Which Quarterbacks Threw Deep Most Often in 2017?
5. DeShone Kizer, Cleveland Browns
Deep Rate: 22.27% | Passing NEP per Attempt: 0.25 | Success Rate: 33.96%
Oh, boy. Not a rousing start for the, "Teams should throw deep more often!" argument.
Kizer was 42nd in overall Passing NEP per drop back out of 45 quarterbacks with at least 100 drop backs. Dude was straight awful, and it likely means the Cleveland Browns will be upgrading at the position this offseason. But -- to his credit -- he at least gave it a crank.
What makes this a bit stranger is that Kizer was just horrendous when targeting Josh Gordon deep after his return. Gordon's overall metrics ran laps around those of his teammates, but for some reason, the two could not connect deep.
There were three players who had double-digit deep targets from Kizer this year. Here's how Kizer fared when targeting each.
| Kizer Throwing Deep | Targets | Touchdowns | Interceptions | Passing NEP per Attempt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Corey Coleman | 26 | 0 | 2 | 0.31 |
| Josh Gordon | 18 | 0 | 1 | -0.25 |
| David Njoku | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0.49 |
Kizer's connection with Gordon wasn't even weighed down by interceptions. They just couldn't match up, completing 4 of 18 deep targets. It's not necessarily a condemnation of either -- again, Gordon's overall metrics were great -- but it does make you think a bit.
Going beyond Kizer, it seems clear that Hue Jackson wants his offenses to push the ball downfield, which explains why Cody Kessler fell out of favor with the team. This has implications for fantasy in 2018. It could help give fantasy value to whichever quarterback winds up taking over and boost the appeal in the top pass catchers who remain.
