Watson leads the nation in Total Quarterback Rating (QBR)

by Tony Crumpton - Assoc. Editor - Sun Oct 05 11:42:16 GMT-04:00 2014

Clemson true freshman quarterback Deshaun Watson Deshaun Watson
Fr. Quarterback
#4 6-3, 204
Gainesville, GA
View Full Profile now leads the nation in Total QBR after Clemson's 41-0 win over NC State on Saturday. Watson completed 17-29 passes for 267 yards and 2 touchdowns and also rushed for 83 yards and 2 more touchdowns.

QBR is a quarterback metric on a scale from zero to 100, where 50 is average. Top quarterbacks are in the upper 80s and 90s for a season.

Total QBR - 2014 Season Leaders

1 Deshaun Watson, CLEM 91.6

2 Jared Goff, CAL 89.6

3 Marcus Mariota, ORE 89.0

4 Blake Sims, ALA 89.0

5 Taysom Hill, BYU 86.0

6 Nick Marshall, AUB 85.5

7 Kenny Hill, TA&M 85.3

8 Justin Thomas, GT 85.3

9 Brett Hundley, UCLA 84.9

10 Dak Prescott, MSST 84.9

More on QBR from ESPN:

The scale of QBR is from zero to 100, where 50 is average. Top quarterbacks are in the upper 80s and 90s for a season. Manziel, in fact, ranked first in QBR in 2012 with a value of 90.5. His unadjusted value was 86.4, also the best among FBS schools. The increase from unadjusted to adjusted reflects that he did face good defenses overall.
Unlike NCAA Passer Efficiency, which uses only box score statistics, Total QBR accounts for what a quarterback does on a play-by-play level, meaning it accounts for down, distance, field position, as well as the clock and score. A 5-yard gain on third-and-4 is a good play, whereas a 5-yard gain on third-and-14 isn't. A 20-yard touchdown pass when tied in the second quarter means more than a 20-yard touchdown pass when down 30 points late in the fourth quarter. QBR accounts for those things using analysis that turns traditional productivity into points on the scoreboard and wins in the standings.

It also accounts for a quarterback's ability to scramble, his ability to run on designed rush plays, how well he avoids sacks, drawing and committing penalties, and all-important fumbles, which can be significant for quarterbacks. If Texas A&M gained 5 yards on third-and-4, Manziel's contribution to that play is captured.