Ryan Fitzpatrick Reminds Drayton Florence Of Drew Brees
by MattRichWarren on Jan 10, 2012 11:01 AM EST
in Buffalo Bills Opinion
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The San Diego Chargers went 4-12 during the 2003 season and drafted Philip Rivers in the 2004 NFL Draft to replace the struggling Drew Brees. Fast forward to 2011: Drayton Florence, a member of that 2003 Chargers squad, sees similarities between that version of Drew Brees and his current quarterback, Ryan Fitzpatrick.
Florence made the comment Monday afternoon during his regular appearance on WGR 550 with Mike Schopp and Chris "Bulldog" Parker. He likened the struggling Chargers to the Buffalo Bills that he played with in 2011, but specifically mentioned Fitzpatrick's similarities to Brees.
Brees was in his second season as the starting quarterback in San Diego, much like Fitzpatrick in Buffalo. Local media and fans were calling for Brees' replacement and a complete overhaul of the team. While Brees started only 11 games in 2003, you can begin to see Florence's point after the jump.
| Player | Season | Comp | Att | % | Yds | TD | INT | QBR | Record |
| Drew Brees | 2003 | 205 | 356 | 57.6 | 2,108 | 11 | 15 | 67.5 | 2-9 |
| Ryan Fitzpatrick | 2011 | 353 | 569 | 62.0 | 3,832 | 24 | 23 | 79.1 | 6-10 |
Fitzpatrick taking the next step into his third year at the helm doesn't seem outside the realm of possibility. Brees was able to significantly improve all his numbers in 2004. Most importantly, he was able to limit his mistakes, throwing for half as many picks while playing in 50 percent more games.
| Quarterback | Season | Comp | Att | % | Yds | TD | INT | QBR | Record |
| Drew Brees | 2004 | 262 | 400 | 65.5 | 3,159 | 27 | 7 | 104.8 | 11-4 |
The 2004 season was Brees' first Pro Bowl selection, and the last time he threw less than 500 attempts.
It may be unfair to Fitzpatrick to make the comparison, though. Brees was 24 years old in 2003, and Fitzpatrick was 29 and on his third different team in 2011. Take it with a grain of salt, Bills fans, because a similar comparison could be made for J.P. Losman's second season as the starter in Buffalo.
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It's a reach...
but a man can dream can’t he?
"WE’RE SUPER FREAKY" – STEVIE J
"I’d rather lose playing to win, then lose being bored out of my mind." - dancam1
A reach is putting it mildly
Thankfully I wasn’t drinking anything while reading this headline, because it would have caused a major irritation when it came out through my nose.
But hey, maybe dreams can come true.
by BuffaloRepresent on Jan 10, 2012 5:57 PM EST up reply actions
HAHA
Fitz is no Brees. What a reach.
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DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND GROW UP BY NOT USING HAIRSPRAY MALES!
Don't be a Paully!
by The Buffalo Kid on Jan 10, 2012 11:15 AM EST reply actions
No, but if Fitz were playing against Drayton Florence every week he could put up stats like Brees.
by Morningw00d on Jan 10, 2012 11:25 AM EST up reply actions 5 recs
/laughing.
rec’d
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by twoeightnine on Jan 10, 2012 11:37 AM EST up reply actions
He does so good in practice
“He lights me up, why can’t he do it to other teams”?
Wow
How we wish Florence is correct!
Just remember the Phins signed Dante Culpepper over Brees-Whoa what a mistake!
How come I always get blamed for everything I do ?
Dennis the Menace
Franchise-altering mistake. Why didn’t Buffalo go after Brees?
"Go check on the ribs!"
by TheAfghanTwilight on Jan 10, 2012 12:03 PM EST up reply actions
Why didn’t Buffalo go after Brees?
You can ask that question of most teams. Poor showing and a bum shoulder pointed to Brees not worth the risk. NO had no QB so it was a relatively easy decision.
.
When the job is finished no one remembers how long it took, just how well it was performed.
by Buffalo for Eternity on Jan 10, 2012 12:18 PM EST up reply actions
Because they’d just drafted J.P. Losman the year before.
