Who Will End Up Being The Bigger QB Bust?

[Rico]

Just curious what everyone thinks.

[Ethan in Cleveland]

Fields had as bad an offensive team around him as Allen did his rookie year. I think both have a chance to be good. 

[wppete]

I’m taking CJ Stroud over Justin Fields. He sees the field better and his accuracy is impressive. Excited to see this year. Not very impressed with Fields except for his running. 

[NoSaint]

Pick 2 vs pick 11 gives one a distinct advantage in potential to be the bigger bust 

[Roundybout]

Fields was just abysmal last season. He's great for some highlight-reel runs, but I ultimately think Stroud is a better passer. 

[BuffaloBillyG]

I like watching Fields play. Not sure if he will bust or turn a corner but he's entertaining to watch. Helped my fantasy team as well last year.

Edited August 9, 2023 by BuffaloBillyG

[Rico]

3 minutes ago, NoSaint said:

Pick 2 vs pick 11 gives one a distinct advantage in potential to be the bigger bust 

True. I do remember reading that Bears fans were very upset that he didn't make the Pro Bowl last year, so it seems expectations are very high there... and to me, busting in Chicago is a whole lot bigger than busting in Houston.

[KDIGGZ]

Fields is on a terrible team. Who did he have to throw to? I only watched a couple of their games but his throws were on the money and his receivers were just garbage so he figured out he was better served just running the ball and he turned in one of the best QB rushing seasons in NFL history. If he's a "bust" then I hope the Bills scoop him up in free agency

[Doc]

Both will be busts.  But as nosaint said, Stroud being the number two overall pick will make him the bigger bust of the two.

Edited August 9, 2023 by Doc

[Airseven]

Fields is an elite athlete. And the Bears added some decent WRs and finally building the OL. Curious to see if he takes the next step as a passer. That new regime seems on the right track. 

[Manther]

53 minutes ago, wppete said:

I’m taking CJ Stroud over Justin Fields. He sees the field better and his accuracy is impressive. Excited to see this year. Not very impressed with Fields except for his running. 

Agreed

[BigPappy]

I wouldn't know. They don't play for the Bills so I don't really care. LOL!!

 

In all seriousness, I don't think it has much to do with the individual player as much as I think it has to do with the quality of the staff being able to elevate the player and the ability for the staff to givethe QB a supporting cast of players around him. 

[Gregg]

Why isn't Zach Wilson on this poll. Number #2 pick in the draft. He was terrible his first two years in the league and now he will hold a clipboard these next two seasons watching Rodgers play.

[Bleeding Bills Blue]

I watched mostly Fields highlights, but i did watch him play against buffalo and he looked terrible.  Cold and windy game so i guess that can't be discounted - allen also looked pretty terrible.  I just felt like buffalo focused on containing fields and he had no answer. 

 

They literally lost the last 10 games of the season including winnable games against miami (2 chances to score in 4th quarter, punt and turnover on downs), detroit (3 and out and turnover on downs in 2 minute drill) and atlanta (down 3, intercepted in 2 minute drill). 

 

He doesn't flash much as a rhythm passer, so teams can play a bit deeper in their zones which tends to result in tougher windows.   You can blame the line a little bit, but 91 sacks in 2 seasons and a career sack rate of 13.4 is worse than tyrod/kaepernick/vick etc. - and his 14.7% sack rate last year is worse than Rob Johnson's career in buffalo.  There's bad offensive lines, and there's the habit of holding the ball... i don't think you can say its just one or the other.  

[The Jokeman]

The Bears are doing a decent job trying to get good players around Fields, Houston on the other hand has not. Yet I don't have faith in either of the teams management at developing a winner. 

32 minutes ago, Gregg said:

Why isn't Zach Wilson on this poll. Number #2 pick in the draft. He was terrible his first two years in the league and now he will hold a clipboard these next two seasons watching Rodgers play.

without an injury to Rodgers how is he going to get playing time? Toss in who would trade for him and ask him to start? Wilson looks like he'll be taking the Marcus Mariotta route in the NFL. 

