dave mcbride

I think teams are coming around to the fact that that "system" can produce great NFL QBs assuming they have the requisite physical skills. Being forced to play streetball well is great training given how often plays break down at the NFL level. Goff is the opposite - a very good robo qb who struggles when the play breaks down. He's still quite good, mind you, and there's more than one path to success.

I am not faulting anyone - just challenging the idea he was "erratic" in college after a legendarily great final year at Texas Tech. I think the massive miss on him by everyone not named Andy Reid or Sean Payton (who really wanted him too) because they treated the "streetball" aspect of his game as a negative has completely changed the scouting QBs forever. QBs who can play point guard/shortstop behind center are the guys who are ripping up the league now, and frankly they're more fun to watch. Mahomes and Russell Wilson are the two best QBs in the league right now, and Murray looks pretty good so far, all things considered (ie., surrounded by a terrible team). I love watching Wilson play. Anyway, keep in mind that two good organizations - the Saints and the Chiefs - DID have Mahomes very highly rated.

He was erratic in college?? Not so. In his final year, he had a 66 percent completion rate, averaged 9.2 ypa, a 41/10 TD/INT ratio, 12 rushing TDs (53 total in only 12 games), and over 5000 passing yards. He was AMAZING his final season in college - no ifs, ands, or buts. The issue was the team's defense. The Texas Tech defense that season was ranked 128th out of 128 total teams, and they lost games by scores of 68-55, 66-59, 45-44, 44-38, and 45-37.

God no, especially given the hugely talented WR draft next season.

No offense (really), but I read your post that I responded to again, but you didn't say that at all. Maybe you said it elsewhere; if so, I simply didn't see it. Also, accuracy (or the lack thereof) IS a part of it. If you're going to throw it like he does, it's OK if you're accurate. He just isn't. He was last year on some very nice throws to Foster.

Good take.

You didn't hear me say that about Taylor, so be careful about conflation. Secondly, I love Allen's potential, but he has been unqualifiedly inaccurate on deep throws this season through four games. My view is that he doesn't put enough air under his deep throws and they have too much velocity, and as a consequence even a 4.35 guy like Brown can't get under them. The only way they're going to work is if they're pinpoint accurate (an extremely high bar on a throw going 30-40 yards downfield), and that's not the case with most deep throwers who throw balls that give their receivers a chance to catch up. He's fine on the deep intermediate stuff, though, which is good and a real asset. It's largely why they've moved the pretty ball well all season. Anyway, he needs to get better around the endzone along with the aforementioned deep-throw bombs. He hasn't thrown an accurate pass into the EZ on a contested throw or even seen the coverage in the EZ well all season (he looks confused a lot and breaks to run most of the time), and that's a fundamental skill. His TD throws were the back shoulder deep-intermediate throw to Brown, a glorified handoff to Mackenzie, and an uncontested throw to Knox. He has to get better at these things; they're the skills that separate the game-changing QBs from the guys who cycle through the NFL in 4-5 year careers as starters. I think (hope, really) that he will given the physical talent.

I am not talking about last year or tyrod’s last year. I am talking about this year alone.

Hard to "track" a ball when it's five yards beyond you and you're running in a straight line as fast as you can. Let's not make excuses here.

But that was double coverage and shouldn't have been thrown. His only accurate deep throw all season should have been a pick.

Historically, he's a fair bit more accurate. I know you can't read too much into preseason, but he looked great in terms of accuracy.

I don't know, honestly. Subtracting talent from a playoff-level team just strikes me as a bad idea.

PS - I don't know why they'd want to trade him either. Doesn't make a lot of sense to me. He's only 25.

Wow. I like Jones (he's good!) and have been a defender of Cousins for years because my wife went to MSU and he did well there. But he is fool's gold. He fails all the time in big games and against good teams. I'm off his bandwagon.

Well, in 2017, he had 14 catches for 207 yards in two postseason games, so that should be factored in. But it's immaterial: while he had a great year last year, he was also terrific before that. He's a good player, and is gonna know Shurmur's system pretty well. Bottom line: he's a good player who will slide in easily in NY.

It's more about the Giants than the Bills. He's a better fit there, and he's an even bigger need for them than he is for the Bills. Plus he had a ton of success under Shurmur.

The Bills have tons of cap space, and he's 10 times the player Jones is. It's not even a comparison, really. That said, I don't see him winding up on the Bills at all.

I honestly think that Brett Favre is one of the greatest players to ever play the game. Flawed, sure, but the productivity was incredible. He was on a bunch of mediocre-talent teams that he took very, very far on his right arm.

Ha ha. In all seriousness, he was super-productive under Shurmur in the two years Shurmur was Minnesota's OC - 2016 and 2017. Plus there's that catch in the Saints playoff game. https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/D/DiggSt00.htm

Giants is my bet.

I think the Giants are hands down the likeliest candidate. He fits a real need, Shurmur had success with him, and they're not out of it by any means.

Disagree to an extent in that he HAS had plenty of deep-shot chances, and he has taken them, and often enough guys have been open. He's just been abjectly failing to date.

Watt primarily played LDE last season. Clowney played RDE.

Actually, most of his best seasons were when he was young.