NBC...here's what you could have done...

NBC...you could have spent your pre-game show for Sunday Night's St. Louis/Seattle game talking about how Sam Bradford had unimpressive stats this year vs. one of the softest schedules in the league. You could have talked about how badly he played the last time he ran into an opponent who knew what they were doing.

That would be...
21-43-2-181 at home against Kansas City two weeks ago.

You could have talked about how 7-8 St. Louis would probably have been more like 5-10 if they had played a league average schedule. They entered Sunday Night's game having faced the 31st ranked scheduled (out of 32 teams) according to the USA Today computer ratings.

You could have talked about how Bradford ranked 24th in the league in Passer Rating entering the night, with an unimpressive 18-14 TD/INT ratio...and how THOSE numbers came against a very soft schedule.

You could have talked about how St. Louis ranked 24th in the NFL in 3rd Down conversion rate, with a paltry 34% mark. And, how THAT came against a very soft schedule. Quarterbacks have a huge impact on a team's third down conversion rate.

The story was there for the telling...how the Sam Bradford hype was at least partly an illusion (if not more). Yes, he's doing okay for a rookie. Just okay. Not great. Not "Oh my God this Rookie of the Year is Destined For Greatness. A mediocre passer rating, an unimpressive TD/INT ratio, an inability to convert third downs, all against a pathetic schedule.

If the Rams entered the week 5-10 (and subsequently lost for 5-11), would ANYONE be raving about Sam Bradford in this fashion? Up-and-comer, sure. GUSH, GUSH, GUSH, TELL US ABOUT THE PING PONG TABLE YOU BOUGHT!!!! Please.

NBC, you would have looked like geniuses. You would have been hailed for seeing through the hype and telling viewers what they really needed to know. Instead, all the pre-game chatter looked pretty silly when THIS happened...

SEATTLE 16, ST. LOUIS 6
Total Yardage: St. Louis 184, Seattle 333
Yards-Per-Play: St. Louis 3.6, Seattle 4.7
Passing Lines: St. Louis 19-36-1-137, Seattle 22-36-0-192
Turnovers: St. Louis 1, Seattle 1
Sloppiness: St. Louis 22, Seattle 19
Third Downs: St. Louis 14% (2 of 14!), Seattle 27%

Oh, Seattle has one of the worst defenses statistically in the league. And, THEY ALSO PLAYED A SOFT SCHEDULE!

I'm not going to call Bradford a choker or anything like that. He's a gamer who's still in over his head. In proper context, there's reason to be optimistic about his longterm future. In terms of what's happening THIS year, it's as if the mainstream media is bending over backwards to NOT tell the story.

I think the Funhouse Mirror League helped us with this. Focusing on the teams playing very soft schedules helped us see St. Louis as being a couple of games worse than their already unimpressive record. Also, posting the YPP numbers with every boxscore helped express their weakness in that area. The Rams ranked 30th in the league in YPP entering the game, and will probably drop down to 31st. Is that a characteristic of great quarterbacking?

We got to see a lot of Bradford down here in Big 12 country. It would be great if he does have a big NFL career. Just be honest about where he is, and the pace he's progressing at.

Back after Monday Night's Orange Bowl to run the numbers from Stanford/Virginia Tech...