Video: Poll - Was Troy Aikman the most accurate passer in NFL history during a QB's prime years?

[Gorgon]

In today's past happy NFL Troy would be god like. He could make every throw and put it on a spot, very rare. The only ball he hated to throw was the deep sideline because he had to depend on receivers to make adjustments and he hated that.
He also had Emmitt to hand off to in goal line situations so he never got to throw touchdowns like he would have been easily capable. So yes, I'll gladly take another Troy anytime.

Well, yes, but remember on the deep sideline---the Cowboys' system was all a timing system---the further away you are the less likely the timing will be there. Think Harper's amazing catch in the 91 playoff game vs. SF. I don't think Troy so much underthrew that as Harper just was so fast he got out ahead of it.

 

[Bing]

Troy was special. Of course he was also the last QB taken by Dallas in the 1st round. Let me say that again. He was the last QB taken by Dallas in the 1st round in 1989. And fans wonder why we haven't won anything for decades.

 

[xwalker]

Was Troy Aikman the most accurate passer in NFL history during a QB's prime years?





What say you?

I hate to say it because I don't like the players, but Aaron Rodgers is the only QB that I've seen on the same tier as Aikman from and accuracy perspective.
- Justin Herbert is on the verge of being in that tier.

The downside with Aikman was that he could not ad-lib.
- He required a structured offense with precise route runners.
- In the later seasons he had some struggles without those type of receiving options.

Staubach and Romo were masters of ad-lib.
- Neither had Aikman's accuracy or velocity, but they could function in chaos.
- Romo made Dez Bryant into an NFL WR.
- Aikman would have never co-existed with Dez Bryant.
- Tom Brady also would not have tolerated Dez.

 

[RodeoJake]

Hard to say if he was THE most accurate of all time. Otto Graham springs to mind.

I think it was Sammy Baugh that could put the ball through a tire from many yards away. I never saw him play, but I've read about his accuracy.

 

[Gorgon]

I hate to say it because I don't like the players, but Aaron Rodgers is the only QB that I've seen on the same tier as Aikman from and accuracy perspective.
- Justin Herbert is on the verge of being in that tier.

The downside with Aikman was that he could not ad-lib.
- He required a structured offense with precise route runners.
- In the later seasons he had some struggles without those type of receiving options.

Staubach and Romo were masters of ad-lib.
- Neither had Aikman's accuracy or velocity, but they could function in chaos.
- Romo made Dez Bryant into an NFL WR.
- Aikman would have never co-existed with Dez Bryant.
- Tom Brady also would not have tolerated Dez.

I think this is a good assessment of Aikman, mainly because somewhat like Brady (a little better) he was not a naturally gifted runner. He had no moves at all in the open field. You are totally right that Aikman was in the exact perfect organization with the right structure at the right time. The lead-draw was perfect for him, always giving him extra seconds to set up and follow through.

 

[Ranched]

Aikman, to me, is maybe the most underrated quarterback in NFL history. He won three SB's on one of the greatest teams in NFL history.

I think his biggest problem & why he is not rated very high by most was that his teams were so dominant that he never had too many chances to lead his teams from behind.

Technically one of the greatest Quarterbacks to ever play the game. But, he wouldn't be so on today's Cowboys.

 

[RS12]

Gonna say yes but Aaron Rodgers is right there with him. Greatest throw I ever saw with the lights as bright as possible Roethlesberger TD pass in Cardinals SB.

 

[Oz-of-Cowboy-Country]

A QB's accuracy is only as good as the blocking in front of him. How good was Troy's accuracy when that offensive line begin to break down over the years? Romo, IMO, had some great lines himself. Dak, arguably, has only had one great offensive line...2016. One weak link breaks the chain and our lines here recently always seem to have that one weak link.

The point is, you give yourself a better chance at being competitive when you can dominant in the trenches on both sides of the ball. When our front office figures that out this team will be 10 times better.

 

[Gorgon]

A QB's accuracy is only as good as the blocking in front of him. How good was Troy's accuracy when that offensive line begin to break down over the years? Romo, IMO, had some great lines himself. Dak, arguably, has only had one great offensive line...2016. One weak link breaks the chain and our lines here recently always seem to have that one weak link.

The point is, you give yourself a better chance at being competitive when you can dominant in the trenches on both sides of the ball. When our front office figures that out this team will be 10 times better.

This is 100% true, especially in Troy's case. Look at Mahomes---how many times must he scramble and still complete the pass?

This is why if I were a GM, I would always, always, always begin with the Center, then the tackles, then the guards even over QBs or RBs. It used to be said that defenses win Super Bowls, but in today's pass-happy environment with insta-flags on PI, that's no longer true, and just two good passes/two defensive breakdowns can mean defeat. So I would build an OL for the RUN first, just like Jimmy did, with the intention of always having play-action be meaningful. Always buying the QB more time. I loved the timing patterns of the early Cowboys, and once Turner left, the offense wasn't nearly as good (also having Harper leave didn't help).The other thing about building a dominant Oline is that your red zone numbers improve dramatically. You stop settling for FGs.

This is why I'm not a GM.

 

[DFWJC]

One of the most accurate, yes.
THE most? Won't go that far and no way to prove it.

 

[DFWJC]

A QB's accuracy is only as good as the blocking in front of him. How good was Troy's accuracy when that offensive line begin to break down over the years? Romo, IMO, had some great lines himself. Dak, arguably, has only had one great offensive line...2016. One weak link breaks the chain and our lines here recently always seem to have that one weak link.

The point is, you give yourself a better chance at being competitive when you can dominant in the trenches on both sides of the ball. When our front office figures that out this team will be 10 times better.

No QB in modern history has had as many good to great offensive lines (as a percent of games started) as Dak has had.
Come on.
They were not totally elite every single year, but they were ALWAYS at minimum good compared to the NFL average.

Dallas has had a good to great line all the years from 2014-2020....and the line was even ranked #1 in 2021 but we know that was a PFF weird stat. (probably was "only" top 7-8, vs best overall)

Yes, Tony played behind a great line in 2014 and a very good one in 2007

 

[noshame]

Well, yes, but remember on the deep sideline---the Cowboys' system was all a timing system---the further away you are the less likely the timing will be there. Think Harper's amazing catch in the 91 playoff game vs. SF. I don't think Troy so much underthrew that as Harper just was so fast he got out ahead of it.

Yep Troy was no Dan Fouts when it came to the deep throws. Lol