Many of you probably watched the NBA Finals and saw the Golden State Warriors finally succumb to the weight of significant injuries to Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson. However, they still had the ball with 10 seconds to go, only down one point, and a shot to force a Game 7. A beautifully designed play got Steph Curry a good look for a three. He missed.

It happens to even the best athletes.

Georgia quarterback Jake Fromm has been stellar in his first two years in Athens. The traditional numbers he’s posted in leading the Dawgs to a 24-5 record put him in rarefied air among college signal callers for a QB’s first two years. However, much like Steph Curry did in Game 6, there have been a few times when a big play has been there for the taking and Fromm has been off or just missed.

As we look ahead to a 2019 campaign that features potential opponents Clemson and Alabama with their own returning star QBs, the number one question facing the Bulldogs is can Jake Fromm make that final shot? Can he continue his progression, reach another level and lead a talented, yet unproven receiving corps back to the top of the college football rankings?

At Pro Football Focus (www.pff.com), we grade every player on every play of every game. We now have all 32 NFL teams and more than 60 college programs as clients. The mountains of data available to assess and predict player performance is astounding. Let’s examine Fromm’s first two seasons through the PFF lens and see where 2019 needs to be different.

First, let’s look at the grades. Here are Fromm’s PFF grades in some of the different areas we track:

* For an in-depth look at exactly how we grade QB performance, read this article recently posted on the site*

In addition to those, we also track “Big-Time Throws” (our highest-graded throws) and the self-explanatory “Turnover-Worthy Plays.” Here are Fromm’s over his first two seasons:

Now, what do the numbers mean? First, Jake has been elite from a clean pocket. This bodes quite well for 2019 as this has been shown to be one of PFF's most consistent metrics and Georgia will have arguably the best offensive line in college football this season. In addition, Fromm improved in his second year in limiting turnover-worthy plays, registering the 3rd lowest amount among qualified FBS quarterbacks.

Where Fromm dipped in his sophomore performance compared to his freshman season was when pressured and on the deeper throws. While we intuitively know a quarterback does not perform as well when pressured, let’s look further at the numbers:

Under Pressure - Freshman season: 61.2% adjusted completion, 10.8 yards per attempt, 6 TDs, 3 INTs, 97.9 QB rating

Under Pressure - Sophomore season: 57.4% adjusted completion, 6.5 yards per attempt, 3 TDs, 3 INTs, 65.3 QB rating

*Adjusted completion % = accounts for drops, throw-aways, etc.

A quarterback’s numbers under pressure are actually a typically unstable (i.e. not consistent) metric. There is obviously an element of randomness to those situations and those could swing back in Fromm’s favor this season.

On deeper throws (20+ air yards), Fromm also wasn’t quite as crisp as he was in 2017. Here are the numbers:

Deep Throws – Freshman season: 23-48 (with 5 drops), 815 yards, 11 TDs, 1 INT, 125.0 QB rating (8th best in the FBS)

Deep Throws – Sophomore season: 16-51 (with 4 drops), 615 yards, 8 TDs, 4 INT, 85.4 QB rating

In the end, though, what will be different in 2019 for Fromm that might impact all the above numbers? Well, a lot. He has a new offensive coordinator and with the dismissal of Jeremiah Holloman, his receiver group is quite new and unproven. The biggest difference, however, he is not facing an intense position battle like he did his first two seasons. Much like a baseball player playing with supreme confidence knowing he’ll be in tomorrow's lineup even if he goes hitless today, Fromm can play with that same confidence knowing he’s only coming out in garbage time. In addition, his elite play from a clean pocket – something he will experience often – should continue.