Greg Schiano Provides False Excuses for Mike Glennon’s Poor Play

Dec 8, 2013; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Mike Glennon (8) drops back against the Buffalo Bills during the first half at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

• Mike Glennon is a rookie.
• Mike Glennon has some things he needs to work on.
• Mike Glennon makes some very good throws and shows signs of being a very good quarterback if he can continue to develop the skills he has shown on occasion.

These are all facts about the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ rookie signal caller, who was the apple of Greg Schiano’s eyes since his days in high school, and wound up becoming a Buccaneer in the third round of the 2013 NFL draft.

Two of the following three statements about Mike Glennon are not true, despite being provided by Greg Schiano.

Mike Glennon was not plagued by dropped balls, nor was he the victim of pressure. He simply had a bad day, and made lots of poor throws.

Glennon had two passes dropped on Sunday (the “drop” in the end zone by Tiquan Underwood was credited as a pass defended by Aaron Williams by Pro Football Focus).

But he was also the beneficiary of an excellent catch by Vincent Jackson in the end zone on a pass that was thrown short and to the inside of the 6′ 5″ receiver. His receivers cannot receive the blame and not also receive praise.

Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

For the season, Glennon isn’t even in the top-25 in the NFL in dropped passes per dropback, using the data found at Pro Football Focus. Glennon cannot have dropped passes as an excuse for his poor play, because he’s actually had better than average luck at avoiding dropped passes this year.

Dropped passes are an unfortunate truth of life in the NFL, and must be dealt with like any other setback for a quarterback. The best QBs overcome adversity and turn around to make big plays after dropped passes.

Glennon was also not a victim of pressure on Sunday. He was a victim of his fear of blitzing defenders.

Again, according to Pro Football Focus, Glennon was 5/14 for 40 yards and an interception while NOT under pressure, and 4/11 for 50 yards, 2 touchdowns and an interception while under pressure.  Both of his touchdowns came when he was pressured by Buffalo defenders.

The blitz numbers tell the better story. Glennon was 6/15 when not being blitzed by the Bills, and totaled a 72.5 QB Rating. But when Glennon was blitzed (even when he wasn’t under pressure from the blitz) he was 3/10 and earned a 0 QB Rating.

Glennon’s problem is not that his offensive line doesn’t block well for him. His problem is that he gets scared in the pocket and ducks his head. According to Pro Football Focus, Mike Glennon has “allowed” the second-most sacks on the Buccaneers due to his inability to make a decision, and ducking his head while running into defenders.

Glennon made poor throws and poor decisions on Sunday, and that’s what led to his bad game. He’s been working hard, according to his coach, and he did show improvement a few weeks ago during the team’s first winning streak.

But let’s not make excuses for his poor play. Making excuses is what led many (including myself) to believing in Josh Freeman as a franchise quarterback option. Let’s evaluate his whole body of work and determine where he stands versus the options available in the 2014 offseason.