Bon giorno from Colorado with a couple of statistical nuggets that I was going to get to last night before I got detoured into some behind-the-scenes site work …
TALKING PUNTERS: We touched upon the punting/kickoff competition in the Saturday night pregame entry, and here’s how Paul Ernster and Todd Sauerbrun now stand statistically with one game remaining:
KICKOFFS:
AVERAGE LENGTH: Ernster 72.4 yards, Sauerbrun 69.5 yards (note — I counted the actual distance of Ernster’s game-opening wallop against Cleveland, which was approximately 85 yards, as it landed five yards behind the touchline in the back of the end zone).
TOUCHBACK PERCENTAGE: Ernster 50.0 percent, Sauerbrun 50.0 percent.
AVERAGE DRIVE-START POSITION AFTER KICKOFFS: Ernster DEN 25.5; Sauerbrun DEN 26.0.
SHORTEST KICKOFFS: Ernster 63 yards, Sauerbrun 61 yards.
PUNTS:
AVERAGE LENGTH: Ernster 45.0 yards, Sauerbrun 40.4 yards
NET AVERAGE: Ernster 41.7, Sauerbrun 33.3
PUNTS INSIDE THE 20: Ernster 3, Sauerbrun 1.
TOUCHBACKS: Ernster 0, Sauerbrun 2.
SHORTEST PUNTS: Ernster 33 yards, Sauerbrun 15.
Ernster’s net punting average places him fifth in the league this preseason, behind Pittsburgh’s Mike Barr, Carolina’s Jason Baker, New Orleans’ Steven Weatherford and Houston’s Chad Stanley. His inside-the-20 percentage of 50.0 percent places him tied for sixth in the league among punters with at least 5 punts this preseason; Ernster has six so far. Sauerbrun’s statistics are based off of a total of nine punts.
CUTLER’S RANKING: After quarterback Jay Cutler’s solid night against the Browns on Saturday — 9-of-16 passing for 115 yards, a touchdown and a 99.7 passer rating — I wondered where he stood among his starting-quarterback brethren as far as his preseason passer rating.
The answer? Somewhere in the middle third.
Cutler’s preseason rating of 85.0 places him 18th among the starters, behind names like Peyton Manning, Matt Schaub and Matt Leinart but ahead of others such as Brett Favre, Ben Roethlisberger, Vince Young and Marc Bulger — whose 51.0 rating belies his lofty status in many fantasy-football drafts, where he is generally among the more coveted passers.
Here’s all the preseason passer ratings for the likely opening-day starters around the league:
Peyton Manning, Colts: 126.1
Philip Rivers, Chargers: 117.3
Jon Kitna, Lions: 115.0
Matt Leinart, Cardinals: 114.3
Matt Schaub, Texans: 113.4
Daunte Culpepper, Raiders: 112.2
Eli Manning, Giants: 111.3
Drew Brees, Saints: 107.5
Alex Smith, 49ers: 103.9
Carson Palmer, Bengals: 96.1
Matt Hasselbeck, Seahawks: 95.6
Steve McNair, Ravens: 92.6
Joey Harrington, Falcons: 92.5
Rex Grossman, Bears: 91.5
Tom Brady, Patriots: 91.1
Tony Romo, Cowboys: 89.7
Donovan McNabb, Eagles: 89.2
Jay Cutler, Broncos: 85.0
Vince Young, Titans: 83.6
Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers: 83.5
Brett Favre, Packers: 82.3
Jeff Garcia, Buccaneers: 81.5
Jason Campbell, Redskins: 81.4
Jake Delhomme, Panthers: 80.7
Byron Leftwitch, Jaguars: 77.3
Tarvaris Jackson, Vikings: 76.8
Charlie Frye, Browns: 76.6
J.P. Losman, Bills: 72.4
Chad Pennington, Jets: 51.6
Marc Bulger, Rams: 51.0
Trent Green, Dolphins: 47.9
Damon Huard, Chiefs: 29.6
One more practice later today, and we’ll have coverage … until then, vaya con Dios.
