett 2025: 3,366 yards, 64.9%, 23 TD, 8 int., 91.4 RTG
Matthew Stafford's 2024 passing stats over 16 games:
Stafford 2024: 16 games, 3,762 yards, 65.8%, 20 TDs, 8 ints., 93.7 RTG
Brissett 2025: 12 games, 3,366 yards, 64.9%, 23 TDs, 8 ints., 94.1 RTG
Conclusion:
To be clear, there are many reasons why Mattew Stafford was the #1 pick in the 2009 draft and why Jacoby Brissett was drafted with the #91 pick in Round 3 of the 2016 draft (which Monti Ossenfort had a part in as a member of the Patriots' scouting staff).
However, what Jacoby Brissett embraces the way Matthew Stafford does is all of the extra preparation and reps he takes in order to sync up the passing game with his receivers. We have not seen that level of dedication since the Carson Palmer and Kurt Warner days. And we saw this past season how all of that hard work began to pay off.
Jacoby's teammates are very confident in his talent, toughness and relentless leadership. For all of these reasons, Jacoby Brissett should not be discounted or dismissed as a viable candidate to be the starter at QB on the team in 2026.
Therefore, if Jacoby has an improved offensive line, a rejuvenated running game and a healthy Marvin Harrison Jr. playing in Mike LaFleur's diverse, heavy motion style of offense --- and he is able to profit by having a much improved, much more aggressive and opportunistic team defense, Jacoby Brissett, at age 33, could have his best season as a pro under Mike LaFleur.
Mathew Stafford just turned 38.
Matthew Stafford was 33 when he was traded to the Rams in 2021.
With the Lions he was 74-90-1. With the Rams he is 42-25, 7-3 in the playoffs, including the Rams' Super Bowl victory in 2021.
Coaching and surrounding talent matter.
2026 Competition at QB1 for Jacoby:
We have discussed other QBs who would appear to fit Mike LaFleur's criteria for QBs within his system and three possible trade candidates are:
* Tanner McKee 6-6, 231, Stanford, entering his 4th NFL season, PHI
* Davis Mills 6-4, 225, Stanford, entering his 6th NFL season, HOU
* Will Levis 6-4, 229, Penn St./Kentucky, entering 4th NFL season, TEN
Making a trade for one of these QB could create good competition for Jacoby Brissett and would give Mike LaFleur a sense of how well his QBs fit beyond this season. That should be instrumental for the Cardinals to know heading into the QB-studded 2027 NFL Draft.
Vote of Confidence in Jacoby Brissett from NFL insider, Jason LaCanfora
"Kyler Murray was injured and/or benched for much of last season, with Brissett, a journeyman, becoming one of the NFL's most prolific passers in his stead.
The team’s receivers and tight ends took off once the quarterback switch became permanent and, after years of toxicity and bad blood between Murray and coaches and front office members, it would be shocking to see him back in Arizona for training camp at this point."
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ReplyDeleteBrissett should start — he’s earned it, and this team isn’t making the playoffs next season regardless of who’s under center. Let Brissett and Davis Mills battle it out; real competition sets the right tone for a locker room where everyone should have to earn their role. If, by some miracle, they can actually trade Murray, along with a few additional deserved cuts, this franchise will actually have some effective cap room to sign FA and improve the OL and elsewhere. Annual question is will Bidwillnot spend smart money to improve?
ReplyDeleteBarring health issues, Jacoby is the starter for next year. Giving a second year is one of the best decisions Monti has made in his tenure. I don't think any free agent that would be available is better, and even on the off chance we draft a QB he would almost certainly be backing up Brissett to start the year. My guess is that we will sign a free agent backup, but I would be surprised given what is available that it creates a real "competition." More just to ensure we are still somewhat competitive in case of injury.
ReplyDeleteI think we need to help Brisett with a good old fashioned north south run game. If we can grab an offensive tackle and sign a free agent guard we would be half way there. He had two options this year run for your life and get rid of the ball. If we build it from the inside out we dont have to rely on hero ball to win games.
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