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Last week we ridiculed ESPN's Total Quarterback Rating as a total joke, because as it "factors" everything together, including a quarterback's contributions; it ranked Andy Dalton with one of the worst performances of the week even though he largely strung together a second half that "contributed" to 20 second half points over an undefeated opponent.
So naturally when one finds fault in something, it's a good enough reason for a smart individual to abandon such topics. We're not that person.
Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton posted a 61.2 Total Quarterback Rating for week five, which ranked 15th in the league. Jay Cutler, Charlie Whitehurst, Curtis Painter and Tim Tebow (who ranked fifth) all scored higher grades than Dalton. Naturally my impulsive over-reaction is to slam my desk, conspire with Megamind to acquire the Ultra-Death Ray of Doom 6000 and obliterate these meddlesome, slimy rankings away.
Dalton was instrumental in helping the Bengals win on Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars. He recorded a 101.3 passer rating in the first half with two touchdowns, completed two fourth down passes that picked up first downs, sustaining drives that eventually led to touchdowns and was a big reason Cincinnati's offense converted 63% of their third down opportunities.
We're not exactly sure where Dalton should rank, simply because we're not watching those games like we are with the Bengals. Though I do see every NFL game on NFL Rewind (the awesome condensed version), it's hard to make a comparative judgment due to the raw data were saturate ourselves with to come with basic conclusions. Alright, we'll just say it. Compared to the NFL, we're friggin' homers and the only quarterback better than Andy Dalton are those bound for the Hall of Fame. There, I said it.
As for why Megamind would hate the Total QBR, we really can't say. But what makes us believe that he doesn't hate it?
For the season Dalton's 33.4 TQBR rating is ranked 28th in the NFL.