Is there such a thing as a “clutch” QB?
The answer is “no,” according to Football Outsiders (via ESPN The Mag), with one possible exception.
They looked at NFL passer rating and their own metrics and there was “no year-to-year correlation in the difference between a quarterback’s overall performance and his performance when the game was on the line.” Good QBs were good in the clutch (with the score within seven points in the fourth quarter or OT) and bad QBs were bad in the clutch.
But there was one exception: Eli Manning. He is the only active QB who has a higher rating (albeit a small improvement most seasons) in crunch time for five straight years.
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