SB Nation St. Louis - Sam Bradford's Bad Season: A Hall Of Famer Roll Callhttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/49009/stl-fave.png2012-01-02T07:00:07-06:00http://stlouis.sbnation.com/rss/stream/24301162012-01-02T07:00:07-06:002012-01-02T07:00:07-06:00Sam Bradford And Hall Of Fame Slumps: The Peyton Manning Thing
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/udxen_CkerNq9S-Cf1G8gw1rd5g=/0x26:400x293/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/47828135/large_stlouis.sbnation.com.minimal.0.png" />
</figure>
<p>Okay, okay, so <span>Peyton Manning's</span> never really slumped. But that's exactly it: Our desperation for <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/teams/st-louis-rams">St. Louis Rams</a>-related optimism and <span>Sam Bradford's</span> superficially appealing numbers created a Bradford of our own design, one the real Bradford couldn't possibly match coming off a lockout-shortened offseason and made to learn a mad scientist's offense with a wide receiver corps bolted together from Dr. Frankenstein's parts. Sam Bradford never was Peyton Manning in 2010-which doesn't mean, I guess, that he couldn't be in 2012.</p>
<p>It just means that we were a little too pleased with that true-rookie yardage record that put him within 200 yards of Manning himself. It was true enough, as it went-Manning was also on an awful team and led the NFL in attempts for a seasn that was more promising than it was impressive.</p>
<p>But what made him Manning wasn't that year-it was all the other ones, and the enormous leaps he made in 1999 and again in 2004. Bradford didn't make the leap in 2011, but it wasn't a step down so much as an injury-shortened lateral move. Now that we know who Bradford really is, maybe we can wait to see who he becomes in 2012.</p>
<p><i>For a complete look at SB Nation St. Louis's series on Sam Bradford and Hall of Fame quarterbacks who had similarly disastrous starts, <a style="color: #c8181d !important; text-decoration: none !important; background-color: transparent;" target="_blank" href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-rams/2011/12/28/2666075/sam-bradford-slump-hall-of-fame">click through to this Storystream</a> and subscribe.</i></p>
https://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-rams/2012/1/2/2666126/sam-bradford-peyton-manning-hall-of-fameDan Moore2012-01-01T07:00:16-06:002012-01-01T07:00:16-06:00Sam Bradford And Hall Of Fame Slumps: When John Elway Was Junk And Andrew Luck
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/udxen_CkerNq9S-Cf1G8gw1rd5g=/0x26:400x293/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/47828135/large_stlouis.sbnation.com.minimal.0.png" />
</figure>
<p>Surely Sam Bradford skeptics have memorized the litany of Andrew Luck-isms spouted by NFL Mock Draft experts since last year, where he was already the best quarterback prospect in the draft since-well, John Elway, among others. <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/teams/st-louis-rams">St. Louis Rams</a> fans would probably settle for the actual John Elway, weirdly human though his numbers might be, but it's worth remembering just how pedestrian he was in his rookie season, after all the praise had washed away.</p>
<p>Elway's early career was, in its own right, an endless stream of failures and near-misses. The Drive was followed by the Super Bowl loss, and then another, more brutal one. Bradford hasn't even driven yet, let alone Driven, so we might focus on Elway's disappointing debut. Going to the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.milehighreport.com/">Broncos</a> after engineering his own departure from the Baltimore <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.stampedeblue.com/">Colts</a>, Elway proceeded to complete fewer than half his passes in his rookie season, throwing 14 interceptions against seven touchdowns and showing above-average in zero statistical areas.</p>
<p>Maybe the problem with <span>Sam Bradford's</span> career to date isn't the aborted 2011-it's the superficially impressive 2010. Sure, in a conservative offense, in an increasingly passing-dominated NFL, after a season in which Rams fans saw <span>Keith Null</span> as the most competent general on the field, Bradford threw for 3000 yards. But he wasn't <span>Peyton Manning</span> yet-he finished near the bottom of the yards-per-attempt tables, almost exactly where he is this year-and it set our expectations too high.</p>
<p>Maybe it's set our expectations too low, now.</p>
<p><i>For a complete look at SB Nation St. Louis's series on Sam Bradford and Hall of Fame quarterbacks who had similarly disastrous starts, <a style="color: #c8181d !important; text-decoration: none !important; background-color: transparent;" target="_blank" href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-rams/2011/12/28/2666075/sam-bradford-slump-hall-of-fame">click through to this Storystream</a> and subscribe.</i></p>
