The strange start to the 2018 season is turning into a test to see how much top quarterbacks can fix troubled teams.
NFC quarterbacks have really been challenged. Only five NFC teams have winning records. The Atlanta Falcons are in a deep hole with their 1-4 start. A top seven-or-eight quarterback can usually count on being on at least a nine-win team. Rarely does a top-level quarterback have a losing season.
Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Andrew Luck (when he’s healthy), Russell Wilson and Ben Roethlisberger have never endured a losing season. But in certain seasons, even the great quarterbacks can’t overcome teams with two main problems _ bad defenses and the lack of a running game.
I went back to 2008 to study the top quarterbacks. The only top quarterbacks who couldn’t get their teams to .500 or better were Matt Ryan, Drew Brees and Cam Newton. Peyton Manning once told me that it’s hard for quarterback playing on teams that give up 27 or more points a game.
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