Miami quarterback Jay Culter ranks near the bottom of the list of starting quarterbacks in the NFL, according to analytics website Football Outsiders.
They evaluate quarterbacks according to a defense-adjusted yards-above-replacement (DYAR) measure, and Cutler has a minus-192, which ranks 31st in the league, ahead of only Cleveland Browns rookie Deshone Kizer. They also rank the quarterbacks according to the defense-adjusted value over average (DVOA), and Cutler has a minus-33.1 rating, which also ranks 31st.
Cutler, who signed after starting quarterback Ryan Tannehill suffered a season-ending left knee injury, has completed 82 of 131 passes for 706 yards and three touchdowns and thrown three interceptions. He has a passer rating of 74.8.
With Cutler at the controls, the Dolphins rank last in the NFL (32nd) in seven key offensive categories: yards per game (231.3), yards per play (3.9), passing net yards per game (156.5), passing net yards per play (4.35), first downs per game (15), third-down efficiency (25 percent) and points per game (10.3).
The Dolphins, who went to the playoffs last season, opened with a win over the Chargers before losing to the Jets and Saints. Cutler outdueled the Titans’ Matt Cassel for a 16-10 win last week. He directed the Dolphins on their third offensive touchdown drive of the season to pull out the win.
“Man, you just want to come out and start fast because initially you don’t want to let anybody stay around,” Falcons free safety Ricardo Allen said. “A quarterback like Jay Cutler has won games before. You don’t want to keep giving him a chance to score because he can.”
The Falcons are not looking at Miami’s putrid numbers and Cutler’s low ranking.
“I don’t care what they’ve struggled at; maybe they’ve struggled against a certain type of defense,” Allen said. “Maybe they struggled getting themselves together. You just have to be ready ...”
About the Author
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured
