Yesterday's QB Comparison - Siemian vs. Armstrong

[Danny Bateman]

Tommy Gun went 18/29 for 221 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions. 12 yards per completion. He also ran for 55 yards on ten carries, and missed a TD on that acrobatic leap by maybe two inches. QB Rating of 78.5 on ESPN's scale (max = 100).Trevor Siemian went 18/39 for 173 yards, no touchdowns and one interception. 7 yards per completion. He "ran" for -26 yards, and no touchdowns. QB Rating of 26.7 on ESPN's scale.I know they were going against two very different defenses, but I may have to reevaluate my concern about Tommy's passing. He has TONS to work on, including footwork and hitting short passes with touch, but as an offensive weapon, overall, he's pretty effective.I'd like to see him run more on the Zone Read. Many of those gives/keeps are predetermined and they need to let Tommy keep it more. The Heisman Campaign needs to take a backseat to the needs of the team, and if we're going to have a running quarterback, he needs to do more running. He's effective in the open field.

I didn't know the gives and keeps are pre-determined. That bothers me a little bit. I have been complaining a bit about Tommy not keeping more. I wish he would. I'm not all too sure there isn't some injury concerns with his knee though. I've seen him a bit gimpy a few times this season.
I've been a huge supporter of Armstrong at QB. As he gets more comfortable out there, I think he will show the doubters a few things. Just got to keep working on using some touch and progressing through his targets. With all the shakeups at WR though, it can't be easy to be consistent when there is some inconsistency in who you're playing with. Pierson-El is a huge answer to a lot of our problems. This kid can take a lot of pressure off Tommy if we just utilize him properly.

Some are pre-determined, some are not. It's hard to tell watching the game live but easy to see watching the replays. I haven't gone back and re-watched the NW game yet but I thought he gave several he should have kept against MSU.

Which was crucial... If TA isn't keeping some and hurting the other team with his legs, he's an average to mediocre QB.

 

[Mavric]

Tommy Gun went 18/29 for 221 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions. 12 yards per completion. He also ran for 55 yards on ten carries, and missed a TD on that acrobatic leap by maybe two inches. QB Rating of 78.5 on ESPN's scale (max = 100).Trevor Siemian went 18/39 for 173 yards, no touchdowns and one interception. 7 yards per completion. He "ran" for -26 yards, and no touchdowns. QB Rating of 26.7 on ESPN's scale.I know they were going against two very different defenses, but I may have to reevaluate my concern about Tommy's passing. He has TONS to work on, including footwork and hitting short passes with touch, but as an offensive weapon, overall, he's pretty effective.I'd like to see him run more on the Zone Read. Many of those gives/keeps are predetermined and they need to let Tommy keep it more. The Heisman Campaign needs to take a backseat to the needs of the team, and if we're going to have a running quarterback, he needs to do more running. He's effective in the open field.

I didn't know the gives and keeps are pre-determined. That bothers me a little bit. I have been complaining a bit about Tommy not keeping more. I wish he would. I'm not all too sure there isn't some injury concerns with his knee though. I've seen him a bit gimpy a few times this season.
I've been a huge supporter of Armstrong at QB. As he gets more comfortable out there, I think he will show the doubters a few things. Just got to keep working on using some touch and progressing through his targets. With all the shakeups at WR though, it can't be easy to be consistent when there is some inconsistency in who you're playing with. Pierson-El is a huge answer to a lot of our problems. This kid can take a lot of pressure off Tommy if we just utilize him properly.

Some are pre-determined, some are not. It's hard to tell watching the game live but easy to see watching the replays. I haven't gone back and re-watched the NW game yet but I thought he gave several he should have kept against MSU.

Which was crucial... If TA isn't keeping some and hurting the other team with his legs, he's an average to mediocre QB.

That seems to be an exaggeration.

 

[Danny Bateman]

Bahe has said as much on 1620 and when I heard it, I agreed wholeheartedly.

He's not good enough with his arm yet, in this offense, to justify not giving us a lot on the ground.

 

[jager]

My buddy and I keep talking about how TA has changed his running style. Go back and look at last year, he ran with conviction and power. Now he looks like TMart out there running like he is scared to get hit. It is almost like the coaches are changing the way he wants to run the ball.

No. Not at all. Not even close. Where in the hell does stuff like this even come from? He doesn't run scared at all. Matter of fact, some of his most impressive runs have involved him lowering the boom. How about the hurdle over the Northwestern player last night? Yea, that's a guy playing scared right there......
This is so far off it's ridiculous.

Go back and watch the game again. Tommy did run tentatively several times. Others, he runs with conviction.

 

[True2tRA]

Tommy Gun went 18/29 for 221 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions. 12 yards per completion. He also ran for 55 yards on ten carries, and missed a TD on that acrobatic leap by maybe two inches. QB Rating of 78.5 on ESPN's scale (max = 100).Trevor Siemian went 18/39 for 173 yards, no touchdowns and one interception. 7 yards per completion. He "ran" for -26 yards, and no touchdowns. QB Rating of 26.7 on ESPN's scale.I know they were going against two very different defenses, but I may have to reevaluate my concern about Tommy's passing. He has TONS to work on, including footwork and hitting short passes with touch, but as an offensive weapon, overall, he's pretty effective.I'd like to see him run more on the Zone Read. Many of those gives/keeps are predetermined and they need to let Tommy keep it more. The Heisman Campaign needs to take a backseat to the needs of the team, and if we're going to have a running quarterback, he needs to do more running. He's effective in the open field.

I didn't know the gives and keeps are pre-determined. That bothers me a little bit. I have been complaining a bit about Tommy not keeping more. I wish he would. I'm not all too sure there isn't some injury concerns with his knee though. I've seen him a bit gimpy a few times this season.I've been a huge supporter of Armstrong at QB. As he gets more comfortable out there, I think he will show the doubters a few things. Just got to keep working on using some touch and progressing through his targets. With all the shakeups at WR though, it can't be easy to be consistent when there is some inconsistency in who you're playing with. Pierson-El is a huge answer to a lot of our problems. This kid can take a lot of pressure off Tommy if we just utilize him properly.

Some are pre-determined, some are not. It's hard to tell watching the game live but easy to see watching the replays. I haven't gone back and re-watched the NW game yet but I thought he gave several he should have kept against MSU.

Yea, this was why I was kind of concerned. The ones he should have kept were just blatantly obvious. Now I know why.

 

[True2tRA]

My buddy and I keep talking about how TA has changed his running style. Go back and look at last year, he ran with conviction and power. Now he looks like TMart out there running like he is scared to get hit. It is almost like the coaches are changing the way he wants to run the ball.

No. Not at all. Not even close. Where in the hell does stuff like this even come from? He doesn't run scared at all. Matter of fact, some of his most impressive runs have involved him lowering the boom. How about the hurdle over the Northwestern player last night? Yea, that's a guy playing scared right there......This is so far off it's ridiculous.

Go back and watch the game again. Tommy did run tentatively several times. Others, he runs with conviction.

Running tentatively "sometimes" is an attribute to every QB that plays the game. Being afraid of contact, or standing upright and taking shots like Martinez is another thing. Still, I don't remember seeing Armstrong doing either one. Matter of fact, the coaches got on him a bit, earlier in the season, for being a bit too reckless with his body.

This is one of those times I'll just say, whatever........we disagree.

 

[NUance]

Not running with conviction? WTH?? LOL. I doubt if there are half a dozen teams in the top 25 with a QB that can run as well as Tommy.

But I would like to see Tommy improve on checking down his receivers. Although that didn't seem to be as much of an issue against NW as in previous games. And also, it would be nice if he could throw short passes with a bit of touch and accuracy. It seems like they should be the easiest passes to complete, shouldn't they?

 

[knapplc]

Bahe has said as much on 1620 and when I heard it, I agreed wholeheartedly.

He's not good enough with his arm yet, in this offense, to justify not giving us a lot on the ground.

Chip is a great guy and I love listening to him on the radio. But Mike Welch on 93.7fm says Tommy is the greatest thing since sliced bread (paraphrasing) so I'll have to listen to the guys with differing opinions and form my own opinion.

Now, your opinion may jive with Bahe's, and I see where you're coming from. But I think a lot of that has to do with Tommy being a Sophomore and not reaching his full potential yet. We gotta judge Tommy by Tommy, not by Taylor or Tommie or Jamies, nor any other player.

Tommy makes mistakes, Tommy does some things really well. All things considered, his age, the situation in which he was placed in his career, where he is today... I'm pretty happy with the dude. He's got us to 6-1 as a Sophomore. He kinda seems to have that "it" factor, just lacks experience. He could stand to spend the same time Taylor spent with that quarterback guru dude from California (whose name I forget), but despite that, I'm pretty pleased with him.

I have made the argument that we could use a pin-point passer rather than a dual-threat QB in this offense and I still believe that. Tommy's skills are nice, but he misses too many throws. Overall, I'm pro-Armstrong, but I see where he could/should improve.

 

[RedRedJarvisRedwine]

Tommy will continue to get better. Maybe not at the rate most of us would like(yesterday) but it will come. He flashes. Sometimes I think hes being over coached. Id like to give him some roll out stuff where hes given some room to improvise.

 

[Fast Jimmy]

My buddy and I keep talking about how TA has changed his running style. Go back and look at last year, he ran with conviction and power. Now he looks like TMart out there running like he is scared to get hit. It is almost like the coaches are changing the way he wants to run the ball.

It's not 'almost' like that. The coaches understandably don't want to see him get injured.

