The recipe for a great QB: the perfect blend includes a variety of ingredients, not all of which can be measured in numbers

Sporting News, The, Dec 13, 2004 by James (American musician) Brown

Tell me what the prototypical NFL quarterback is. The SPORTING NEWS picked the 50 greatest quarterbacks of all time this fall, with John Unitas No. 1. In this issue, SPORTING NEWS names Tom Brady its Sportsman of the Year.

It is amazing to analyze how quarterbacks have changed. When I broke in back in 1986 as a play-by-play announcer, the position was pretty rigidly defined. It was paramount that a quarterback fit "the image": a tall pocket passer who could stand back there, go through his progressions and throw the ball accurately. Today's environment is different.

Quarterbacks are more athletic than ever. Part of that is a reaction to the complexities of today's defenses and blitz schemes. Many of your best athletes are now on defense. With the emergence of defensive players such as Jevon Kearse and Dwight Freeney, who are about 6-4, 255 and run about a 4.6 40, quarterbacks have to be pretty mobile. More and more, teams put a premium on a quarterback who can use his feet as well as his arm. I like to call it "escapability." That doesn't mean a quarterback can run only to make a big play, but it does mean a quarterback is mobile and as the play develops decides whether his best chance for success is throwing or running.

Maybe that skill gets represented in the numbers we use to judge quarterbacks, and maybe it doesn't. Peyton Manning is No. 1 in quarterback rating and is simply amazing with his reads, accuracy and quick release. It is nearly impossible to sack this prototypical pocket quarterback. Donovan McNabb is in the top handful in the ratings and does it with throwing and running. He runs to open himself up to throw the ball. He has that escapability, and his team is tops in the NFC. McNabb might have been even a better performer last year when his rating was more than 30 points lower, but he was without a receiver like Terrell Owens. Every great quarterback has had a marquee receiver to complement his ability--look at Joe Montana and Jerry Rice.

Michael Vick epitomizes escapability. He is the most exciting player in the NFL. He is like having Barry Sanders at quarterback, only Vick can flick his wrist and send the ball 60 yards downfield while on the run. How do you measure that? The Falcons are 9-3, yet Vick is not near the top 10 in the ratings. But his impact on his team's ability to win belies his quarterback rating. Vick has started only 33 games in his career, and he will get better, but he'll never be the same style of quarterback Unitas was.

One common characteristic of quarterbacks then and quarterbacks now is toughness. You have to be physically tough and mentally tough in any generation to be a quarterback in this league, even if you're a bad quarterback. My gosh, look at Brett Favre and what he has accomplished. I admire Drew Brees, too. Brees was written off a year ago, and look where he and the Chargers are now. He has assured himself a place in the NFL for next year, whether it's with the Chargers or another team. Both of these guys, as well as McNabb and Vick, want the ball when the game is on the line, and that's another measure of toughness.

Unfortunately, you hear some fans say Vick will never be a traditional quarterback and mean it as a criticism. A good coach takes the talent he has and maxes it out. You think Marty Schottenheimer hasn't changed his approach to build around Brees this year? Falcons coach Jim Mora is smart enough to use an offense that takes advantage of Vick's unique skill. And, after all, it's about winning, not the way you win.

James Brown

> Co-host of FOX NFL Sunday

> Host of The James Brown Show, 10 a.m-noon ET weekdays on Sporting News Radio