Matt Leinart: Half of all interceptions are not on the quarterback
Trailing by 3 with just over 2 minutes to play in Monday night’s meeting between the Jets and Bills, New York quarterback Aaron Rodgers hurled a ball in the direction of wide receiver Mike Williams and was intercepted by Buffalo’s Taron Johnson effectively ending the game. Interceptions are widely viewed as a quarterback statistic but after the game, Rodgers intimated that the turnover was caused, at least partially, by Williams running the wrong route.
This was a hot topic on the most recent episode of the Throwbacks podcast with Matt Leinart and Jerry Ferrara where Leinart, a former Heisman Trophy winning QB, suggested that far more interceptions are generated by factors outside of a bad throw than fans may realize.
“I would say half of quarterbacks' interceptions stem from something that particularly might not be their fault. And I'm not throwing anyone under the bus. I'm just saying this is what happens.”
Under the bus is exactly where some felt Rodgers threw his receiver in the wake of the 4-time MVP’s postgame explanation. But as someone that has been in similar situations before, Leinart was a bit more restrained in analyzing Rodgers’ public response.
“You have Mike Williams running the wrong route,” Leinart said. “Aaron Rodgers is a pissed-off dude right now. Like, I can understand. I don't look at it as throwing under the bus. He's like, ‘listen, this is where I expected him to be. It wasn't there. I threw a pick and we lost.’ That's the bottom line.”
In the wake of Mike Williams’ Monday night mistake, the Jets acted quickly and acquired 3-time All-Pro wideout, Davante Adams from the Las Vegas Raiders. Rodgers and Adams experienced tremendous success over their 8 seasons together in Green Bay including over 600 receptions and 68 touchdown passes. But can they recreate that type of proficiency at this later stage in their careers?
“You can't teach chemistry, and those guys were doing it for a long time at the highest level” stated Leinart. “And when you're on the same page and you just have that connection, you know [Tom] Brady had it with [Rob Gronkowski] and [Julian] Edelman all those years and [Patrick] Mahomes and [Travis] Kelce is a perfect example...It makes them a lot better and it gives Aaron Rodgers a lot more comfort in this offense.”
The Jets quest for a first playoff appearance in 14 years continues this Sunday night when they visit the 4-2 Pittsburgh Steelers.
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