Phillip: Now that we are midway through the season, there is one thing certain about the Heisman Trophy race — it will be dominated by quarterbacks.
There are many choices, but the clear-cut favorite is Marcus Mariota.
Oregon’s sophomore signal-caller has dazzled in 2013 and will shatter the impressive numbers he compiled as a freshman. Through seven games, Mariota is completing 62.4 percent of his passes and has thrown 19 touchdowns.
His running proficiency is even more impressive.
Mariota has gained 10.1 yards per rush attempt this season and has scored nine touchdowns on the ground, including a jaw-dropping 71-yard dash against Virginia.
Thanks in large part to his absurd start to the season, No. 3 Oregon is in position to play for a national title when Florida State turns in its usual choke-job performance later this season.
Did I mention that Mariota has thrown exactly zero interceptions this season? Your boy Blaine Gabbert can’t even say that after most first quarters. Give this man the hardware.
Joe: You can make fun of my Jaguars all you want, but Tom Brady threw the same number of touchdown passes for your beloved Patriots last Sunday as Gabbert did while sidelined with a hamstring injury — none.
(Chad Henne also had zero. Man, being a Jags fan really makes my Sundays miserable.)
More than making up for the lack of production from Brady and Gabbert (and Henne) last weekend was No. 2 Florida State’s redshirt freshman phenom Jameis Winston — the clear-cut frontrunner to win the Heisman Trophy.
Winston enjoyed his best performance yet in his first major test last Saturday, leading the Seminoles to a signature win against formerly third-ranked Clemson. The redshirt freshman silenced a hostile crowd in Death Valley with 444 passing yards and four total touchdowns in the Seminoles’ blowout victory.
Even more impressive was Winston’s efficiency. He led FSU to three touchdown drives against the Tigers that lasted 1:39 or less.
The rise of “Famous Jameis” hasn’t even taken that long. At this rate, the Heisman Trophy might win him at season’s end.
Phillip: You leave Brady out of this. You would be off your game, too, if you were coming home to Gisele Bundchen every night. He can hang it up any time he wants and go down as one of the five best quarterbacks to ever play.
Besides, Gabbert’s QBR is 1.8. The next lowest is Josh Freeman at 18.9. That is damning. Can’t the Jaguars just leave Gabbert in London this week? Would anyone really care?
Anyway, if you want to argue about who is the most efficient quarterback, you have to give the nod to Mariota.
He has been so good — and Oregon has been so dominant — that prior to playing Washington two weekends ago, he had not played in the fourth quarter of any game this season. That’s just ridiculous.
Imagine what his numbers would look like if he had even more time to shred these helpless defenses?
Sure, Winston is phenomenal. Considering he is a redshirt freshman, the start to his career is almost unprecedented. But he can’t beat opposing defenses in as many ways as the incredibly versatile Mariota can.
If Oregon’s sophomore sensation continues putting up these eye-popping numbers when the Ducks face the brunt of their schedule — spoiler: he will — there is no chance the voters turn him down. It doesn’t matter how famous Jameis is these days.
Joe: I’m not even worried about the Blaine Train anymore. My heart is set on another Heisman candidate — Louisville’s Teddy Bridgewater. #TankForTeddy!
Jameis is more famous than Mariota — and my beloved Teddy — because, like this Rally posits, he’s performed better against better competition so far.
The best defense the Ducks have faced this season is Virginia’s, which ranks 47th nationally with 377.6 yards allowed per game. Florida State has already faced three teams ranked higher than that with four more on the way, including Florida’s fourth-ranked unit.
(UVA, by the way, has surrendered 83 points and 978 yards of total offense in home losses to Ball State and Duke this season.)
There’s no telling how Mariota will do in back-to-back games against No. 12 UCLA and No. 6 Stanford. Until he (very likely) does what he’s been doing against teams like the Bruins and the Cardinal, he can take a backseat to the amazing Winston.
Facing better competition, Winston has actually improved an offense that lost starting quarterback EJ Manuel while facing tougher opponents.
Quarterbacking the nation’s fifth-ranked offense, Winston ranks among the top seven FBS signal-callers with a 71.3 completion percentage, 12 yards per pass attempt, 20 touchdown passes, a 210.4 passer rating and a 92.5 QBR.
Mariota ranks right up there with Winston in each of those categories, but there’s no denying that the redshirt freshman has faced tougher competition so far.
The Heisman race is tight between these frontrunners, but based on each quarterback’s body of work so far in 2013, Winston leads by a tomahawk chop.
Follow Phillip Heilman on Twitter @phillip_heilman. Follow Joe Morgan on Twitter @joe_morgan.
Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston (5) throws a pass during the second half of FSU's 48-34 win at Boston College on Sept. 28.
