This unique QB stat reveals why Ty Simpson is so elite for Alabama

Heading into the season with returning talent on both sides of the ball and high expectations for Year 2 of the Kalen DeBoer era, there was credence to the thought that Ty Simpson didn’t have to be Tua Tagovailoa or Bryce Young, and that he had to be more of a throwback Alabama quarterback like Greg McElroy or AJ McCarron. 

Maybe there is enough talent around Simpson for him to be a game-manager, and that to be enough. Or maybe not. Alabama’s Week 1 loss to Florida State and its subsequent struggles running the ball proved that Simpson had to be something more, something special, and remarkably, the redshirt junior first-year starter has. 

Rather than simply being a bus driver, Simpson had all the responsibility of the offense thrust onto his shoulders, and he has delivered. That fact is probably best represented by this unique stat from PFF, grading the top 5 quarterbacks in the country on “true” dropbacks, which are dropbacks not aided by a screen, play-action, or an RPO. 

Ty Simpson continues to build a Heisman Trophy case

True dropbacks are so important because they’re so often a measure of what a quarterback can do in the most difficult moments, on obvious passing downs or late in games, times when the passing game has to be distilled down to its simplest form without any frills. Can you drop back without manipulating defenders with a play fake or getting the ball out behind the line of scrimmage, and push the ball downfield? The answer in Simpson’s case has been an emphatic yes. 

He has thrown with anticipation and accuracy, particularly to the middle of the field, and has just one turnover this season. The veteran is completing 70.3 percent of his throws for nearly 1,500 yards through five games and averaging 9.4 yards per attempt. Simpson’s 8.57 yards per dropback ranks 16th in the country, and his passing success rate of 51.2 percent is 17th best. 

Alabama’s run game is starting to round the corner, but with Simpson playing at the level he’s shown through the start of the year, it hardly needs to be elite for the offense to function at a high level. Simpson’s propensity for dissecting a defense in the “true” dropback game allows the Tide to establish the pass first, to attack early in games, or to dig itself out of a hole late. 

Simpson is third in Heisman Trophy odds according to the FanDuel Sportsbook heading into Alabama’s Week 7 SEC showdown with No. 14 Missouri, trailing only Oregon QB Dante Moore and Miami QB Carson Beck. If Simpson continues to thrive the rest of the way and positions Alabama to win an SEC title, then he could climb his way to the top.