New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady was good in 2015. He was really good. He might not have claimed the accolades of Panthers quarterback Cam Newton, or picked up the universal love of Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer, but if there's one territory that Brady is unparalleled it's his ability to stay strong under pressure.
Brady was playing behind an offensive line that consisted of wet paper bags and balsa wood, and all of his skill players were injured throughout the year, yet he still managed to rank atop the league in most passing categories.
Why? Well, he's the best quarterback in the league and he elevates his play when the team needs him most.
So it should come as no surprise that analytics site numberFire named Brady their #1 4th quarter quarterback for 2015.
numberFire looks at every single play and evaluates the success or failure of the play based on historical precedence. Brady was more successful in the 4th quarter than any other quarterback in the league.
"Brady's 0.35 Passing NEP [Net Expected Points] per drop back was 0.06 points higher than second place (Palmer)," numberFire writes. "Which was the same difference between Palmer and eighth-place Andy Dalton."
Brady was in a class of his own and the fact that he was so efficient with each pass is magnified because he threw the 8th most passes in the 4th quarter. He had volume and efficiency; his stats were the result of a few lucky bounces.
It's clear that Brady hasn't started a downward trend in his ability, and hopefully he'll be able to harness his top tier potential for yet another season.