(C’mon, folks. I set ’em up, you knock ’em down.)
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by Brian Galliford on Jan 10, 2012 1:26 PM EST up reply actions
I read in the Times Picayune in 2009 I think when the Saints won the Super Bowl that Williams wanted to draft Brees but the Chargers had a better pick. He wasn’t thrilled.
by Easy Ryder on Jan 10, 2012 2:38 PM EST via iPhone app up reply actions
Read that too somewhere
But we went with Nate Clements in the first. If he liked Brees so much he could have had him! Brees was the first pick in the second round that year I believe. I know it’s more an anecdote than evidence, but it’s one example of how you shouldn’t pass up a potential “franchise” QB if given the chance!
by buffaloparks on Jan 10, 2012 3:00 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Whoa Nelly!
"Go check on the ribs!"
by TheAfghanTwilight on Jan 10, 2012 12:03 PM EST up reply actions
That’s really mean to J.D. Williams.
2011 Colorado Avalanche - Dr. Jones can't suture this coaching wound.
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by UZ on Jan 10, 2012 2:04 PM EST up reply actions
LOL
Yep. Just like Brees…
Aside from his arm strength, deep ball accuracy, and decision-making he is EXACTLY like Drew Brees.
I mean, I like Fitz. I’m OK with him being our QB and I share Chan and Buddy’s belief that we could win a Super Bowl with him as long as he has the right talent around him but, really? Drew Brees?
by SabreNation on Jan 10, 2012 11:42 AM EST reply actions 1 recs
In Defense of Fotz
He came into the 2010 season under difficult circumstances and played pretty darn well. He started out 2011 really well. Even at the beginning of the 7 game losing streak, while not playing well, he wasn’t terrible either. He was quite good in the 2nd loss against the Jets. However, by the end of the losing streak he stunk. He was merely okay against Denver, and New England was what it was.
If it’s true that he lacks the arm strength to make it through a full NFL season, then he will never be a Brees. We can hope, though, delusional though it may be. One must be a little bit delusional to keep rooting for (and watching) this team. I can’t help but like Fitz’s willingness to pick himself up and take his lumps like a man.
It’s as though you can telegraph Fitzpatrick’s INTs.
"Go check on the ribs!"
by TheAfghanTwilight on Jan 10, 2012 12:05 PM EST up reply actions
Perhaps this explains a lot about Florence
Based on these comments, it seems that Florence is on some pretty strong drugs and/or meds. Perhaps that’s why he plays cornerback in slow motion.
by SiriusRed on Jan 10, 2012 11:55 AM EST via mobile reply actions 1 recs
It reminds me of Donte Whitner telling the media that Trent Edwards needed to be mentioned with the leagues elite...
and that comparison worked out well, for both players.
"I got no problem with 7-9 coming off of 4-12 as long as I don't buy a couch there, you got to keep moving" - Mike Schoop
Something went very wrong for Fitz in the middle of 2011
What is so striking about Fitz this past year is his bifurcated season. He had been playing so well that fans were talking about Fitzmagic, and then all of a sudden, as if a light-switch had been flipped, he became a detriment to the team. People say that he lost his supporting cast to injuries, and it’s true that Eric Wood went down around that time. But Fitz suddenly went bad when he still had Fred Jackson and a strong running game, when the o-line was doing a decent job of protecting him (that was true all year), and when he had Stevie Johnson, David Nelson, Scott Chandler and a number of his other regular receivers. To take one example, those two awful underthrown balls to Stevie Johnson in the Giants game that ended up as picks were 100% on Fitz.
Did something like that happen to Drew Brees in 2003? Don’t think so. So instead of making such a far-fetched comparison we should be trying to figure out why the light-switch flipped. What on earth happened? And is it likely to happen again? Did his arm simply get tired as the season wore on to the point where he couldn’t make deep throws any more? To put that another way, can Fitz ever become consistent as an NFL QB? If not, the Bills really need to start looking for and grooming his replacement if they are want to get to “the dance.”
by Macktruck on Jan 10, 2012 11:57 AM EST reply actions 1 recs
Brees
Could have been on this years Bills team and they still wouldn’t be getting to the dance. They would have been losing games 48-45. Lots of problems besides Fitz.
