Originally Posted by
ArgoRavi
I think that we all have nostalgia for the QBs of our youth, but I do often wonder if we aren't far too hard on today's QBs and maybe give a pass to old-time QBs that we don't give to today's.
QBs used to throw way more interceptions back in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. For example, Tom Clements threw 30 INTs to go along with a 56.8 completion percentage and a QB efficiency rating of 81 back in 1987. He won the MOP. Similar stats for a QB today would not go over well with coaches and fans.
The reality is that it is tougher to be a QB now than at any time in the league's history. You need to have a completion percentage of at least 66% and you need to throw many more TD passes than INTs (not the 35:30 ratio of Clements in 1987). Defences are more complex than ever before too. I would argue that far more is expected of today's QBs than those of the past and that, by and large, the crop of QBs we have in today's CFL aren't too bad, especially when one considers that scoring today is at a similar level to the 1980s CFL and much higher than the 1970s CFL.