re: Jayden Daniels - Heisman Finalist 2023

A high completion percentage isn't the end-all be-all to being considered efficient.

When Hurts was at Bama, they had a great running game, to include his ability to run. Not only must a QB be capable of completing passes at an average to higher than average rate but they also must produce a pretty sizable number of explosive plays.

LSU was below average by a lot at producing explosive plays this year. Daniels completing most of his passes within about 12 yards downfield. Dinking and dunking is harder than most fans realize. You must be able to score TD's at a high clip when you get in the redzone.

When you produce a good amount of explosive plays, it can mask your inability to operate your offense in the RZ because you're scoring on big plays before ever getting in or close to the RZ.

Think about some of the games where we struggled or lost this season. We were able to move the ball between the 20's but couldn't produce TD's in the RZ. Efficiency is more than completion percentage, it's also measured by how many points you score per possession. Also, how off do you score in got-to-have-it situations.

Hurts is a better QB now and was a better QB than Daniels in college. Not knocking JD but I just don't see him ever been a starter in the NFL. Yet Hurts is in the MVP conversation as we read this.

32 Passing TD's and 20 rushing TD's in a single season is insane! JD had 16 passing and 11 rushing this year. DRASTIC difference from Hurts. Both had phenomenal freshmen years, mediocre sophomore and junior years, and both transferred to new schools and learned new offenses in their 4th year. I think JD's best season is still his freshman season, I could be wrong though. He had Brandon Aiyuk and was throwing deep balls like crazy!

I keep seeing some fans keep saying how he's the best QB at LSU outside of Burrow. That's COMPLETELY not true. Jamarcus Russell was also better than JD. Remember the guy that was the #1 pick? I know we've had bad QB's at LSU for mostly 2 decades or so, so it's not saying a lot to say he's better than most of them. We're FAR from being a school with a history of great QB's.

Go look at the stats of some pretty decent QB's from their 1st season starting and see what their stats looked like in their 2nd season. Then remember that Daniels has started 3 years prior to coming here and this season.

Mac Jones had 1500 yards, 14 Passing TD's, and 3 INT's in year 1. He followed that up with 4500 yds, 41 and 4. Tua had 636 yds, 11 Td's and 2 Int's in year 1. He followed it up with almost 4000 43 and 6. A.J. McCarron had 2600 yds, 16 passing TD's and 5 INT's in year 1. He followed that up 2900 yds, 30 passing TD's and 3 INT's.

Bama have had good to great QB's for the better part of Saban's stint there. All had significantly better stats and performances than JD5. I used them because Bama is who we compete with. Also, if you look at their stats, they made the biggest jump in performance from their 1st year starting to their 2nd year. Their performance was about the same level afterwards.

There's always the possibility but it would be a rare occurrence if JD made HUGE strides next year.

LOL...Daniels is not a more "natural thrower" than Hurts. Daniels passes VERY RARELY result in tight spirals. WR's typically have to some back and find the ball because anything over 25 yards is usually short. His throws are wobbly as heck.

His legs will be minimal at the next level unless he packs on a lot more size, which may then take away from his athleticism. When defenses started hitting him more, he was easily injured. He has a very thin frame.

Again, Hurts transferred to a new school and played 1 season in a new scheme in which he put up 32 Passing and 20 rushing TD's. Imagine 2 years in that same offense! I think many have overlooked when the commentators earlier in the season mentioned talking to the coaching staff and was told that they took out the plays that Daniels wasn't comfortable with. That is partly why our offense isn't as diverse as it could be. Hurts was WAAAY better than many thought, which is evidenced by the MVP talk this year.

16 Passing TD's in 13 games is pretty average at best. The fact that we're near the bottom of the conference in explosive plays is also pretty telling. I knew we were in trouble when I felt as if he was hesitant to make throws. Then once BK said in a presser Daniels needed to take a few more chances, I knew it would be a long season. I just don't recall hearing a coach want a player to "maybe not be so adverse to turning the ball over" and take more chances. QB's usually have a gun slinger mentality and typically need to be reeled in.

LOL...Hurts was NEVER hesitant at Bama. He was benched because he was struggling in the title game and Saban decided in the 2nd half to go with another QB (Tua) to see if he could produce a spark. It worked and there is the difference between Saban and many coaches. He doesn't care about anything but winning. He has no loyalty to players, nor does he care about how they feel. He's not a players' coach.

But don't forget how Hurts lost the job in the title game and was benched in favor of Tua....only to come back the following season and play the 2nd half of the SECCG and bring Bama back enroute to winning that game.

He wasn't hesitant to pass at Bama and damn sure wasn't hesitant at Oklahoma. He threw 32 TD's and ran for 20 more that season and still lost the Heisman to Burrow and it wasn't close!

JD...Heisman? Man, Caleb Williams was a sophomore this year, 1st yr at USC and in a new offense same as Daniels. While JD has 16 passing and 11 rushing TD's....Williams has 37 passing and 10 rushing TD's. That's 1 player right there that he won't be better than next year.

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LOL...Hurts was NEVER hesitant at Bama.

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We remember it differently. The offense was heavily designed around Hurt's legs. When he was asked to win with his arm at Bama, it was exposed. The point is that he was not an elite passer. He took a big step at Oklahoma, and a huge step
forward this season.

As to Caleb, you already know how difficult it is to win back to back Heismans. JD makes the jump in 2023. He will be a finalist.

Meet you back here in December.