Arrive...Raise Hell...Leave
I don’t know if that’s true. Tom Brady and the Patriots have one of the worst defenses and no deep threat or stable RB. How’d they do?
"Go check on the ribs!"
by TheAfghanTwilight on Jan 10, 2012 12:08 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
They did fine...
With two TE’s that can shred any D and with receivers that don’t drop the ball,nor draw stupid-ass penalties. Basic-sound-fundamental football. Not to mention unshakeable faith in their head coach. Not quite so sure that the Bills always have faith in Chan’s game plan.I just don’t think Drew would have lead the Bills to Superbowl is all.
Arrive...Raise Hell...Leave
I don’t think it’s fair to compare the Patriots. They are loaded with Pro Bowlers (6) and up and coming names regardless if they are mostly on one side of the ball.
They are also set up to fail. I would be very surprised if their current unbalance doesn’t hand them another Superbowl lose if they happened to make it.
I was thinking the other day…it might be downright easy for the Pats to make the Super Bowl again. There is almost no competition in the AFC. They’re playing Denver this week, and if they beat them (and I can’t imagine they won’t), then they’re playing either a beat-up Houston team which can’t compete, or an uneven and inconsistent Ravens team. Argh, the AFC is a joke this year.
"Slowly all the roles we act out become our identity. And in the end we are what we pretend to be." - Jerry Cantrell.
my money was on the Ravens this year to make the bowl out of the AFC but I have been wrong before :) everybody is talking about the Giants suprising the big guns with their D. hey, ya never know
by eriesimmer on Jan 10, 2012 2:31 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Tom Brady and the Patriots have one of the worst defenses
Add the Packers to the list of worst defenses they are rank 32nd giving up 411 yards per game. The Pats are right behind the packers by a fraction and rank 31st.
How strategy has changed it use to be stop the run and run the ball~~now it’s stop the pass and let it fly!!
How come I always get blamed for everything I do ?
Dennis the Menace
by Goose22 on Jan 10, 2012 1:59 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
very misleading figure
Packers and Pats are also two of the highest scoring offenses. When you score a lot of TDs, you kick off a lot, play a lot more prevent defense and give up a lot of yards too.
Now, I don’t think the Pats defense is very good, but I certainly don’t think they’re the worst in the league.
On the other hand, to have the worst pass defense when your offense is only mediocre (ahem), is something else.
by paythemannow on Jan 10, 2012 2:58 PM EST up reply actions
You exchange possessions just like you would if you weren’t scoring…I don’t understand how scoring a lot translates into giving up a lot of yardage.
"Slowly all the roles we act out become our identity. And in the end we are what we pretend to be." - Jerry Cantrell.
1. If you score quickly, you give the ball back faster.
2. If you’re ahead a lot, you play more prevent defense, which gives up a lot more yards.
I’m no statistics expert, but I bet if you take the top 5 scoring teams from each year, you’ll find that most of them rank in the bottom half of defensive yards allowed.
by paythemannow on Jan 13, 2012 10:44 AM EST up reply actions
Like Parcells liked to quote “Your record is what it is” the Packers and Pats finished 31 & 32 in defense…
Brady had a lot of pressure on him to produce because of the defense and Rodgers was unbelievable this year… BTW the Saints were ranked 24th on defense with their high powered offense…
How come I always get blamed for everything I do ?
Dennis the Menace
He hurt his ribs.
…he hinted recently that the injury affected him more than was let on at the time.
@sawyervanhorn
by Sawyer in Boston on Jan 10, 2012 12:18 PM EST up reply actions
I hope you're right...
…and that it will heal fully in time for the 2012 season. Would explain Macktruck’s observation completely.
by Fatso McGraw on Jan 10, 2012 12:40 PM EST up reply actions
But even so....
