Back in the 2013 and 2014 NFL seasons, former Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Mike Glennon appeared in 19 games, making 18 starts and tossing 29 touchdown passes with 15 interceptions. But he has thrown just 11 passes since the Bucs spent the No. 1 overall pick on Jameis Winston in 2015.
That didn't stop the Chicago Bears from committing a three-year, $45 million contract to Glennon on Thursday. So what exactly are the Bears getting with him? I watched each of those 19 games to find out.
Positive signs
Arm talent
Glennon has upper-tier arm strength. A 6-foot-6, 225-pound pro-style passer, he can rip the ball on the deep out, inside seam, dig route (breaks at 15 yards) and the corner route (beat Cover 2). That allows Glennon to fit the ball into tight windows and challenge defensive backs in man coverage or attack zone shells.
Here's an example from Glennon's rookie season in 2013 versus the Seattle Seahawks. A vertical concept with the tight end, Tim Wright, working up the numbers on the seam route.
This is a classic three-deep beater from the Bucs. Send three verticals up the field with receiver Vincent Jackson crossing the face of Seahawks safety Earl Thomas. That's going to occupy Thomas just enough for the Bucs to open that throwing window to the seam. This allows Glennon, working from a clean pocket, to set his feet and deliver a dime to Wright just as Thomas closes on the ball. This is a tight-window throw, but because of Glennon's arm strength, he can be aggressive here and challenge the Seahawks' core coverage for an explosive gain.
I think the arm strength is legitimate with Glennon, and it shows up all the time on the Bucs' film. Does he need a stable platform to launch the ball? Yes, he does (and we'll get to that later). But when Glennon can set his feet, he can make every throw in the playbook. Man, he made some throws versus the Steelers in 2014 that absolutely jumped off the screen. Rockets.
Coverage ID/progressions
Watching all of Glennon's starts in 2013 and 2014, it's clear he improved his ability to read defenses before the snap, adjust to late safety rotations and find the defense's weak stop. Off play action, he is quick to set his feet and anticipate throwing windows. And if you put him in RPO schemes (run-pass options), he can get the ball out quickly to take advantage of second-level defenders playing downhill.
Want a good tape to watch? Check out Glennon versus Seattle in 2013. He finished the day 17-of-23 for 168 yards, two touchdowns and a 72.5 Total QBR against the NFL's best defense that season. Glennon just played smart football and made some throws outside of the pocket, too. Attack the zone windows, take the underneath throws and work the linebackers. He took some hits, bounced up and kept playing.
Plus -- and I think this has to be factored into his evaluation -- Glennon played behind a poor offensive line in Tampa, and his wide receivers were limited outside of Jackson in 2013. With Tiquan Underwood (now playing up in the CFL) as one of his primary targets, Glennon still displayed improvement with his vision and showed growth at the position, which is exactly what you want to see from a young quarterback.
Deep-ball ability
On throws over 20 yards or more down the field, Glennon had pretty pedestrian TD-INT numbers (9-5) in his first two seasons. He particularly struggled throwing the deep fade route during his rookie season, often sailing the ball out of bounds. That's poor football. You have to give your wide receiver a chance.
In 2014, Glennon took a step forward in that regard. The Bucs drafting Mike Evans certainly helped, giving Glennon had a legit matchup weapon who could stack, separate and finish on deep ball throws outside of the numbers.
Here's an example from the 2014 film versus the Minnesota Vikings. A straight fade/go route to Evans versus man coverage.
This is exactly what you want from the quarterback. Get the eyes on the free safety quick to hold him in the middle of the field. Open the shoulders quick and make the throw over the top. With Evans gaining some separation down the field, Glennon drops this throw into the bucket for a big play. Dime.
Throwing the deep ball doesn't necessarily translate to wins, especially if you're sailing the ball out of bounds. But given how Glennon's tape improved in this area, defenses will absolutely have to account for his arm strength and ball placement on the deep ball.
Boot and sprint game
Glennon ran a 4.94 40-yard dash back at the 2013 NFL combine, and he has some limitations athletically. I think Glennon lacks flexibility and plays a little stiff at times. Plus, he isn't going to create stress for the defense as a true runner when plays break down. That's not his game.
But based on the tape, Glennon does have enough movement skills to produce in both boot and sprint action. When Glennon gets to the edge (or outside) of the pocket, he has shown the ability to square his shoulders to the target and deliver a catchable ball. Again, his arm strength is an asset here. He can put the ball on a rope to hit the deep comeback off the boot or the deep 7 route (corner) in the core sprint-pass combinations.
Off-schedule plays
The ability to make off-schedule plays (or throws) is very important from my perspective, because stuff happens in football. Protection breaks down. Defenses double team primary targets. Timing gets thrown off at the top of the route. So you need a quarterback who can improvise, keep the play alive and avoid disaster when things go south after the snap.
Going into this tape study, I didn't really expect much out of Glennon in terms of making off-schedule plays. He's a pocket guy. As these plays started popping up on the tape, Glennon had some good reactions and some questionable ones. But the fact that he showed the ability to create and keep his eyes downfield should be viewed as a positive, given his limited athleticism.
Let's go back to the 2013 Seattle game to highlight one of the two off-schedule plays Glennon made to find the end zone.
