MSU's Payton Thorne: "My body hasn't been...100% since Week 1"
Michigan State quarterback Payton Thorne has been one of the more heavily criticized players on the Spartans' roster during the 2022 season.
While Thorne's completion percentage has increased from 60.4 to 63.9 percent over last year, the redshirt junior has seen his other passing numbers drop off in his second season as MSU's starter.
Thorne's is averaging just 205.7 yards per game, down from the 248.6 he threw for last season. He's also already thrown seven interceptions, tied for the fifth-most among FBS starting quarterbacks, after throwing just 10 interceptions a season ago.
An overlooked aspect of Thorne's game is his running ability, which the quarterback admitted on Tuesday has been hampered by nagging injuries that have plagued him since the Spartans' season-opener against Western Michigan.
“My body hasn't been necessarily 100% since Week 1, so my running has not been the same as it always is, unfortunately,” Thorne said. “I'm working my best to get back to that point. I have a few different things going on right now that don't allow me really to run full speed, which is tough. But there's times and places where I do have to run.
“It's not a choice thing. It's not mental, like I don't feel like running. I'm not full speed right now, unfortunately. But I'll be back I'll be back full speed here soon.”
To his credit, Thorne isn't allowing his health status serve as an excuse to the times he's played poorly this season.
“We're not into the excuse-making business, no matter what the case is,” the quarterback said. “Our job is to go execute, and we're not doing that at the highest level right now at times. At times, we are. So that's what's the frustrating part right now, trying to get us more consistent.”
Still, there are signs that Thorne's health may be impacting his level of play.
Taking out the 21 times that Thorne was sacked a season ago, the quarterback was actually Michigan State's second-leading rusher in 2021, behind star tailback Kenneth Walker III.
Last season, Thorne ran for 332 yards and four touchdowns on 61 carries, an average of 5.4 yards per carry. Midway through this season, however, the quarterback has ran for just 102 sack-adjusted rushing yards on 22 attempts, an average of 4.7 yards per carry.
"There are some times I pull the ball where, normally, I pull it and I'm thinking, 'Oh, I got this guy easily around the corner. He's not gonna be able to catch me,'” Thorne said. “Right now, it's just like I'm not able to get around that guy for that reason. My vision has to change a little bit, my decision-making has to change, because I don't have the same speed getting around the edge.”
Despite the increase in his completion percentage, Thorne's accuracy has been somewhat erratic this season. The redshirt junior struggled with high throws through the first three-to-four weeks.
Thorne has also struggled with his decision-making at times this season, like in the first quarter against Ohio State, when he threw deep into triple coverage trying to connect with wide receiver Jayden Reed which resulted in an interception. He threw a pick in the red zone in Week 1 against Western Michigan, and another while backed up in his own end zone in Week 3 at Washington.
Quarterback coach Jay Johnson suggested earlier this year that Thorne's increase in interceptions could be a result of the quarterback trying to do to much. While I agree with Johnson's assessment, there's also a very real possibility that these nagging injuries are not allowing Thorne to make the throws that he is normally physically capable of making.
Despite this, Michigan State's coaching staff has not wavered on their decision to continue playing Thorne, and the starting quarterback still has the support of his teammates as well.
“I don't think it's a hindrance for him to be out there at all,” wide receiver Tre Mosley said on Tuesday. “If he didn't feel like he would help the team, he wouldn't be out there putting himself in that situation."
MSU's backup quarterback, Noah Kim, has performed admirably in mop-up duty and in moments in which Thorne has left games briefly due to minor injury. Kim has thrown for 174 yards and three touchdowns, with no interceptions, while completing 14-of-19 attempts (73.7 percent).
I've been fully in the camp of Michigan State keeping Thorne as its starting quarterback. While some of the criticism has been warranted, I view the belief that Kim stepping in as QB1 would solve the Spartans' offensive struggles as asinine.
With that being said, Thorne's health status changes my views on the matter slightly. While we don't know the full extent of how banged up the quarterback is — Thorne himself stated he expected to be full healthy again soon — I do believe this opens the door for Kim to get more snaps.
Michigan State entered the season with conference championship and College Football Playoff aspirations. Those hopes have long been dead and buried.
The final six games of the 2022 season should be about improvement and preparation for a bounce-back year in 2023. That includes getting your (current) starting quarterback healthy, and finding out what you have from Kim and true freshman Katin Houser.
Michigan State will host Wisconsin for homecoming this Saturday, and Thorne will be the Spartans' starter. MSU then has a bye week before travelling to in-state rival Michigan.
If Thorne is not back to 100 percent after these next three weeks, maybe it's time to give him a week off and let Kim start a game.
