5 of the last 6 Super Bowls were won by pocket passers, Foles, Brady, and Peyton Manning. Mobility is an added bonus, but the NFL is still about execution and timing as much as anything.
A) We are talking 2017-2018 forward so not sure how 6 players qualify as evidence. This is a hyper-recent trend that exploded in 2018 with Mahomes and Jackson. Before that draft, how many prospects were being knocked for being pocket passers? Mobility was always a plus, never seen as a necessity. But now, you’ll see mobility and improvisational ability as two of the most desired traits in a prospect.
B) Even using Peyton and Foles is poor, because one was dragged to the super bowl by an all time great defense (he literally was benched for Brock freakin Osweiler multiple times). The other only played 5 games with a wildly hot and talented team. The man wasn’t even a starter on that team and more games were won by Wentz that year, a mobile QB. Those two QB seasons will never be used as an example for anything to anyone, as they were outlier seasons. How many team win solely on the back of their defense? How many win with a backup?
C) Never said being proficient from the pocket wasn’t important, but the emphasis on mobility and improvisation are at an all time high. Mahomes, Allen, Rodgers, Wilson, and Jackson are all amongst the highest odds to win a SB. Last years championship round in the playoffs for both conferences featured these QB’s:
NFC: Brady/Rodgers
AFC: Mahomes/Allen
3 out of 4 have the improvisational ability we look for in today’s game. Brady is the other, and he’s the ultimate outlier as no one will ever replicate what he does to that extent. If you’re using Brady as an argument for pocket passers you’re basically using Shaq for 300+ pound big men. They will never be a good example of anything because no one will ever play like them.
No QB will ever be as dominant as Brady with his lack of athletic traits. So we should totally eliminate him from discussion when it comes to pocket passers.