Really? Because I feel like it helps a lot.

 

I mean you can't say just because a guy never pump fakes he must have small hands. There could be another reason not to pump fake.

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Small handed QBs?

 

Think classic NFL follies films.

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An important consideration here is which part of the football a quarterback puts his fingers on. How is he holding it?

 

It's interesting to note that Terry Bradshaw used an unconventional grip on the football when he throws. I remember seeing a television special on this years back, and it showed that Bradshaw would put his index finger along the seam of the ball, with just the last two fingers of his hand on the laces. What this does is it moves the "grip" duty of the hand to just the thumb and middle finger, and the index finger is used more for accuracy than anything else.

 

If you have a football around, try this grip; it's pretty difficult to do! But, with the index finger located like that, you can add significant velocity and spin to a pass. And the tighter the spin, the more accurate the pass. Generally speaking of course.

 

This topic is making me want to measure my hand.

 

Do they measure with the fingers open or closed?

 

It's a measurement taken from the tip of the thumb to the tip of the little finger with the hand opened as wide as possible. It's not a perfect measurement, but it gives a good idea of overall hand size.

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I'm trying to make myself more informed and less opinionated.

Stop saying whatever stupid thing you're talking about and pay attention to all the interesting things I have to say!

This topic is making me want to measure my hand.


Do they measure with the fingers open or closed?

I believe it is the length from the end of your pinky to the end of your thumb while your hand is spread out.

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Here is a picture of Dan Marino holding a football.

http://a.espncdn.com/photo/2010/0226/nfl...11_300.jpg

 

Here is Terry Bradshaw holding a football.

http://a3.espncdn.com/photo/2013/0124/ra...owl_02.jpg

 

Here is Bridgewater holding a football:

http://www1.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/Teddy...UzOcKl.jpg

 

Looks like Marino's hands aren't particularly small. They secure that ball pretty well. Bradshaw, too. Bridgewater's hands do look smaller, but I'm not sure it's enough that it would matter.

 

Because Bridgewater's gloves are the same white as the stripe on the ball, there is an optical illusion that makes it hard to discern just how long his fingers are. His hands don't look very small to me.

 

As an aside, I measured my hand spread just for kicks. My left hand measured at 9 1/4", right hand 9 1/8" (Strange because i am right handed, though my left foot is also larger than my right). I am 6 feet tall and by my standards have small hands. That magic 9" number is not even to get to NFL average hands. It's just to have population average hands, I'd say. So if the NFL says you have small hands, you have REALLY small hands.

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I believe it is the length from the end of your pinky to the end of your thumb while your hand is spread out.

 

If thats the case, my hand size is slightly over 9 & 3/4

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It's interesting to note that Terry Bradshaw used an unconventional grip on the football when he throws. I remember seeing a television special on this years back, and it showed that Bradshaw would put his index finger along the seam of the ball, with just the last two fingers of his hand on the laces. What this does is it moves the "grip" duty of the hand to just the thumb and middle finger, and the index finger is used more for accuracy than anything else.

 

If you have a football around, try this grip; it's pretty difficult to do! But, with the index finger located like that, you can add significant velocity and spin to a pass. And the tighter the spin, the more accurate the pass. Generally speaking of course.

That's actually the only way I can throw a football a long distance.  I learned it from watching Jeff George as a kid and I was surprised at how nice of a spiral I can put on it and throw it much further than the traditional grip.  I don't have huge hands, but they are decent sized.

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That's actually the only way I can throw a football a long distance.  I learned it from watching Jeff George as a kid and I was surprised at how nice of a spiral I can put on it and throw it much further than the traditional grip.  I don't have huge hands, but they are decent sized.

 

Ah! Thanks for writing that! I thought that Jeff George threw that way as well, but I wasn't sure.

 

If you can get that grip right, you can really spin the football well. It's not so hard to do in your backyard, but in a pocket in the middle of a play, that grip might be problematic.

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I'm trying to make myself more informed and less opinionated.

Stop saying whatever stupid thing you're talking about and pay attention to all the interesting things I have to say!