https://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-rams/2012/1/1/2666117/sam-bradford-andrew-luck-hall-of-fameDan Moore2011-12-31T07:00:11-06:002011-12-31T07:00:11-06:00Sam Bradford And Hall Of Fame Slumps: When Steve Young Was Second Banana (And Second Chances)
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/udxen_CkerNq9S-Cf1G8gw1rd5g=/0x26:400x293/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/47828135/large_stlouis.sbnation.com.minimal.0.png" />
</figure>
<p>Imagine the worst possible quarterback to bury behind Joe Montana until he's 30. He's probably heavily reliant on athleticism; he has a lot of unique skills that could be maximized in an offense you build around them; he's a huge name who's already had a heavily publicized failure or two hung around his neck. He's really not like Sam Bradford-a conventional, highly talented, still popular face-of-the-franchise-at all. But he's Steve Young, and when he finally did hit the NFL full-time at 30 he had one of the most extraordinary statistical runs in football history.</p>
<p>Steve Young's early career is pockmarked by false starts—it began with an enormous contract that he had no chance of seeing the end of in the struggling USFL, and it continued in Tampa Bay, where he went 3-16 as the beleaguered <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bucsnation.com/">Buccaneers</a>' starter until they decided to replace him with the immortal <span>Vinny Testaverde</span>. In four seasons after that he put together a patchwork series of excellent performances before Joe Montana's injuries finally gave him a chance to start, whereupon he proved even better than anyone could have anticipated.</p>
<p>Football careers are strange, speaking as someone who's come from baseball's more easily understood Hall of Fame debates. Not every quarterback has so consistently confusing and second-chancey a career as Steve Young's, or <span>Kurt Warner's</span>, but <span>Sam Bradford's</span> doesn't much stick out yet. </p>
<p><i>For a complete look at SB Nation St. Louis's series on Sam Bradford and Hall of Fame quarterbacks who had similarly disastrous starts, <a style="color: #c8181d !important; text-decoration: none !important; background-color: transparent;" target="_blank" href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-rams/2011/12/28/2666075/sam-bradford-slump-hall-of-fame">click through to this Storystream</a> and subscribe.</i></p>
https://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-rams/2011/12/31/2666098/sam-bradford-and-hall-of-fame-slumps-when-steve-young-was-secondDan Moore2011-12-30T07:00:22-06:002011-12-30T07:00:22-06:00Sam Bradford And Hall Of Fame Slumps: When Warren Moon Was Wasted (And New Systems)
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/udxen_CkerNq9S-Cf1G8gw1rd5g=/0x26:400x293/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/47828135/large_stlouis.sbnation.com.minimal.0.png" />
</figure>
<p>Warren Moon's best known now for his awesome longevity, which saw him take his first NFL snap at 28 years old and still finish with nearly 50,000 yards through the air, but he didn't have his most prolific seasons until he was 34-thanks in part to the time it took for the Houston Oilers to design the right system around his talents. Surely <span>Sam Bradford</span> and the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/teams/st-louis-rams">St. Louis Rams</a> can empathize with that particular problem.</p>
<p>The Oilers knew they had an arm like they'd never seen before from the beginning-he got 450 pass attempts in 1984-but it wasn't until 1986 when Moon was given the signal to air it out, and success, at first, was limited; he threw 26 interceptions that year. Year by year his yards per attempt crept up, and finally his accuracy followed; by 1991 the Oilers were throwing like few teams ever had, all the way up to 41 times per game, and Moon responded with two consecutive seasons over 4600 yards.</p>
<p>Designing a system around Sam Bradford shouldn't be nearly as difficult; he's not an African American refugee of the CFL, he's a prototypical NFL quarterback with a golden arm, No. 1 pick credentials, and a Heisman Trophy before he was old enough to drink.</p>
<p>Somehow, the Rams have had problems anyway. Pat Shurmur's conservative offense masked Bradford's limitations and the Rams offense's considerable weaknesses well enough, but it wasn't going to push a team into real playoff contention; meanwhile, Josh McDaniels's exotic offense has been an unmitigated disaster after a hasty post-lockout installation. Whatever it takes, the Rams need to find an offense that plays to the strengths they drafted-and for what it's worth, they should probably do it before Bradford turns 34.</p>
<p><i>For a complete look at SB Nation St. Louis's series on Sam Bradford and Hall of Fame quarterbacks who had similarly disastrous starts, <a style="color: #c8181d !important; text-decoration: none !important; background-color: transparent;" target="_blank" href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-rams/2011/12/28/2666075/sam-bradford-slump-hall-of-fame">click through to this Storystream</a> and subscribe.</i></p>