Then why was he playing hurt if he wasnt even able to help the team win? Didnt the bills spend 15 million dollars on two backup qb’s this past offseason? Why didnt Thigpen see the field at all if Fitz was hurt so badly? I understand playing through the pain, like it seems Phillip Rivers did as well….but if you were playing so terrible becuase you were hurt, why not sit out a few games and rest to get better? This would help the team and we could of have a 3 game skid opposed to a 7 game.
by NHBillzFan on Jan 10, 2012 1:06 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
It’s hard to say if the rib injury was what caused the light-switch to flip, but if it did it’s possible that Fitz made it a point not to tell anyone about it. At the end of the 2010 season he was badly injured in the New England game but kept silent about it and kept playing. Only in the middle of the following week, when he was in serious pain, did he reveal how serious the injury was and then Brian Brohm replaced him in the final game of the season. In effect, Fitz has a history of hiding the fact that he is hurt.
Why did he do that in 2010? One explanation is that he didn’t want his back-up to have the chance to get on the field, do well, and possibly steal his job. Another is that he knew how bad Brohm was and figured the Bills were better off having him stay in and play hurt.
If that hit to the ribs that London Fletcher delivered in Toronto was the cause of his sharp drop-off in play this year, he may have been concerned about giving Thigpen an opening to shine, or he may have again assumed that Thigpen was so bad that the team was better off having him soldier on. Or — as he kept telling us — the injury may have healed in a week or so and the cause of the drop-off may lie elsewhere.
1. Players don’t even want to admit when they’ve had a concussion for fear of losing their starting job and/or being labelled an injury risk.
2. Have you seen Thigpen play? An injured Fitz is still vastly superior to a healthy Thigpen.
by SiriusRed on Jan 10, 2012 2:35 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
ribs, weight of new contract, jets loss, players going down
and worst of all, two god awful defensive performances on the road in the 1st half
against dallas and miami that just seemed to beat up fitz who was, indeed, struggling
á bit at the time…
i knew the ribs were a problem, but fitz never said a word.
i think his entire presence was different because of the totality of circumstances.
and i think gailey and nix knew what was going on, between injuries and the defense,
to kinda accept the inevitable.
it was almost as if gailey said to nix, ok, i had my run, i showed what we could do on offense, now let’s lose out and get your high picks for you……
but end of season, edwards was cut in a super fast flash, meaning, in my view,
game on…….
time to win, or else……..
fitz cannot be expected to throw 35-40/game and win.
i really hope gailey gets some defense and trusts his running backs more….
and i know it is worthless to talk about it, but brady makes the bills situation
dire….
broncos get in at 8 and 8, giants get in at 9-7….we are stuck with going 12-4
to have a chance……
got to develop a kick butt defense and build a killer running game……..
Did something like that happen to Drew Brees in 2003?
Well, he had some serious shoulder issues(torn rotator cuff and labrum) that were surgically corrected in ‘04. Unsure if it was bothering him to a great degree. Given his performance since, I’d say it likely was bothering him…a lot!
Just be thankful Nick Saban thumbed his nose at Brees or we might have been playing him 2X a year. That would be even worse misery!
"a play in which nothing happens, that yet keeps audiences glued to their seats". -Vivian Mercier - a description of Samuel Beckett's "Waiting for Godot"
According to Beckett, Godot was a metaphor for the Buffalo Bills :-)
Oh boy. This isn’t going to end well for Florence.
"Go check on the ribs!"
by TheAfghanTwilight on Jan 10, 2012 12:00 PM EST reply actions
Is it going to end badly? Is this a big deal?
Editor-in-Chief, BUFFALO RUMBLINGS®
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by Brian Galliford on Jan 10, 2012 1:27 PM EST up reply actions
Drayton Florence reminds me of Deion Sanders
They also both had similar passing stats early in their careers.
"Slowly all the roles we act out become our identity. And in the end we are what we pretend to be." - Jerry Cantrell.
not really
Take it with a grain of salt, Bills fans, because a similar comparison could be made for J.P. Losman’s second season as the starter in Buffalo.
Florence played with Brees and for what ever it’s worth, he’s just saying that he sees a lot of the same in Fitz. It is what it is, Florence is just blowing smoke or throwing praise Fitz’s way. I’m not convinced that Fitz can’t get drastically better so maybe we can hope just a bit.