Glennon starts with a front-side read in his drop. Eyes to the trips side of the formation. However, with some interior pressure, Glennon has to pull the ball down. And that can be trouble versus the speed of Seattle's defensive front. But instead of giving up on the play, Glennon buys time to the open side of the formation and continues to keep his eyes upfield. That allows Glennon to give ground (buy time), reset his feet and deliver the ball to Underwood in the corner of the end zone.
Glennon isn't going to make a living in the NFL creating outside of the pocket, but I've seen enough examples on the film (some out of necessity because of the offensive line play in Tampa) where Glennon squeezes out some more room to work. And when he has time to reset his base, he can expose coverages thatt break down.
Warning signs
Retreating vs. pressure
In his first two NFL seasons, only one quarterback had a worse completion percentage against the blitz than Glennon's 48.6 (EJ Manuel, 45.2 percent). And nine of Glennon's 15 interceptions came when the defense brought five or more pass-rushers. That's concerning.
The problem is that Glennon often retreats versus pressure and fails to step into throws. That's going to impact the velocity he can put on the ball, and it forces his core fundamentals to break down. Plus, he will force the ball and take unnecessary risks when he begins to feel rushers.
Take a look at this clip from the Bucs-Ravens game in 2014 with Baltimore sending zone pressure.
The Bucs are running a VO combination (vertical-out) to the weak side of the formation. Clear with the outside receiver and target the quick out-route (slot). However, with the Ravens sending the pressure and getting a free runner at Glennon, he has to speed up his read/progression. This forces Glennon to alter his throwing platform and give ground in the pocket, eventually throwing off his back foot. The ball floats to the flat, and it's an easy interception for cornerback Jimmy Smith, who read the play perfectly.
Glennon can make strides versus pressure looks with more game reps. His inexperience shows on the tape against both zone- and man-blitz schemes. However, this is a weakness to Glennon's game at this stage of his career, one that impacts field vision, fundamentals and the throwing platform he needs to deliver the ball cleanly.
Pocket mobility/footwork
We talked about Glennon's ability to make the occasional off-schedule play above. That's a positive. However, what I continued to notice on film was his lack of mobility when he felt interior rushers in the A and B gaps. He shows some panic, a breakdown in footwork that really limits his ability to manage the inside of the pocket when it gets a little muddy.
He doesn't need to look for an escape door to get out of trouble. Instead, think of a quick slide step. Throw the shoulder forward, step up into an open lane and reset. Eyes always up regardless of how dangerous it can get in the mess of bodies.
Yes, I am focusing on the type of pocket management we see from stars such as Tom Brady and Drew Brees. Top-tier quarterbacks who operate inside of the traffic. They are the models. That comes with more reps, more coaching and more attention to detail with footwork. It's not there yet with Glennon, but it had better get going if he wants to be a consistent pocket thrower in the NFL.
Throwing from an unstable platform
Throughout this piece, I've talked about Glennon's ability to fire the ball from a stable platform or when he resets his feet/base. But quarterbacks don't always play in that kind of environment. They have to adjust, manage trouble at their feet and show the ability to throw from an unstable platform. That's part of the job. Make plays and produce in adverse situations.
Glennon needs work here, and you can almost predict the majority of his negative throws by focusing on his release point and footwork. This is when we see Glennon sail the ball on outside cuts, underthrow deep routes or miss his target point. It's not the same smooth, powerful throw that you see when he's operating from a clean pocket or solid base.
Take a look at this route Glennon missed versus the Browns in 2014.
With the Browns dropping a safety late, Glennon has a good matchup in the middle of the field versus man coverage. This is a basic shallow crossing route and throw. But Glennon feels some pressure and throws this ball flat-footed. That forces his shoulders to open and the ball sails over the top of the tight end. The result? A basket pick for the free safety and a turnover for the Bucs in scoring position.
This is a poor throw from Glennon on a route he has to hit. Even with some pressure up the field, Glennon must step into this throw and deliver a catchable ball. However, we are again focusing on mechanics and platform with Glennon. It's an issue that needs to be cleaned up.
Touch throws
Glennon needs to develop a change-up. Yeah, the fastball is a game-changer; he can sling it. But I want to see Glennon make more touch throws. That will allow him to drop the ball over the top of second-level defenders or find an open window versus a zone coverage.
Think of hitting the deep-out with a strong safety lying in the weeds under the break. You have to put some touch on that throw to clear the curl defender, or else it's a pick. The same with hitting the intermediate crosser with a seam defender dropping into the lane. There are times when the fastball just isn't the right throw.
I started this piece with Glennon's arm strength, because it does stand out. And that's going to allow him to thread the needle on some throws. But his game will elevate when he shows more consistency in altering his velocity to target multiple coverages.
Future development
From a coaching perspective, I would really like to work with Glennon. Sure, he is a little raw and there are some limitations to his game. The Bears know that. And they also know there will be some bumps in the road when he becomes the No. 1 QB this season.
However, Glennon has natural tools. You can see it on the tape. Now, those tools need to be refined. That's going to come with game reps first. He needs to play after sitting for two seasons. The next step is coaching and development. The footwork, mechanics and throwing platform.
The way I see it, this comes down to building a teaching environment around Glennon. That's how you facilitate growth in players like Glennon who have the tools to reach a high ceiling.