I've been thinking about Rich Gannon lately. It may have started with madnessmike's post "Defense of Gannon." I wondered at the time, "Did Gannon really need defending?" He is not the most likeable person, but he was a terrific QB. Although I hadn't really thought about it.
I guess I hadn't really thought back about Gannon's time. It came to such an unceremonious end that his greatness kind of just got swept under the rug, and with the Raiders struggles since he left, I am sometimes left wondering if that era even happened at all.
Then MAK's fantastic post yesterday on passer rating differential got me thinking about the Gannon era even further, and I went out in search of highlights. This one is the most comprehensive, but the video quality isn't the best. But it wasn't the quality of the footage I was after. i wanted to remember the quality of the player, and this one does a fine job. Gannon was a joy to watch. He was competitive, cagey, and smart. Gannon would beat a coverage with his eyes and a pump fake, and under pressure he could deliver the ball accurately from any arm angle or release point. It wasn't always pretty, but it got the job done.
Another thing sticks out watching this video was the offensive line was a thousand times better than last years. Enjoy:
(via dungeonmattster)