This morning, Pro Football Focus, a provider of premium sports stats, declared Garrett Grayson the highest graded rookie quarterback for Week 1 of the preseason. But, according to the site, they reviewed the stats again and deemed him not the highest graded rookie quarterback. Instead, the New Orleans Saints rookie was rated No. 2. BSN Denver decided to review the tape to see what he Grayson did that was so amazing against the Baltimore Ravens.
Sure, he didn’t play until the fourth quarter and the starters were long gone but Grayson put on a show of poise and accuracy. In his first pass play, the 24-year old sent a dart into the flat, off of a play action, to Willie Snead for a gain of seven. Third down: Grayson lined up in a shotgun formation, Baltimore sent a blitz to the left side. Grayson looked effortless as he stepped up in the pocket, saw he had nothing to throw to downfield and smartly ran to the first down marker without coming near a defender.
When Tim Hightower ran for no gain on first down, Grayson responded with another short pass to the flat, this time for a twelve yard gain and a first down. Next, Garrett impressed when his play-action roll-out was interrupted by a defensive end in his face. He stopped his roll-out, tucked the ball away, turned his momentum upfield and played it smart by sliding for a seven-yard gain. Lined up in shotgun, Grayson got a bad snap but good protection in the pocket, he sent another dart down the middle to Hightower for ten yards and a first down.
The next set of downs started with a run for no gain, and two passes from the Saints’ No. 8 that were on target but the receivers couldn’t haul the ball in due to tight coverage and a receiver getting tripped up while running his route. Grayson still drove his team from the Saints 10 yard line to Baltimore’s 30 yard line resulting in a 50-yard field goal.
Grayson started out flawless in his second series as a professional QB with a five-yard toss to Lance Lewis from his own 10 yard line. The next play was a work of art. New Orleans lined up in a single back, spread formation, the pocket collapsed from all sides. Grayson stood poised, eyes down field, he lofted a ball over the defensive back to Willie Snead, as the receiver dove along the sideline. The window was so small you would have thought that Drew Brees had thrown it. The drive ended up fizzling out with a check down pass to the flat for no gain, an incomplete pass that hit the receiver in the hands, and the offensive line giving up a sack.
See the great play to Willie Snead here:
http://youtu.be/ECfILLbqaNE
Grayson got one more series in this game, thanks to his defense getting an interception, and he made the most of it. He started with a nine-yard pass to Kevin Brock and followed that up on the next play by splitting the cornerback and the safety for a 19-yard gain, which put the Saints on the three yard line. The Saints finished off the drive with a toss sweep to Marcus Murphy for the touchdown.
See Grayson set his team up for a touchdown here:
http://youtu.be/8dSR6mQjmX0
Grayson was unflappable in this game and seemed to get better as the contest went on. We knew he was great at Colorado State University when he was named Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year last season, racking up school-records with 4,006 yards and 32 touchdowns.
In the game, Grayson went 8-12 for 87 yards while running twice for 15 additional yards. It looks like he has been working on his craft and is now being recognized as a quarterback to be followed in the NFL. He has a bright future ahead of him if he keeps improving at this rate. He is probably appreciating getting tutored by a future Hall of Fame QB, Drew Brees, and that teaching is paying off.
