On Sunday, October 15th the Arizona Cardinals were on the road against the Los Angeles Rams. There was very little action on the offensive end for either team in the first half. At halftime the Cardinals were up 9-6.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!This game was the prime example of a tale of two halves. The Rams dominated the second half and won the game, 26-9. One of the things that stood out like a sore thumb was the lackluster play of Joshua Dobbs.
Joshua Dobbs Isn’t That Dude
Joshua Dobbs has been Arizona’s starting quarterback in Kyler Murray’s absence. He has exceeded very low expectations but that has not been good enough. So far this season Dobbs has passed for 1215 yards, six touchdowns, three interceptions, and six fumbles, four of which were turnovers. He has seven total touchdowns and seven turnovers.
A one to one touchdown to turnover ratio from your quarterback is just not good enough to win. Dobbs also misses the “lay-ups”. Easy throws that should be made by a NFL quarterback.
Pick, pick, hooray! 🥳@C_JJ_Rozeboom | @NFLonFOX pic.twitter.com/yBAshFZGNO
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) October 15, 2023
On this interception he had two open options, Rondale Moore coming out of the backfield or Zach Ertz running the five and in route. This should of been an easy completion to either Moore or Ertz, instead he throws it behind Ertz causing him to reach back and tip it. The tipped ball is caught by the defense. There was also no pressure on Dobbs during this play. This is an inexcusable mistake for a NFL quarterback.
He is just not accurate enough. Dobbs is 31st out of 33 qualifying quarterbacks in “on target” passes. Only 55.7% of his passes are on target.
Dobbs also does not get the ball downfield. He is 24th in the league in net yards gained per passing attempt at 5.53 yards. This makes the job of the defense much easier when there is no threat of the deep ball. Dobbs simply is not good enough to win games unless you have an elite defense. It is time to move on from Dobbs?
Let The Rook Play
The team is already 1-5, what is the point of continuing to put Dobbs out there when he is simply not good enough. At least with the rookie Clayton Tune, you already expect the bumps along the road but he can also surprise the team and maybe show the NFL world what he is made of.
Tune is a fifth round pick and most successful quarterbacks are early round picks. Tune can be an exception to the rule. The San Francisco 49ers are doing quite well with the last pick of the 2022 NFL Draft, Brock Purdy. Tune will not be surrounded by loads of talent in the way Purdy is. That has to be acknowledged but he may provide the bump in energy that the team needs after this disappointing start.
If Tune is able to at least get the ball downfield more than Dobbs, it will open lanes for the running backs and not have the defense on the field as much. At this point what is the downside of giving Clayton Tune a shot?
Calls for Kyler Murray’s return grow louder as Cardinals suffer 3rd consecutive loss