https://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-rams/2011/12/30/2666089/sam-bradford-hall-of-fame-warren-moonDan Moore2011-12-29T07:00:50-06:002011-12-29T07:00:50-06:00Sam Bradford And Hall Of Fame Slumps: When Troy Aikman Was Terrible And Drafts
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/udxen_CkerNq9S-Cf1G8gw1rd5g=/0x26:400x293/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/47828135/large_stlouis.sbnation.com.minimal.0.png" />
</figure>
<p>Here's an easy one, as we begin our series on Hall of Fame careers <span>Sam Bradford</span> could still emulate: Troy Aikman, the first overall pick of the 1989 NFL Draft, went 0-11 in his <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bloggingtheboys.com/">Dallas Cowboys</a> debut, and looked the part. Throwing twice as many interceptions-18-as touchdowns, the eventually super-accurate Aikman completed just over half his passes and did what little damage he managed on the ground, where he was flushed out of the pocket for 302 yards on 38 attempts. Already 23, the UCLA alum wasn't supposed to be a work-in-progress, but in 1989 he didn't even look much like a work.</p>
<p>Aikman-like Bradford-was an immensely talented quarterback, and probably would have gotten better eventually no matter what happened. But the Cowboys took a shortcut to quarterback fame as Super Bowl glory-selecting Emmitt Smith in the 1990 NFL Draft. With Michael Irvin, 1988's first rounder, Aikman suddenly had all the offensive weapons he could hope for. In 1991 he and the Cowboys turned the corner, and three Super Bowls later Aikman was a Hall of Famer.</p>
<p>This shows just how important the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/teams/st-louis-rams">Rams</a>' drafting will be to Bradford's future-and how much of a mess it's been so far. If <span>Jason Smith</span> had been the anchor we expected, maybe Bradford wouldn't have spent all of 2011 being reintroduced to the Edward Jones Dome's artificial turf; if Justin Blackmon or whomever the Rams select in 2012 is more America's Team than Billy Devaney's Team, maybe things will turn around in a hurry.</p>
<p><i>For a complete look at SB Nation St. Louis's series on Sam Bradford and Hall of Fame quarterbacks who had similarly disastrous starts, <a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-rams/2011/12/28/2666075/sam-bradford-slump-hall-of-fame" target="_blank">click through to this Storystream</a> and subscribe. </i></p>
https://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-rams/2011/12/29/2666078/sam-bradford-and-hall-of-fame-slumps-when-troy-aikman-was-terribleDan Moore2011-12-28T07:00:31-06:002011-12-28T07:00:31-06:00Sam Bradford And The Hall Of Fame Quarterback Slump
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/udxen_CkerNq9S-Cf1G8gw1rd5g=/0x26:400x293/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/47828135/large_stlouis.sbnation.com.minimal.0.png" />
</figure>
<p>Sam Bradford's St. Louis Rams start has been derailed by an unimpressive season; how many future Hall of Famers have had the same problem?</p> <p><span>Sam Bradford</span> has had a disappointing season, both before and after the injuries. <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/teams/st-louis-rams">St. Louis Rams</a> fans—almost all of whom now own Sam Bradford jerseys—have allowed themselves to admit as much. After a promising (if limited) rookie season and enough excitement, ahead of Josh McDaniels's debut as offensive coordinator, for visions of a 4000-yard season to dance in our heads, Bradford, while dealing with a high-ankle sprain, has had exactly one-and-a-half of the kind of games we were hoping for all year—his 328 yard performance in Green Bay, hamstrung by the Rams' season-long inability to get into the end zone, and about half of his Monday Night Football show in New York, where he and <span>Danario Alexander</span> briefly fulfilled all the dreams we'd imagined for them.</p>
<p>Aside from that: Ugliness. He's been maybe a little better than we think—inasmuch as he was a little worse than we thought last year—but it hasn't been good, and it's ended with <span>Kellen Clemens</span> playing out the string and the Rams on the verge of an Andrew Luck sighting in NFL Mock Drafts. </p>
<p>So Sam Bradford, alas, isn't a Hall of Famer yet. But could he still be one? Over the next few days we'll be looking at Canton quarterbacks who got off to starts as ignominious as 2011 has been for the Rams' ex-savior, and seeing how, when, and why they pulled out of that tailspin and figured things out on the way to Ohio. So subscribe to this storystream—"like" it on Facebook—and hope against hope that, come 2012, you'll be able to wear your Bradford jersey again. </p>
https://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-rams/2011/12/28/2661798/sam-bradford-hall-of-fame-quarterback-slumpDan Moore