Anyways, Florence never played with Losman so implying that we could make the same comparison is wrong.
Rebuilding a team properly takes time and patience
We could make the same statistical comparison. Sorry.
by MattRichWarren on Jan 10, 2012 12:29 PM EST up reply actions
You probably could with a whole bunch of guys… I think he probably meant it from the leadership & mental makeup perspective just as much as the skill set. He sees him in practice setting, in the film room, on the bench during games when it’s going good as well as bad. I’m OK with him sending a bit of hopeful praise Fitzy’s way even if i don’t quite believe it.
Rebuilding a team properly takes time and patience
I didn't hear the exact comment so I don't know for sure
But why are people just assuming Florence is comparing them in a football sense?
He may have meant they have the same type of humor? Or same fashion sense? Or maybe they are both charitable guys?
I’m going to assume Florence is comparing Drew Brees to Ryan Fitzpatrick in something other than playing football. Because I want to think Florence is still a sane human being, capable of functioning in society and abiding by society’s norms (by “norms” I mean that people don’t go around comparing Brees to Fitzpatrick in a football sense…to do so may indicate some type of confused thinking or medical condition such as delirum, amnesa, or possible head trauma).
"WHEN THE WAGON BLASTER TAKES OFF dont try to get in. THE SPACESES ARE LIMITED FOR WINNING ATTITUDE GODZILLA IS COMING GET READY" - abayarde
He meant it in a “they were trying to run him out of town and find his successor but he was a good QB” sense.
by MattRichWarren on Jan 10, 2012 2:56 PM EST up reply actions
Fair comparison
Florence isn’t saying Fitz reminds him of the present Drew Brees. He means the Drew Brees who started for two years, was cast off for a new, highly drafted QB, and then kept developing into what he is today. Fitz probably won’t reach Brees’ current level (not many will), but besides the age the comparison is pretty accurate.
Fitz will win us 10-11 games. Chan has to call better games
I started off the season loving Chan’s play calling and then he got predictable. Watching the Bama/LSU game last night and the play calling that Bama had, made me pine for the games when Chan was creative. Bama ran so many unique sets and plays off those sets, that that is what it takes in the NFL to succeed when you don’t have tremendous talent across the board. You have to plug in smart players who can run multiple sets and plays from those sets. It’s easy to say that Bama had 45 days to put in these new wrinkles, but it was a good lesson for any NFL offensive guru to take note of. Practice 10-12 plays every week against your starting D that are fresh w/ different formations and get the timing down on those. I rarely saw heavy formations from the Bills, end arounds, fake end arounds w/ a pass, etc. Chan has a smart QB and a smart backfield. Use them more to their complete potential please!!!
by AlwaysaBillinPhilly on Jan 10, 2012 3:41 PM EST reply actions
totally agree
gailey never ran end around….shocking really…
Hixon
Made a lot out of a cast of scrub WRs. Highly underrated coach
I agree w/ that Wien
I like Stan a LOT and he had at least 3 WRs this year that were mostly unproven to try to mold into the overall unit. If you are not THE guy as a WR, you have to be completely unselfish and ready and able to BLOCK your man and sometimes one additional guy to spring your RB for a big gain. WRs are usually the difference between a 5-10 yard gain and someone taking it all the way.
by AlwaysaBillinPhilly on Jan 10, 2012 4:15 PM EST up reply actions
Title Of Post
Very humorous. Good non-fiction, good to dream.
Alll Things Considered Bill's Franchise Is Consistent:)
Drew Brees has maybe the best feet of any QB in the history of the game
and understands every single thing about their offensive system, and where people should be. I personally, don’t see any similarity between them, except maybe their mobility, confidence, and overall similar size. maybe, if Fitz worked on his footwork, he could step up his game… but until that happens, he will still be the same passer. Good/Bad Fitz?- you never will know.
ABAYARDE IS NOSTRADAMUS JUST WATCH WE WILL NOT YIEALD TO NOBODY YOUR SOUL WE WILL TAKE
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