I like QB's who are efficient more than those who are flashy, and although Browne faced Bama & Stanford in 2 of his 3 starts last season, having 2 interceptions in those games is less than ideal (especially with only 2 passing TD's). I found video of both of his picks to see how bad they were -- were they the result of bad reads, bad looks, etc? Here they are.
INTERCEPTION 1, vs. Bama (video link at the 1:27 mark): Browne hits a WR right in the hands in stride on a crossing pattern. The WR bobbles it into the air and a DB behind the play plucks it for a Bama pick-6. It kinda looks like the LB hits the WR as the ball gets there to help cause the bobble---which is at least partially damning against the QB if true---but if you watch it closely & pause it at the right time, you can see it's 100% the WR's fault.
INTERCEPTION 2, vs. Utah State (video link at the 0:46 mark): Browne is flushed right out of a collapsing pocket. On the run he keeps his eyes downfield and makes a touch pass toward a WR cutting hard to the sideline. It looks like a situation where he either hits the WR on a nice pass or it ends up out of bounds, but a DB on Utah St. makes the absolute play of his career, diving backwards & high-pointing the ball perfectly while barely coming down with it. It's not a catch/interception that normally gets made, but Max still made the throw into a place that a DB was able to complete a phenomenal play on the ball.
OVERALL: Considering these 2 interceptions don't look that bad, especially the Bama one in his first start ever & his team never got going on the ground to help him out, and the fact he was an efficient 58-for-93 (62.4%) on the year with 2/3 of his starts against elite defenses, I'm not too concerned that these 2 turnovers foretell bad decision-making from our QB. USC fans who visited our board said he's basically fine if the OL doesn't force him to scramble a lot (which USC's OL did early last year, so keep that in mind with his 62.4% completion percentage), and Pitt should have a decent OL & strong/varied running game, so I'm more excited about his potential to run Pitt's O than I was originally when looking at his USC stats.
INTERCEPTION 1, vs. Bama (video link at the 1:27 mark): Browne hits a WR right in the hands in stride on a crossing pattern. The WR bobbles it into the air and a DB behind the play plucks it for a Bama pick-6. It kinda looks like the LB hits the WR as the ball gets there to help cause the bobble---which is at least partially damning against the QB if true---but if you watch it closely & pause it at the right time, you can see it's 100% the WR's fault.
INTERCEPTION 2, vs. Utah State (video link at the 0:46 mark): Browne is flushed right out of a collapsing pocket. On the run he keeps his eyes downfield and makes a touch pass toward a WR cutting hard to the sideline. It looks like a situation where he either hits the WR on a nice pass or it ends up out of bounds, but a DB on Utah St. makes the absolute play of his career, diving backwards & high-pointing the ball perfectly while barely coming down with it. It's not a catch/interception that normally gets made, but Max still made the throw into a place that a DB was able to complete a phenomenal play on the ball.
OVERALL: Considering these 2 interceptions don't look that bad, especially the Bama one in his first start ever & his team never got going on the ground to help him out, and the fact he was an efficient 58-for-93 (62.4%) on the year with 2/3 of his starts against elite defenses, I'm not too concerned that these 2 turnovers foretell bad decision-making from our QB. USC fans who visited our board said he's basically fine if the OL doesn't force him to scramble a lot (which USC's OL did early last year, so keep that in mind with his 62.4% completion percentage), and Pitt should have a decent OL & strong/varied running game, so I'm more excited about his potential to run Pitt's O than I was originally when looking at his USC stats.
