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Aaron Schatz Football Outsiders-- Still Doubts Josh


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Aaron was on WGR yesterday with an interesting position on Josh.  He still does not "see" him as an NFL starting QB.  Says he would like to see Bills fans rewarded but does not see Josh as likely to produce it.  If I were doing the interview I'd have asked him about the basis for this, is it the numbers or some actual film review?  IIRC, this was his predraft assessment based on his Wyoming stats and their  correlation to historical projection and he's not bending it based on year 1 in the NFL. 

 

Assuming he is still focused on the numbers, I would have asked him what effect that the following would have on his numbers:

 

1) being the leader in depth to target

2) being amongst the top in dropped passes and throwaways/spikes

3) being near the top in throws under pressure

 

I saw some Twitter chatter started by Bills reporters Sal Capaccio and Ryan Talbot.  Here's the link to the latters' story:

 

newyorkupstate " I-do-not-see-a-nfl-starting-qb-in-buffalo-bills-josh-allen-says-espns-aaron-schatz"

 

I appreciate facts in any discussion and numbers are facts.  But discussions need facts connected to meaning and context.  It looks like if the Bills have a decent season, he already has an alternate explanation as to why it happened.

 

I think Josh will be one of the alltime "scouts eyes and ears" vs. "raw analytics" cases in the NFL.  Someone gets to tell the other side "I told you so."

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by JESSEFEFFER
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As others on Twitter pointed out, he didn't state his opinion with much conviction. By saying "If he succeeds, its because they put enough talent around him", he's hedging his bets. He can now claim to be "right" either way.

Also, try as I might, I can't seem to find any background info about Aaron Schatz. I get that he runs Football Outsiders, which as far as I can tell is just an analytics website. What is it about Schatz that qualifies him to know what he's looking at any more than any other football fan? It's great that he can extrapolate numerical data or spot statistical trends, but why should I believe that he knows how to evaluate quarterback play any better than my Aunt Marcy?

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Did anyone else get a brain aneurysm trying to read this?

 

“I’ve noticed a lot of optimism about the moves that the Bills have made in the offseason," Schatz said. "That they’ve made a lot of good moves. And here’s the thing, I think they’ve made a lot of good moves. The problem is that where they were going to be before those moves is not as good as I think where Bills fans think they would be before those moves. So even after making a lot of good moves, I’m not that optimistic about them.”

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I guess it's possible, but I see something different. I watched every snap and I am pretty convinced that he can win in the NFL.

 

I mean, just watching week 17 should tell you that he has it in him. His completion percentage was up, he scored 5 total TD's, and he looked darn efficient doing it (minus the bad INT early on).

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9 minutes ago, HOUSE said:

I saw this article this morning. The guy bashed the selection last season and he simply will not give it up.

He writes on the negative side and can't function as an adult.

 

 

...prolly Sullivan's nephew.......

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17 minutes ago, HappyDays said:

Did anyone else get a brain aneurysm trying to read this?

 

 

 

I'll take a shot.  We want to believe that Josh's improvement, the defenses' all around play and their 4 and 4 record at the close have the Bills starting the off season as a team in the middle third of the league.  He's saying that defensive performance is more random, Josh doesn't have it in him and they really entered the off season as bottom dwelling team.  Thus, all the offseason improvements, while he likes them, do not get them a shot into the upper third of the league.

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4 minutes ago, Logic said:

As others on Twitter pointed out, he didn't state his opinion with much conviction. By saying "If he succeeds, its because they put enough talent around him", he's hedging his bets. He can now claim to be "right" either way.

Also, try as I might, I can't seem to find any background info about Aaron Schatz. I get that he runs Football Outsiders, which as far as I can tell is just an analytics website. What is it about Schatz that qualifies him to know what he's looking at any more than any other football fan? It's great that he can extrapolate numerical data or spot statistical trends, but why should I believe that he knows how to evaluate quarterback play any better than my Aunt Marcy?

 

3 minutes ago, HOUSE said:

I saw this article this morning. The guy bashed the selection last season and he simply will not give it up.

He writes on the negative side and can't function as an adult.

