New England quarterback Tom Brady, at the age of 40, is still playing at an elite level.
He ranked first among starting quarterbacks in the NFL, according to analytics website Football Outsiders.
They evaulate quarterbacks according to a defense-adjusted yards-above-replacement (DYAR) measure, and Brady has a 651 rating, which ranks first in the league. They also rank the quarterbacks according to the defense-adjusted value over average (DVOA), and Brady has a 28.7 rating, which ranks first.
There hasn’t been a noticeable drop off in his play as the Patriots (4-2) are set to host the Falcons at 8:30 p.m. Sunday at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., in a rematch of Super Bowl LI.
Brady, who tormented the Falcons and led the unprecedented Super Bowl comeback from a 28-3 deficit, has carried his team early.
He has completed 153 of 223 passes (65.72 percent) for 1,959 yards, 13 touchdowns and two interceptions. He has a passer rating of 106.9, which ranks second in the league among starting quarterbacks behind Kansas City’s Alex Smith (119.2).
“We talk a lot about our best football being in front of us, and we need to start playing that way,” Patriots offensive coordinator Josh Daniels said on a conference call Tuesday.
Brady operates with Daniels calling plays from the field.
“I have no experience calling plays from the booth,” Daniels said. “I’ve been down there since I started.
“It’s been something where I’ve always coached a position at the same time. I’ve been the (quarterback) coach at same time as I’ve been the coordinator. To have that communication and just the ability to interact with the quarterback on the sideline has been important for me.”
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