John Laghezza went deep on Andy Dalton ahead of his Week 10 matchup against the Steelers. Check out this section, in particular:
The argument for Andy Dalton, thus far, may already hold up to scrutiny given the desperate circumstances, but there’s something else I noticed. It should not only strengthen this case, but give us something actionable to look out for going forward. Oftentimes we oversimplify defenses into binary bins — either labeled good or bad — but it’s a bit more nuanced than that. Quarterback styles and processing speeds play stronger against certain defensive concepts, and Dalton’s obliteration of man coverage/under pressure is a perfect example. He’s essentially two different QBs depending on the opposing scheme. These splits by coverage type are drastic, even resonating throughout his one monster (361-4-3) start. (Please do your best to ignore the irony of me combating oversimplification with more oversimplification, but I think this may help.)
Andy Dalton vs. Zone Coverage (Year To Date):
79-775-2-3
66.9% Completion (29th)
80.3 Passer Rating (32nd)
-0.06 EPA/Dropback (30th)
35.6% Passes To 1st Down Marker (25th)
Andy Dalton vs. Man Coverage (Year To Date):
23-388-6-1
119.6 Passer Rating (3rd)
0.52 EPA/Dropback (2nd)
72.5% Passes To 1st Down Marker (2nd)
Andy Dalton vs. Zone Coverage (vs. ARI)
23-239-1-3
59.1 Passer Rating
-0.25 EPA/Dropback
31.4% Passes To 1st Down Marker
Andy Dalton vs. Man Coverage (vs. ARI)
7-122-3-0
132.6 Passer Rating
0.63 EPA/Dropback
66.4% Passes To 1st Down Marker
The Saints have done a great job using men in motion at the line of scrimmage to identify coverage schemes, allowing the QB to thrive. All year long, Dalton’s continually shown the courage necessary to hang in the pocket under duress while rolling with pressure to make the right read, resulting in a 1.16 EPA vs. the blitz this season (first overall among QBs). If the Steelers bring the heat, Dalton’s going to do some carving in the kitchen.
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