http://www.miamiherald.com/1262/story/655204.html I always thought he had a weak arm but I've seen him throw the ball downfield and put it on the money. I remember a play a couple years ago where he threw a 60 yard bomb to Laverneus Coles on the money. I think it was a season opener but he was coming off the shoulder surgery. KC Joyner did great work with the statistic in the quote. I think that's a really big thing about Pennington. We all rave about his accuracy and it shows it there. Nearly 50% of his downfield throws were successful. This number could go up a little more if the play action works sucessfully after we have ran the ball 40 times. There's a quote in the article made by Jets analyst where he says that the "noodle arm" label is unfair because he can throw deep. He says his arm strength is average but his ability to read defenses makes it above average.
A Jets analyst says that Pennington's arm strength is average but that his ability to read defenses makes his ARM STRENGTH above average...... OK, there's some spin for you.
I posted an article when the Favre trade happened before Pennington was released that said Pennington was actually a better deep ball thrower QB rating wise. In addition to that we must remember that he has been throwing in New York all of these years during the rough winters whereas in Miami it won't be as bad. Now that doesn't mean he doesn't have a weak arm but what it does mean is it may not show itself as much.
I'm trying to figure out what he was trying to say. My only thought is that his abillity to look off defenses gives it a high possibility of it being a successful throw downfield but that still doesn't have much to do with arm strength.
He can't throw intermediate passes to either sideline. the game plan against Pennington has always been to take away the middle of the field and watch him dink and dunk his way down the field. he can throw the occasional bomb that looks impressive. but the intermediate passes with mustard on them are not in his repertoire, they usually get pick 6'd.
Yeah, it was a silly statement by the guy. His ability to read defenses helps Pennington overcome this weakness and makes him a better QB overall but it certainly dosen't increase his arm strength.
He's gunned a couple of balls hard as any other QB I've seen so far this preseason. I don't think his arm is as crappy as we like to tease him about.
To be honest I didn't see the game, so I'll take your word for it. but it will be interesting to see what he does on opening day when the Jets take the middle of the field away from him. The problem with Pennington is that if you get behind by 14 points he is useless when the offense becomes one dimensional. and that I've seen eleventy billion times.
I suspect we could see 40 running plays on Opening Day BP. A fair point, but we do have three players (when Ronnie is healthy) who can take a 4 yd dink 60 yds for a TD, we are not dependent on medium level passes to score...hopefully.. So far CP has thrown that 25 yd pass fairly well, not sure about medium level out patterns to the far side of the field though, Henning has been around the block a bunch of times, I doubt he will put CP in a position to have to make those throws.
He threw a couple balls I didn't think he was capable of throwing. Surprised me very much. Second point is a good one. I think most QB's become less effective when you get down by 14 points, if he can at least make the right decisions it gives us a chance though.
If he's not playing like a moron and the rest of the team is doing their job we won't be down by that much most likely.
Well, hopefully Kris Jenkins is in tip top condition for the heat on opening day. he has been a monster at NT so far this pre season. he was throwing around some Giants OLineman last night while being double teamed. I think the Jets run defense has been upgraded considerably, but we shall see. You have to be able to stretch the field with intermediate passes or your opponents defense will put 9 men in the box and stuff the running game. Pennington hasn't proven he can stretch the field during his entire career. you will start to see CB's jumping those routes when he starts to get comfortable throwing them.
Should be fun BP, it will be hot..Florida hot...when we meet the Jets, that many running plays just wears out a Defense, you can't really train for that sort of heat. We'll see, if your Rb/Oline is good enough all 9 men in the box accomplishes is long TD runs, but we just have to wait and see, our Wr's are young and it's hard to say how they will do on gameday, Ginn has looked really great so far.
I know it's going to be fun and hot, I'm gonna be there And you're right, that heat does wear on any team's defense. I agree, lets wait and see. the pre season means nada.
Noodle arm schmoodle arm, I sure as heck really like what I've seen so far of this guy's arm, his leadership, his communication with teammates, and if my math is right he is 16 of 21 so far this preseason, I'll take that kind of completion percentage ANY Sunday!
Then maybe he should throw the ball harder. Yes Pennington has a weak arm and yes that will negate some of Ginn's speed and effectiveness as a homerun threat, but he's a smart QB who does a very good job of reading defenses. The million dollar question isn't whether or not he has a weak arm, it's whether he can stay healthy for a full season, something that he has only done once in his career.
The best way to generate velocity is using your hips, shoulders, and arm positioning. it's basic physics. By torquing your shoulders and hips simultaneously you can generate a rapid acceleration. That alone isnt enough though. Has anyone ever seen how an ice skater pulls his/her arms slowly into their body to increase their rotational velocity? When you start spinning and you keep your arms outstretched, then slowly bring them into your body as you spin. That causes you to increase your rotational velocity by quite a bit. You can try this at home by sitting in an office chair and spinning around. Just sit with yourself balanced in the center of the chair, and start spinning. If you started with your arms outstretched, try bringing them closer to your body while youre spinning. You're gonna start spinning really fast, so be sure to have a waste can near, just in case. But anyway, it works, and quarterbacks can use this to their advantage when throwing a ball. At the peak of their backswing, it's important that both arms be completely outstretched. During the throwing motion, both arms pull towards the QB's center of gravity, and this generates massive acceleration. Combined with good torque from the hips and shoulders, a QB can increase his pass velocity without his arm getting any stronger.