Ah! Thanks for writing that! I thought that Jeff George threw that way as well, but I wasn't sure.

 

If you can get that grip right, you can really spin the football well. It's not so hard to do in your backyard, but in a pocket in the middle of a play, that grip might be problematic.

I've never played QB in high school or anything so I'm not sure how it would work in the real world.  I'd think the QB would be slightly more prone to fumbling unless their hands were huge.

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It's interesting to note that Terry Bradshaw used an unconventional grip on the football when he throws. I remember seeing a television special on this years back, and it showed that Bradshaw would put his index finger along the seam of the ball, with just the last two fingers of his hand on the laces. What this does is it moves the "grip" duty of the hand to just the thumb and middle finger, and the index finger is used more for accuracy than anything else.

 

If you have a football around, try this grip; it's pretty difficult to do! But, with the index finger located like that, you can add significant velocity and spin to a pass. And the tighter the spin, the more accurate the pass. Generally speaking of course.

 

In the pictures someone posted links for, Terry Bradshaw and Dan Marino put only two fingers on the laces. Logic tells me that would increase the risk of fumbling it, but I can't throw a football like that to find out.

 

Years ago I read about a quarterback (can't remember who) changing the way he gripped the ball in college. Have you ever taught a quarterback to do that?

 

If I had a football, I would punt it left-footed.

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Gloves are a different topic altogether. I have seen quarterbacks wear only the left one because they want to feel the football when they throw it.

 

Precisely.  It's rare to find a QB that wants to wear it on his throwing hand.  IIRC I read he's worn them through high school, too.

 

If I were a scout sent to do my due dilligence, I'd force him to throw for me without gloves... through the entire workout.

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/29/sports...ville.html

 

<p style="margin-left:40px;">Bridgewater’s first pass as a Cardinal, in the 2011 season opener, was intercepted.

<p style="margin-left:40px;"> 

<p style="margin-left:40px;">“That was the last time I’ve played without a glove on my throwing hand,” he said.

<p style="margin-left:40px;"> 

It will be interesting to see how long it takes the media to catch on to this...

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"You do your own thing in your own time. You should be proud."

Why did Teddy think he would throw better with a glove than without it after that pass? Many things can cause an interception. Wearing your right glove is probably at the bottom of that list.

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Why did Teddy think he would throw better with a glove than without it after that pass?

 

Hold on let me ask him real quick.

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<FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=3><B><FONT face=Verdana color=#ff6600 size=4></FONT></B></FONT>

Why did Teddy think he would throw better with a glove than without it after that pass? Many things can cause an interception. Wearing your right glove is probably at the bottom of that list.

 

Some QBs prefer to wear gloves because it gives them a consistent feel/grip. By the way, it isn't just the "small-handed" QBs that are using gloves nowadays:

 

http://www.denverpost.com/ci_22336324/pe...hand-glove

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Some QBs prefer to wear gloves because it gives them a consistent feel/grip. By the way, it isn't just the "small-handed" QBs that are using gloves nowadays.

 

Peyton Manning really surprised me in Kansas City. He kept tightening his right glove at New England, so I thought he would never wear it again. But the next week, he wore his right glove and not the left one. Now he is wearing gloves with no problem at all.

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Yeah, and outside of having a HOF WR in Cris Carter paired with Randy Moss on the other side, Culpepper wasn't that good. 

 

and he fumbled a lot.

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And he fumbled a lot.

 

Did he usually fumble on his own or get the ball knocked out of his hand? If it was a good defensive play, hand size had nothing to do with it.

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Did he usually fumble on his own or get the ball knocked out of his hand? If it was a good defensive play, hand size had nothing to do with it.

 

there is a correlation between small hands & fumbles. 

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There is a correlation between small hands & fumbles. 

 

I can understand dropping the ball, but if it is forced out by the defense, how can you blame that on having small hands?

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Someone should start a topic on the ratio of foot size to height and how it pertains to balance and stability. Balance and stability being important to throwing a football especially on the run. Does this ratio also contribute to a player's mobility, agility and elusiveness?

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