Advanced QB Stats

What are advanced QB stats?

Advanced stats go beyond the regular baselines we use to track player performances, such as yards and scores. They give us insight into how players perform in more micro settings and provide a deeper understanding as to actual player performance and usage. 

Advance stats consist of things like tracking downfield targeting for wide receivers (rather than just the number of actual yards gained); RB usage inside the red zone (rather than just the number of rushing TDs scored); and tracking a QBs expected completion percentage and yards per attempt (vs just his regular completion percentage and yards thrown).

Why are advanced stats important?

Stats like yards gained and TDs only tell us a small portion of the story. 

If we view a regular box score and see that a player gained 100 yards and scored twice we may just assume that that player had a great game and will continue to play a vital role for his team going forward. That may be the case but looking at the advanced stats allows us to confirm or debunk that theory. Advanced stats also allow us to better identify potential breakout candidates who perhaps didn’t appear as prominently in the traditional stat lines.

The ability to understand how a player has performed – outside of the context of the traditional stats – not only increases our knowledge of the game but also allows us to use that knowledge in endeavors like fantasy football or betting where predicting player breakouts (or busts) before the general market does, is vital.

How to use advanced QB stats for fantasy football

Since advanced stats give us a clearer picture of which players may be overperforming or underperforming, that information can be used to help make smarter decisions regarding our fantasy football lineup. 

Specifically, monitoring and understanding advanced stats can help us identify undervalued players in the market who may be available on waivers or in trades for cheaper than they should be. They can also help identify potentially overvalued players on your roster who may be worth moving before their value drops. 

How to use advanced QB stats for sports betting

Specifically, advanced stats can be very useful to help identify overvalued and undervalued player props in the general betting markets. For example, predictive stats such as air yards (how far the ball travels in the air before it reaches a WR on the total sum of his targets in a game) can help us determine which WRs O/U totals may be set too low or too high based on his recent performances. 

Which QB advanced stats are most important?

Air yards, Expected Completion %, Yards per attempt.