Some great info there, worth keeping in mind. Also if you can find the open man you don't need to throw the ball 100 mph, and if no-one is open you probably shouldn't be throwing it. Of course there will be times he needs to squeeze a ball in but I think his arm is strong enough to get that done. He's already done it this preseason.
While I think he throws an efficient deep ball, there are different ways to throw a deep ball. Recall 2005 I think our second week when they/he beat us, in Saban's first year. I remember this game well, I was in the Hawaii airport waiting for my flight out. Anyways, Chad finds the open guy, and he threw floaters and everyone can say "OMG it's just floating go and get it!" but alas, we never did. I think when you don't have that explosive arm, you gotta throw it a tad earlier, as the velocity is not there. Penny is smart enough to compenstate for that weaker arm. However, if you have a DB with closing speed, which we obviously didn't have then (or now???), it's a riskier throw.
Weak arm or no he was still an upgrade over what hes had. Still and all, would be nice as hell to have him outplay Favre
And that's where your coaches either lift you up or fail you. There are very few "complete" players in the entire NFL. It's up to the coaching staff to design plays that exploit the player's strengths and will disguise his weaknesses. To be honest, the need for long bombs is overhyped. For that matter there aren't but a handful of QBs who can throw a football 45+ yards with accuracy. You can do without a cannon armed QB, if you have one who is accurate.
The sheer number of times you actually throw that pass is unbelievably limited. It's the intermediate out that Pennington will have trouble with.
Well...sort of..the medium out is a key play in late in the game field goal drives Late Again, if you can't throw it consistently, the drive will stall. The 18 yard out to the far side of the field is a key play in those drives, we'll have to see what CP can do for us.
Thing is, both Henning and Pennington know this, which is why there haven't been hardly any (if any at all) intermediate/deep out routes called when CP is in there. They've all been square-ins, come-backs, etc. Both Ginn and Hagan have killed on the square-in. So, I don't think that out-route will be much of a problem. They'll just hardly call it. Even during those late, 2-min. drill drives, one can effectively run rollouts, comebacks, and PA to counteract his lack of velocity on those 12-18yd out-routes.
He has all those intangibles Rock and I agree that is what separates him so far from the other 3 in camp
Who knows LA? Dan Henning dealt with another Qb with a weak arm, Joe Theisman back in the day, he made do. Derek Hagan's height and leaping ability would come in handy for throwing fade routes to the sideline instead of an out. We'd just have to cover his hands and forearms in stick'um before the game..
... Yeah, I'd forgotten Theisman's arm wasn't all that strong, either. There's a guy who benefited from speedy receivers.
It's not too concerning for me so far in preseason. The balls look like there is some velocity but they tend to float a tiny bit. But he is so accurate that the ball just gets to his target without a defender making a play on it. As some of you have said the intermediate out might have to be avoided. He does compensate the lack of strength by throwing early especially on deep lobs. The accuracy to receivers will mean more runs after catch because he can hit them in stride. He has worked on his game a lot to make up for what he may lack. They need to build chemistry in the passing game. Will be interesting to see how things go this season. It has been a long time since we saw a QB with an above 100 rating as in the game against KC.
Yes, this is the issue. Somewhere I saw statistics for him on deep throws over the past three years and they were quite good. It's the square outs that are the problem. The other thing I've read is that his arm tends to give out when he has to throw more than 35 times in a game. Obviously we don't plan to throw that much this year, but sometimes you don't have any choice.... Re the article, I am glad he's working on his mechanics, but he's 32 and a smart guy. Hard to believe he hasn't figured out how to get everything out of his arm that he can before now.
all the rotator cuff issues he's had, I think the learning curve has been bumpy. He's had to adjust to reconstructions, and the subsequent mobility and pain issues. I see nothing but good in his attempt to make himself better.
Arm strength is not just about how far you can throw. It is more about how fast it gets there. Which is why Chad can not throw the out. Just wait for it. It is good Chad can throw a 50 yard pass. But it is arced like a rainbow and takes a while to get there.
Good points. However, Pennington has evidently been working on his mechanics. From what I've gathered from reading about this is that he's finally able to work without pain. So he's been able to work on increasing his mechanics and his throwing velocity.
Yup, that is it. Remember, there are two parts to a throw, the distance and the speed at which it covers that distance (the arc). He can make a 60 yard throw, but at a 45 degree arc and with a good wind up. If he needs to zip a throw across the field on a rope "15 degree arc" he can't. Again, he is a good QB and an upgrade for the Dolphins. Best QB you guys have had since Marino hung up his cleats. He will win you a few games and if stays healthy could get you into the playoffs in a year or two. He does, however, have very well known weaknesses that can be exploited and keeps him going to far. Can't wait for week one, he will give us a run for our money. BZ
