A Little Bit of Everything From Arch Manning vs. No. 45 Oklahoma

There was some good…

and some bad for University of Texas quarterback Arch Manning vs. No. 45 Oklahoma (CBS Sports).

He had three touchdown passes in the game…

and two interceptions.

I’ll say this: I feel sort of confused after studying this game. There were some things Manning did that I liked, and some things I really didn’t like.

Manning did just enough to win the game…

And just enough to lose the game…

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Out of rhythm

To me⎯

A quarterback is like the drummer in a band.

For better or for worse.

The quarterback is in control of the timing of the offense, both before and after the snap. Everyone else on the offense feeds off the quarterback’s timing, or lack thereof.

Manning’s timing in this game was ALL OVER THE ROAD.

There were plays when it felt like he was more decisive, and there were other plays when he just couldn’t get the ball out of his hand for whatever reason. He ate a couple of sacks along the way (and the resulting yardage losses).

The offense had a tendency to feel methodical pre-snap and pretty herky-jerky post-snap. There were a handful of plays when the coaching staff put Manning into “tempo,” and he was forced to hurry it up.

What was Manning’s official time to throw vs. Oklahoma?

Per Pro Football Focus:

• 3.22 seconds

Sometimes Manning looked more relaxed throwing the football, and sometimes he didn’t.

Sometimes Manning threw with a more equally distributed throwing motion (using his upper and lower body), and sometimes he didn’t.

Below-average job of protecting his body as a runner in this game

This has now developed into a trend over the past several games for Manning…

He seems to be sliding and going out of bounds less and less as a runner, and he’s absorbing more and more contact.

Manning put himself into position to get tackled against the Sooners most of the time. In fact, I charted only one instance when he dived on a 12-yard run and avoided getting hit again.

Emotional rollercoaster

At the beginning of this game, Manning looked more relaxed and a little more upbeat.

From there throughout the game, there were moments when the cameras caught him dropping his head.

Then there was this⎯

When Manning slammed his helmet down on the sideline.

NFL takeaway

I’m not excited about what Manning put on tape against Oklahoma from an NFL perspective. There were a couple of clutch moments I liked, and the touchdown throws looked nice, but outside of that…

He was hotter in the first half, and he was hot and cold in the second half.

If I had to pick a word to describe his performance?

Inconsistent.

Manning added three passes that were broken up on top of it all.

⎯And⎯

I didn’t like what I saw in Manning’s eyes after he threw the ill-advised interception that sealed his team’s fate.

Texas lost 27-24, and the television announcer summarized it best after the game had concluded…

Daniel Kelly is a former NFL Scout with the New York Jets. He was hired on the regime which featured Bill Parcells, Bill Belichick, Scott Pioli, Mike Tannenbaum, and Dick Haley. He is currently the Editor-in-Chief for First Round Mock, and has written for Sports Illustrated (Lions, Jets, and 49ers), NFL Draft Diamonds, and Yardbarker, as well as appearing as a guest on ESPN Radio, Fox Sports Radio, and Fearless with Jason Whitlock. Featured in USA Today. For more information, visit whateverittakesbook.com. Follow on Twitter @firstroundmock.