After coming off of suspension, Tom Brady has taken the league by storm in three games. Brady has completed 76 of 101 passes for 1004 yards and 8 TD. Brady leads the league in a lot of efficiency metrics, which includes yards per attempt, passer rating, completion percentage, adjusted yards per attempt, and Total QBR. If you're curious, this is how Brady's PFF grade compares to league average and the 2nd highest graded QB, Andrew Luck:
By comparison, Andrew Luck has the No. 2 @PFF grade pic.twitter.com/B45YZGBfDH
— Steve Palazzolo (@PFF_Steve) October 24, 2016
Just a few years ago, the weakness in the Patriots offense has been pressuring Tom Brady. If teams were able to pressure him, the offense crumbles on that play. While that is still a weakness, Brady has gotten better at adjusting to pressure. Usually when QBs age, that number goes down, but for Tom Brady it's just another facet he works at. Brady has faced a bad Cleveland defense, a solid Cincinnati defense, and a bend-but-don't-break Steelers defense in his three games so far, with an average PFF grade of 86.3.
Most-accurate QBs under pressure this season (by adjusted completion %):
— Pro Football Focus (@PFF) October 25, 2016
1. Tom Brady, 95.0%
2. Cody Kessler, 84.4%
3. Derek Carr, 75.5% pic.twitter.com/Mw5ojnYFuN
This season, Brady has been pressured on 33 of 111 drop backs (29.7%), completing 15 of 27 passes (55.5%) for 276 yards and 2 TD and 0 interceptions. Those numbers give him a passer rating of 115.7 when pressured. For context, Brady's single season best passer rating mark was 2007, when he had a passer rating of 117.2. When you factor in drops, times hit while throwing, throwaways, and batted balls, the numbers become more eye-popping.
For those wondering, this is the formula for adjusted completion percentage, found in this article:
Adjusted Completion Percentage = (Completions + Drops) / (Pass Attempts – Spikes – Throwaways – Batted Balls – Balls disrupted by a QB hit)
Brady leads the NFL with an Adjusted Completion Percentage of 95.0% when under pressure. That's pretty remarkable that when he's able to get the pass off while under pressure that the ball is catchable 95% of the time. Just when you think Brady couldn't find a new level to play on, he goes out and proves everyone wrong. I'm not sure when this run of this level of greatness will end, but we might as well enjoy the ride as it's happening.