Three Stats That Show Brandon Weeden Has Been Playing Fine in 2015

I’ve said this 100 times and will 100 more before Brandon Weeden’s career is over, but I’m completely and totally irrational about No. 3. I’m not as irrational about my own children as I am about what I think of Weeden’s career.

That hinges on what he did in 2010/11 in Stillwater, but for some reason it translates to me to wild success in the NFL. Brandon Weeden is not a great NFL player and he’s not been a very good one for most of his career. And yet I dig and dig until I find something that shows that he is (or a great reason why he isn’t).

This time, I don’t have to dig far. These were Weeden’s stats after his second start of the season (and third game) against New Orleans. A game which he tied in the final minute with a sick TD pass to Terrance Williams.

Weeden rankings:

Passer rating: 6th
Yds/att: 3rd
% comp: 1st

All w/o Dez. Not sure what else #Cowboys can expect from a backup QB.

— Darrell W. Cook (@DWCook) October 5, 2015

Now, I know those three stats don’t necessarily equate to wins, and Dallas hasn’t been asking him to do a ton, but they’re not a joke either. The players ranked ahead of him in QB rating? Aaron Rodgers, Andy Dalton, Tommy B., Ben Roethlisberger and Marcus Mariota. The players behind him? Carson Palmer and Phillip Rivers.

“That’s a real good defense we were playing against out there,” Weeden said about the Saints on Sunday night. “They’ve got a good coordinator and really good players. They play tight coverage and they held us in check for most of the night.”

“I know when I get on the plane and head home I’ll think about what I could have done to make a difference and win the game,” Weeden said. “That’s tough, because I know if I had done that we would’ve had a better chance to win the game. It all comes down to execution.”

Is Brandon Weeden Aaron Rodgers? No, but he hasn’t been the punchline he was in Cleveland, either. Time for people to readjust the expectations for a backup QB to one of the best in the business (Romo).

Kellen Moore ain’t walking though that door.