 

It's interesting to note that those in the national media who think the Bills are going to be bad think that Allen won't be any good (like Schatz) and those who think the Bills are on the rise think that Allen will be a good QB. Regardless of their stance, each side has seemed to draw a line in the sand based on their predetermined convictions and they are not going to budge. They will either crow when they are right or ignore it (and try to avoid eating crow) when they are wrong. Such is life in the 'hot take' world of social media. FWIW, Aaron Schatz is a frequent guest on 'Schopp & the Bulldog' and Mike Schopp worships at the altar of Schatz. 

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This should be said about any QB drafted last year, not just Allen.  None of them have proved they are a franchise QB today.

 

That said, Allen showed enough to provide evidence he can develop into that player.  I would rather have him at this point than Rosen or Jackson.  He is about where Darnold is while Mayfield would be the leader.  Year 2 will provide additional evidence for all these players as they continue to develop.

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1 minute ago, ScottLaw said:

Not sure why people get up in arms over all this stuff. 

 

These guys do a lot of research on these players and then give a prediction based on their research. It's a nice job to have because it doesn't matter if they are right or wrong, they'll still have a job.... it's just his opinion on a player that happened to be picked by that Bills. It has no barring on if Allen will be successful or not so I never understood why people got pissed over this stuff.

 

 


This is one of those rare occasions where I agree completely with ScottLaw.

Bills fans are too sensitive about people criticizing Josh Allen. Let the man prove them right or wrong with his play on the field. We don't need to ruthlessly attack anyone who dares to disagree with the notion that Allen is a guaranteed elite player.

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2 minutes ago, Logic said:


This is one of those rare occasions where I agree completely with ScottLaw.

Bills fans are too sensitive about people criticizing Josh Allen. Let the man prove them right or wrong with his play on the field. We don't need to ruthlessly attack anyone who dares to disagree with the notion that Allen is a guaranteed elite player.

 

While the bolded may be true (and probably true for any fan base), I don't see any of that in this thread thus far...at least nobody who is "up in arms". Just discussion.

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...will ALWAYS be doubters about him as well as others in the class....pfft.......I'm more inclined to read critical yet objective assessments by former NFL QB's (the stature of their careers is meaningless) as in Simms, Boomer, Dilfer, "Coach" Palmer or even our new "Coach" Dorsey and what they say, whether good, bad or somewhere in between (more than likely laying out pros and cons)....they are STILL connected to the game versus worrying about some urinalist typing away from under his desk......

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48 minutes ago, JESSEFEFFER said:

Aaron was on WGR yesterday with an interesting position on Josh.  He still does not "see" him as an NFL starting QB. (....)

I think Josh will be one of the alltime "scouts eyes and ears" vs. "raw analytics" cases in the NFL.  Someone gets to tell the other side "I told you so."

 

I wish someone asked Aaron if he sees Josh Rosen as an NFL starting QB.  As I recall, last year he was a big fan and one of the "Bills drafted wrong Josh" prognosticators.

Wanted the Dolphins to draft Josh Rosen.

 

Overall though, yes, you're right - Josh Allen is like a litmus test for "college analytics" vs "old-school scouting".

41 minutes ago, ROCBillsBeliever said:

That reads like a bowel movement... he must really know his s*** ???

 

Do you spend much of your time seeking reading material in dog parks and commodes or ??

 

I mean, I get the point - it reads like "word vomit"  - I just found the analogy curious.  Outside of gastroenterology, who reads bowel movements for a living?

 

 

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16 minutes ago, ScottLaw said:

Not sure why people get up in arms over all this stuff. 

 

These guys do a lot of research on these players and then give a prediction based on their research. It's a nice job to have because it doesn't matter if they are right or wrong, they'll still have a job.... it's just his opinion on a player that happened to be picked by that Bills. It has no barring on if Allen will be successful or not so I never understood why people got pissed over this stuff.

 

 

 

I generally agree with this notion...however, the tone and exactness of his comments regarding Allen smacks of total disrespect regarding what this kid accomplished last season. 

 

Josh Allen will have a great platform to prove the doubters (though "haters" seems like a more appropriate term for this guy) wrong with the first game of the season being played on the road in the biggest media market on the planet.

 

 

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