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One of the uncomfortable truths about quarterbacks headed into their late 30s is that the cliff of performance decline can seemingly come out of nowhere in a relatively short amount of time.
Dan Fouts led the league in yards per attempt (YPA) at age 34 then only two years later had the second lowest YPA mark of his career. He called it quits after that season.
Dan Marino led the league in net yards per attempt when he was 35 years old. In each of the next three seasons, he failed to top the 7-yard YPA mark, a statistical feat that happened to him only once prior to 1996.
Fran Tarkenton led the league in touchdown passes and passer rating in 1975 at the age of 35. Two years later, his numbers saw a significant decrease and that drop-off culminated in a 1978 schedule that saw Tarkenton throw 32 interceptions and rank 25th in passer rating on his way to graduating into a broadcasting career.
These are but three of a large number of potential examples that illustrate just how unforgiving Father Time can be at that stage of a quarterback's life.
As painful as it is to say this, after a detailed review of the 2012 New England Patriots season, it looks like Tom Brady, who will turn 36 prior to the 2013 season, will very soon serve as another example of this type of dramatic decline.
At first glance, this might not look to be the case. After all, Brady ranked second in the league in Total QBR, fourth in passing yards and touchdown passes and was tied for first in interception percentage.
Good as those figures are, they belie some disturbing trends. Brady's YPA (7.6) and completion percentage (63.0) were his lowest since 2006 and his touchdown percentage (5.3) was his lowest since 2009.
He also showed a significant statistical drop down the stretch, as his December numbers in YPA (7.0), completion percentage (58.5) and touchdown to interception ratio (10-to-5) were the worst monthly totals of his 2012 season.
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Dan Fouts led the league in yards per attempt (YPA) at age 34 then only two years later had the second lowest YPA mark of his career. He called it quits after that season.
Dan Marino led the league in net yards per attempt when he was 35 years old. In each of the next three seasons, he failed to top the 7-yard YPA mark, a statistical feat that happened to him only once prior to 1996.
Fran Tarkenton led the league in touchdown passes and passer rating in 1975 at the age of 35. Two years later, his numbers saw a significant decrease and that drop-off culminated in a 1978 schedule that saw Tarkenton throw 32 interceptions and rank 25th in passer rating on his way to graduating into a broadcasting career.
These are but three of a large number of potential examples that illustrate just how unforgiving Father Time can be at that stage of a quarterback's life.
As painful as it is to say this, after a detailed review of the 2012 New England Patriots season, it looks like Tom Brady, who will turn 36 prior to the 2013 season, will very soon serve as another example of this type of dramatic decline.
At first glance, this might not look to be the case. After all, Brady ranked second in the league in Total QBR, fourth in passing yards and touchdown passes and was tied for first in interception percentage.
Good as those figures are, they belie some disturbing trends. Brady's YPA (7.6) and completion percentage (63.0) were his lowest since 2006 and his touchdown percentage (5.3) was his lowest since 2009.
He also showed a significant statistical drop down the stretch, as his December numbers in YPA (7.0), completion percentage (58.5) and touchdown to interception ratio (10-to-5) were the worst monthly totals of his 2012 season.
More:
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