Re: Cleveland Browns announce Johnny Manziel will start
Yep, RG3's decline had little to do with his injury; the league was going to catch up to that gimmick offense eventually, the injury just accelerated the process... which was also fairly predictable; people were stating thus well before he got injured. His style and build were just begging for injury. The only guy who has avoided this is Wilson, but then again, he doesn't exactly run the option all the time, either, and he's also a better passer than the other option QBs, which is something I've stated from the get-go.
The keys to quarterbacking in this league are mostly intelligence-based. The other factors that are important are durability, ability to make throws, and clutch-factor. Athleticism, in relative terms, is probably the least important trait a QB could have. This is why Brady and Manning are able to dominate. They aren't very athletic. Who would take any of those options QBs over them? That's why these every decade, "athletic running quarterbacks are going to revolutionize the league" statements pain me so much. The class of 2012 was not the maiden voyage of athletic QBs in the NFL. Going back to Cam, and before that, Mike Vick, and before that, Randall Cunningham, it's never proven to actually revolutionize the league. They come in and stir it up a bit, but the league always regresses to the norm. Cunningham had a cannon on him, too, he was a damn good QB.
When one of these athletic option QBs come into the league with the intelligence of Manning/Brady/Luck, then I'll change my stance, but I've yet to see it. RG3 wasn't it.
Here's a little fact that I think most people don't think about --- you have to be smart to be a quarterback. Athleticism will only mask so much. Those offensive systems, and conversely, those defensive systems --- are complex. It requires the ability to store, recall, and execute a decision quickly.
Only a few guys ever possess all the abilities; the intelligence, the ability to make the throws, the clutch factor. You have smart guys who struggle to deliver the ball. They make the right reads, make the right decision --- and miss their receivers. Guys like Dalton and Fitzpatrick and Shaub... they have the smarts, they lack the ability to consistently get the ball where it needs to go, even if they process everything correctly and time it all --- the ball just doesn't have the placement consistently.
Other guys like Romo --- he does actually process things, and he actually does make the throws --- but he melts down under pressure. He has most of the desirable QB'ing traits in spades, but in clutch-factor, he just bombs.
To me, the two quarterbacks in this league who possess the entire spectrum of great QB traits are Luck and Rodgers. Brady and Manning, as great as they are, both have *something* that knocks them down a notch. For both of them, it's mostly just the ability to make plays out of the pocket. Manning has never been an athletic freak, so when the pocket breaks down and he hasn't gotten rid of the ball, he mostly throws it away or takes the sack. Brady is similar. Luck and Rodgers actually have the athleticism to escape and then make a play on the run to great success. It's the one time athleticism comes in to play for QBs, imo. Where Luck actually exceeds Rodgers, imo, is his ability to shed defenders. He's a lot stronger than Rodgers. Rodgers, otoh, is a better passer, imo. Luck is a great passer, but Rodgers is just unreal...
Right now Rodgers is playing lights out, but I think Luck has all the ability to eventually exceed Rodgers. Luck is still a young pup relative to Aaron... Aaron never had the stress of coming in and starting from his first game... he got to sit back for three years, work on his craft, watch and learn from one of the best. He never had to do what Luck had to do. He's also older by 6 years and is further into his prime than Luck.
Yep, RG3's decline had little to do with his injury; the league was going to catch up to that gimmick offense eventually, the injury just accelerated the process... which was also fairly predictable; people were stating thus well before he got injured. His style and build were just begging for injury. The only guy who has avoided this is Wilson, but then again, he doesn't exactly run the option all the time, either, and he's also a better passer than the other option QBs, which is something I've stated from the get-go.
The keys to quarterbacking in this league are mostly intelligence-based. The other factors that are important are durability, ability to make throws, and clutch-factor. Athleticism, in relative terms, is probably the least important trait a QB could have. This is why Brady and Manning are able to dominate. They aren't very athletic. Who would take any of those options QBs over them? That's why these every decade, "athletic running quarterbacks are going to revolutionize the league" statements pain me so much. The class of 2012 was not the maiden voyage of athletic QBs in the NFL. Going back to Cam, and before that, Mike Vick, and before that, Randall Cunningham, it's never proven to actually revolutionize the league. They come in and stir it up a bit, but the league always regresses to the norm. Cunningham had a cannon on him, too, he was a damn good QB.
When one of these athletic option QBs come into the league with the intelligence of Manning/Brady/Luck, then I'll change my stance, but I've yet to see it. RG3 wasn't it.
Here's a little fact that I think most people don't think about --- you have to be smart to be a quarterback. Athleticism will only mask so much. Those offensive systems, and conversely, those defensive systems --- are complex. It requires the ability to store, recall, and execute a decision quickly.
Only a few guys ever possess all the abilities; the intelligence, the ability to make the throws, the clutch factor. You have smart guys who struggle to deliver the ball. They make the right reads, make the right decision --- and miss their receivers. Guys like Dalton and Fitzpatrick and Shaub... they have the smarts, they lack the ability to consistently get the ball where it needs to go, even if they process everything correctly and time it all --- the ball just doesn't have the placement consistently.
Other guys like Romo --- he does actually process things, and he actually does make the throws --- but he melts down under pressure. He has most of the desirable QB'ing traits in spades, but in clutch-factor, he just bombs.
To me, the two quarterbacks in this league who possess the entire spectrum of great QB traits are Luck and Rodgers. Brady and Manning, as great as they are, both have *something* that knocks them down a notch. For both of them, it's mostly just the ability to make plays out of the pocket. Manning has never been an athletic freak, so when the pocket breaks down and he hasn't gotten rid of the ball, he mostly throws it away or takes the sack. Brady is similar. Luck and Rodgers actually have the athleticism to escape and then make a play on the run to great success. It's the one time athleticism comes in to play for QBs, imo. Where Luck actually exceeds Rodgers, imo, is his ability to shed defenders. He's a lot stronger than Rodgers. Rodgers, otoh, is a better passer, imo. Luck is a great passer, but Rodgers is just unreal...
Right now Rodgers is playing lights out, but I think Luck has all the ability to eventually exceed Rodgers. Luck is still a young pup relative to Aaron... Aaron never had the stress of coming in and starting from his first game... he got to sit back for three years, work on his craft, watch and learn from one of the best. He never had to do what Luck had to do. He's also older by 6 years and is further into his prime than Luck.
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