An intelligent QB IS concerned about getting hit. Not really sure why we're having this conversation anyhow, since his game performance was quite good and clearly under-appreciated.

 

[Mierin]

2/3 of the posters with NU at the start of their name say crazy things.

And NUance feeds his victims to pigs.

 

[Danny Bateman]

Bahe has said as much on 1620 and when I heard it, I agreed wholeheartedly.

He's not good enough with his arm yet, in this offense, to justify not giving us a lot on the ground.

Chip is a great guy and I love listening to him on the radio. But Mike Welch on 93.7fm says Tommy is the greatest thing since sliced bread (paraphrasing) so I'll have to listen to the guys with differing opinions and form my own opinion.

Now, your opinion may jive with Bahe's, and I see where you're coming from. But I think a lot of that has to do with Tommy being a Sophomore and not reaching his full potential yet. We gotta judge Tommy by Tommy, not by Taylor or Tommie or Jamies, nor any other player.

Tommy makes mistakes, Tommy does some things really well. All things considered, his age, the situation in which he was placed in his career, where he is today... I'm pretty happy with the dude. He's got us to 6-1 as a Sophomore. He kinda seems to have that "it" factor, just lacks experience. He could stand to spend the same time Taylor spent with that quarterback guru dude from California (whose name I forget), but despite that, I'm pretty pleased with him.

I have made the argument that we could use a pin-point passer rather than a dual-threat QB in this offense and I still believe that. Tommy's skills are nice, but he misses too many throws. Overall, I'm pro-Armstrong, but I see where he could/should improve.

Oh I'm right there with you Knapp. I am fiercely pro-TA at this point. I question at times whether the coaches are doing absolutely everything they could to put him in a position to do his best, but that's an argument for another time.

I agree that he's a bit wet behind the ears yet and the decision making should improve with time. He certainly has the temperament to be a great QB at Nebraska. I love his attitude and confidence and most of all, usually the way he plays on Saturdays.

But, take a look at this:

http://espn.go.com/college-football/player/_/id/533270/tommy-armstrong-jr

Note the rushing statistics portion of his stats in those six Ws we've racked up versus the one L. Even that nifty QBR metric I don't quite understand fit the bill here. TA tore teams up running in the wins and did nothing against MSU.

Obviously, the MSU game was a craptastic effort from the OL and pretty much all the way around. But I'm using that to illustrate my point. I think if we line up and play an opponent of any type of mettle, Armstrong NEEDS to be able to run to make our offense click. That's the biggest advantage he gives our offense: He is a prototypical zone read QB that can hurt you bad with his legs. He's also capable ENOUGH to pilot the offense through the air, but not yet an expert enough passer that he can afford to abandon the run.

I agree too that Beck could be successful with a very proficient passer with no mobility. But TA is not a pin-point passer, yet. For our offense to run optimally, he has to make teams pay on the ground.

 

[Guy Chamberlin]

Tommy Armstrong is an incredible pinpoint passer. Except when he's not.

His strong arm convinces him he can take risks that maybe he shouldn't. Except for the times when it pays off brilliantly.

His running ability changes the game and helps the rest of the offense, but coaches counsel hook slides because they aren't as confident in the second string quarterback.

His stats don't match up well against elite quarterbacks, but you still like what he brings to the table.

In other words, Tommy reminds me of the quarterback on my NFL team, Colin Kaepernick.

 

[74Hunter]

Well,,either the zone reads are pre determined gives, or TA is blowing a lot of reads at times.

 

[Undone]

Tommy makes mistakes, Tommy does some things really well. All things considered, his age, the situation in which he was placed in his career, where he is today... I'm pretty happy with the dude. He's got us to 6-1 as a Sophomore. He kinda seems to have that "it" factor, just lacks experience. He could stand to spend the same time Taylor spent with that quarterback guru dude from California (whose name I forget), but despite that, I'm pretty pleased with him.

I have made the argument that we could use a pin-point passer rather than a dual-threat QB in this offense and I still believe that. Tommy's skills are nice, but he misses too many throws. Overall, I'm pro-Armstrong, but I see where he could/should improve.

Agree with all of the above. With regards to the bold, it's something I've thought about quite a bit this season.

I'm not at our practices, ever, so what do I know? But it seems obvious that 'dual threat' QBs spend much of their time in Spring ball, Fall camp, and in-season practice hours practicing their run game. All of which could have been otherwise spent improving their arm. It's a distinct disadvantage to Tommy, and it needs to be taken into consideration.

I think that's a lot of why Martinez improved so much coming in to his Junior year - it was sheer repetition, and it makes sense. It wasn't just that this coach was a Zen Master throwing coach; repetition definitely had a lot to do with it. That's a big reason why I've come to the conclusion that I can't b!^@h about every little problem he has in his throwing game. It can (and almost certainly will) improve as time goes on.

Maybe, just maybe, it might even improve quite a bit in the next five games. And if that happens...