Tags: Jay Cutler, Paul Ernster, Quarterbacks, Special Teams, Todd Sauerbrun
Cool to hear how we are stacking up against other positions and starters from around the league. I am so happy to have Jay on the team. Is his arm as strong as it seems on T.V.?
I really think that Paul Ernster will win the starting job this year over Todd Sauerbrun. I thought he’d looked better while watching the game, but after seeing the stats you listed, I feel even stronger that Ernster is the better kicker.
Thanks,
Jonathan Douglas
http://www.BroncoTalk.net
A question about the stats:
Did you take out the high and low for each before doing the average, otherwise they might be skewed by one really bad or good kick/punt, also nine punt is a pretty ridiculously samll sample size to make any judgements off of, the kicker will be determined in practice and in the coaches offices, not in the few preseason game kicks. If you have any access to statistics that are kept during the practice, those could be trulky enlightening.
Ernster looked better in the preseason last year too, but look how sh***y he did during the year. Ill take Sauerbrun.
OBF:
The high and low is not removed. The NFL does not remove high and low punts and kickoffs from their statistical measurements; therefore, neither do I. It is a small sample size, but I’d still wager it’s more accurate than measuring practice, where the players are rarely in full pads, which impacts the quality and speed the punt-rush and punt-protection units. Additionally, the the winds don’t generally swirl around on an open practice field the way they do in a stadium setting. It’s not quite apples and oranges. You can compare raw leg strength on the practice field, but as the variables accumulate in a game situation, it makes comparison from mid-week to game day difficult.
From the field-level angle I had at training camp, it was tough to judge yardage on punts. Based on hang-time numbers, Sauerbrun had the better of it on punts, but Ernster seemed to get a little more air under his kickoffs.
I think Cutler is going to be amazing. The offense should really come out of its shell this year with Javon Walker being totally healthy, Brandon Marshall looking really good, Brandon Stokely being nearly 100%, and Travis Henry running up and down opposing defenses. The only issue I have is with the defense, which is starting to show that they are getting more comfortable with the new system, and that comfort should begin to increase steadily as the regular season progresses. And by the way, what is up with the Rocky Mountain News writers and readers, I read an article that was totally bashing the Broncos and to make it worse the fans posting comments were jumping on the bashing bandwagon. Jeezus people, stick by your team or go find another sport to be fickle with. GO BRONCOS!!
100% Broncos Fan
[...] I have mixed feelings about losing Ernster – I applauded the move of releasing Sauerbrun last year after his 4-game suspension, based on the great work by Ernster. But, as many fans know, his game seemed to fall off last year after the competition wasn’t there nipping him at the butt. When Sauerbrun was brought back, I had said this would be Ernster’s last chance to earn (no pun intended) and keep his job. And he did that – just look at this statistical breakdown courtesy Andrew Mason: [...]
I agree with 100%. Granted the defense has a little way to go, but I think offensively, Jay just needs to be efficient to give us a chance to win. We have lots of talent on both sides of the ball, but the season begins and ends with our ability to beat Indy and the Chargers. I think we are good enough to do it, and have a great chance to make the playoffs. Superbowl??? Maybe, barring any major injuries. Rothlisberger is HALF the qb that Cutler is, but managed to win a ring behind a great defense. I think our defense is going to have to have a special year to get us to the BIG game. If they do, Jay is certainly good enough to deliver.
[...] Mason’s Morsels Blogging Since 2006 « Stats Pause: Punts, Kickoffs and a Quarterback [...]
Is “somewhere in the middle third” more palatable than saying “at the top of the bottom half of the league”?
Could we see a breakdown of pre-season playing minutes for the same list of “starters”? Or number of plays/downs? What about a ratio of pass v run for each? And could you just pop out and grab a couple cups o’ coffee and a bagel or two? Just kidding, I don’t really want a bagel…
With Todd, you get a proven commodity. Ernster’s play dropped off last year, dramatically, after Todd left.
Hmmmm….Pro Bowler, or ex-kicker.
Shanny took the smart move.