With the 2016 season in the books, NFL.com’s Matt Harmon decided to take a look at the third-down performances of the league’s quarterbacks. Using a Next Gen Stat called “Average Air Yards to Sticks” Harmon identified Buccaneers signal-caller Jameis Winston as the NFL’s second-best quarterback on third down. In its essence, Average Air Yards to Sticks represents the depth of a pass past the first-down marker.
“Jameis Winston popped as the fourth-most aggressive quarterback throwing into tight coverage, per Next Gen Stats,” Harmon wrote. “With that in mind, it's no surprise that the second-year quarterback consistently chucks the ball beyond the sticks on third down, with an average of 2.