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Factoid

Manning & Rivers

Heralded quarterbacks haven't been great TD throwers

Eli Manning and Philip Rivers have been great quarterbacks for a lot of years. Just maybe not quite as great as you might think.

Manning, believe it or not, has never ranked in the top 5 in touchdowns per game. That’s total touchdowns (he doesn’t run much), and that’s per-game production. (Manning doesn’t miss games, which is one of his selling points, but he’s not rewarded for that in this kind of a look.)

Similarly, Rivers has ranked in the top 5 in touchdowns per game only once, and it occurred back in 2008 (when he threw 34 touchdowns). As with Manning, Rivers doesn’t miss games and doesn’t run for touchdowns – just 3 in his career.

On the charts below, I’m comparing Rivers and Manning each year against other quarterbacks who started at least half of the games . Each season there are about 32 such quarterbacks.

In general, Rivers and Manning tend to finish above-average but don’t separate from the good quarterbacks by tossing a whole bunch of touchdowns.

Rivers and Manning also tend to finish above-average in passing yards, but those aren’t listed here.

It’s weird. These quarterbacks are both really good – they might both wind up in the Hall of Fame (I consider them to both be better than some quarterbacks who are already enshrined). But neither has been a truly great touchdown thrower.

RIVERS: TOUCHDOWNS PER START
YearStPassRunAvgRnk
2006162201.3812T
2007162111.3813T
2008163402.131T
2009162811.816T
2010163001.888
2011162711.7510
2012162601.6314T
2013163202.006
2014163101.949T
2015162901.8115
2016163302.067

For Manning, no ranking for his rookie season because he wasn’t a starter for at least half of that season.

MANNING: TOUCHDOWNS PER START
YearStPassRunAvgRnk
2004760.86---
2005162411.567T
2006162401.506T
2007162311.5012
2008162111.3815T
2009162701.6912T
2010163101.947
2011162911.889
2012162601.6314T
2013161801.1327T
2014163011.949T
2015163502.196T
2016162601.6316T

—Ian Allan

Fantasy Index