NFL Teams Breaking Young QBs

whoo, a good read.... good comments from former NFL QBs:

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/65...erback-busts/?source=athletic_pulsenewsletter

And Manning isn't wrong:

“I think teams get too afraid of passing on a guy they think could be special,” says Hall of Famer Peyton Manning, who spent his first 14 seasons in Indianapolis. “Even if he’s not a fit for them or he’s not ready or if there’s not a great chance it’s going to work out, they’re still gonna draft him high so they can tell their fans, ‘Hey, at least we tried.'”

And Kevin O'Connell:

“I believe organizations fail young quarterbacks before young quarterbacks fail organizations.”

Bottomline, blame owners, coaches and fans because it's all about 'winning now'.

 

Darn, can't read it. Kenny Pickett comes to mind.

 

Agree except for the fact that KP asked to leave rather than let the Steelers process unfold (i.e learn under Wilson for a season or two).

 

A few more nuggets if you can't access:

"Hasselbeck cites a disconnect in the scouting phase, when the two sides of an NFL building — personnel and coaching — clash on what they value most in a prospect. Scouts, he says, typically seek elite physical attributes that are unteachable, banking on the coaching staff to figure out the rest. Coaches tend to covet more polished players who’ll arrive with a higher floor and need less time acclimating to the pro game."

"Several current and former quarterbacks pointed to a scouting process that prioritizes the wrong things. The ability to “make any throw from any platform” — common scouting lingo — belies the fact that the so-called intangibles are what ultimately determine success. Luck says he wouldn’t draft a quarterback without elite processing capacity — and humility. “Can you make a mistake and not repeat it? And more importantly, can you own up to it?” he says. “Because that’s the job.”"

 

There is truth in all aspects of this, teams lay an egg drafting a guy high who might never develop, at times out of desperation and other because the team structure does not develop the kid or team around him.

In the 'old days' it was generally thought it takes a QB 5 years to truly develop, in todays league you would spend millions in those 5 years, then either sign him to a huge contract or tag him a huge guarantee hoping to sign him to a huge contract. It's basically perform by year 3 to decide if the 5 year option is warranted, or look other places.

 

So does Levis, Richardson, Lance....the list goes on.

 

The shortlist from the article:

 

Run Kenny Run

 

just like the browns. sanders and the kid from oregon. sanders probably has the better arm, size and physical traits but the processing part has many layers. reading and anticipating what the defense is doing, knowing what your receivers are doing against what the defense is doing and putting the pass on the receiver before he makes the break accurately is where many fail. trying to teach that is difficult and doesn't mean the staff isn't good at it. how the player receives coaching and turning it in to action rather than spending time thinking through the process isn't something that is easy to draft. nothing is a for sure in that process. they all can be taught the process but how long it takes them to master it if ever is the unknown. it makes the o-lines look worse than they may be or sometimes better than they may be. we are talking split seconds. the kid from oregon anticipates throws faster than sanders does, even though the better arm may be sanders. when that ball gets out and where is the most important. where the starting point is for a QB is gives the coaches a place to work with them. it's not the same for all. it doesn't matter what round they are taken in.

 

Of that list, the one that jumps out at me is Will Levis. He clearly needed some development time, but he looked good on the field. His main issue was trying to make plays with relatively poor ball security.

That supports the thesis of the article, I think. But I do think Levis could still be good.

 

Or maybe teams shouldn't draft QBs early in the first round who only started one year in college, Lance, Richardson, and Trubisky.

 

Well, we have an old QB. Shouldn't be a problem.

 

Zero accountability nowadays...There always has to be someone to blame. Maybe they just weren't good enough?

Kenny and Zach had 54 combined starts...that is more than enough to overcome bad coaching if you that guy. Add that they both had opportunities elsewhere and still failed!

A family will sue the tobacco company for nicotine addiction when their family member blew themselves up smoking at a gas pump.

 

Good point on the financial aspect, which wasn't really talked about in the article, but is a very real consideration.

I also think the other point from the writeup is true; "it's easier to find a franchise QB when you already have one". Examples include GB, BAL, KC. This was the mistake by PIT. Waiting until Roethlisberger was done.

 

The rules allow for teams to take chances on QBs now. Rookie pay scales and 5th year options allow for early risks. Not that long ago a first round QB took half your salary cap.(intentional hyperbole)

 

Yep. Flacco - Jackson, Favre - Rodgers, Smith - Mahomes

 

One of the things that drives me crazy is teams draft a QB and try to jam a square peg QB into a round hole offense.
Part of the evaluation is seeing what the QB's strengths are and does that fit into your offense? Can you build on it?
The Kenny Pickett failure just makes me want to kick the neighbors dog. That was a massive failure across the board.
At best, Pickett was a backup with a below average arm.
The idea to throw him in as a starter and have him throwing 52 passes was undeniably a grossly bad decision, especially in Matt Canada's dimwitted offense.
But i digress.

RGIII was a complete joke that only Shanahan could make workout.
Then came the pocket passer transisition and that sled went downhill faster than Big Daddy Don Garlits could finish a 1/4 mile.

There's soooo many more examples.

 

Because the Steelers mismanaged him every step of the way, including granting his trade request. They should have told him to sit down and shut up and wait for another opportunity.

 

Throwing Pickett in there against the Bills and asking him to try to carry the team in his first NFL start was coaching malpractice. Then the Steelers over-corrected for two seasons, taking away the aggressiveness that made him a successful quarterback at Pitt.

 

Is getting hurt failing? That is what happened when Pickett had the opportunity to fill in for Hurts last season and it is what happened in training camp/preseason with the Browns this year.

Pickett started 24 games for the Steelers. Is that enough time to overcome bad coaching, piss-poor-offensive line play, two knuckleheads at receiver, and assorted injuries? It was an odd choice at best for you to add another player's starts to his for the purposes of your argument.

 

The other player's starts were literally on the list. LOL

In any case, yes, I do believe that 24 starts is enough to at least show some WOW / IT factor. Maybe a game or two that excites you as to what could be. Kenny never did that...EVER. Not blaming the coaching or other players, as bad as it may have been, for that.

 

Really? You want a QB that whines about a trade as your future franchise? No thanks. It's hard enough to succeed even when you want to be there.

Pickett is literally on his fourth team since being drafted. There is far more to his issues than what you are suggesting.

The Steelers mishandled him, sure. Poor coordinator, poor offensive scheme. I suspect it would not have changed his career significantly (backup QB).

 

btw, the other quote from Aikman was pretty frank without naming names;

"said Aikman speaks from experience: twice during his 12-year run in Dallas he played in what he calls “a high school passing attack.” It irritates him to this day."

So there really are high school passing offenses in the NFL??


I went through his history log to see which OC it might have been. Tough to say. He had Norv Turner for awhile, who was very good. But then had the likes of Ernie Zampese for example.

 

He is too injury-prone to make it as a backup. That cost him in Philadelphia last year and it cost him any chance at opening the season as the Browns' starter.

That said, it was just the latest example of Tomlin letting the inmates run the asylum. A year ago, we hadn't seen two more instances of Picket being hurt. Having him on his rookie deal was better than wasting time on Field, so there was some cost to that latest error, however minimal it might be.