[ChronicAndKnuckles]

Fields is one of the worst QBs in the league, (although his running ability is elite level) but I thought the same thing about Jalen Hurts. He does need better weapons and DJ Moore is certainly a solid piece for the Bears. With Rodgers out of Green Bay and the Vikings coming back down to earth, it will be a good opportunity for them, but I think the Lions take the North. 

[Rico]

2 hours ago, Gregg said:

Why isn't Zach Wilson on this poll. Number #2 pick in the draft. He was terrible his first two years in the league and now he will hold a clipboard these next two seasons watching Rodgers play.

It’s all about Ohio State QBs in the NFL.

Edited August 10, 2023 by Rico

[BuffaloBillyG]

4 hours ago, The Jokeman said:

The Bears are doing a decent job trying to get good players around Fields, Houston on the other hand has not. Yet I don't have faith in either of the teams management at developing a winner. 

without an injury to Rodgers how is he going to get playing time? Toss in who would trade for him and ask him to start? Wilson looks like he'll be taking the Marcus Mariotta route in the NFL. 

I actually like what Houston has done this off season. Starting off by bringing in Robert Woods. Yes, he's aging and declining in skills, however he brings some leadership and experience. Both good for a rookie QB to lean on. They also have Nico Collins and Metchie at WR...young guys that can grow with him.

 

Signed Dalton Shultz at TE. Big target there. They brought in Singletary to compliment Pierce and have the ability to have a deep run game to help take pressure off.

 

Not to mention bringing in Case Keenum who is a long term vet QB to help him in the QB room. 

 

Houston is actually my sleeper pick to be the team that comes out of basically nowhere to make a Wild Card run this year. 

[The Jokeman]

2 minutes ago, BuffaloBillyG said:

I actually like what Houston has done this off season. Starting off by bringing in Robert Woods. Yes, he's aging and declining in skills, however he brings some leadership and experience. Both good for a rookie QB to lean on. They also have Nico Collins and Metchie at WR...young guys that can grow with him.

 

Signed Dalton Shultz at TE. Big target there. They brought in Singletary to compliment Pierce and have the ability to have a deep run game to help take pressure off.

 

Not to mention bringing in Case Keenum who is a long term vet QB to help him in the QB room. 

 

Houston is actually my sleeper pick to be the team that comes out of basically nowhere to make a Wild Card run this year. 

Eh to me Brandin Cooks (who they traded away) is a better WR compared to Woods at this stage of their careers. Schultz is a good TE but I really don't like any of their other WRs as of today. 

[C.Biscuit97]

Gonna sprinkle some money on Fields’ MVP. Was a 60% passer with absolute garbage around him. Like both the Bears and Texans over in wins this year. I think both team’s surprise. 
 

I’ve been guilty of it but it’s kinda silly how people want to write off young qbs. The hardest job in sports and people want to say that suck after a year or 2 if they aren’t all pros. Kinda silly. 
 

that said, I will write off Zach Wilson and Mac Jones already. 

[Albany,n.y.]

Anthony Richardson.  The comparisons with Josh because they're physically similar are ridiculous.  Should have stayed in college like Josh did in 2017.  

[C.Biscuit97]

2 minutes ago, Albany,n.y. said:

Anthony Richardson.  The comparisons with Josh because they're physically similar are ridiculous.  Should have stayed in college like Josh did in 2017.  

Very few non Bills fans thought Allen would be Allen either. Let young players live. 

[JerseyBills]

19 hours ago, Roundybout said:

Fields was just abysmal last season. He's great for some highlight-reel runs, but I ultimately think Stroud is a better passer. 

Absolutely.  Our D pretty much dominated them w no problem.  If he progresses as a passer he can be elite but that's a big IF

[MJS]

Chances are they'll both be busts.

[Rc2catch]

I think Fields started to get it last year. 
They ran such a limited playbook for the first half and started giving him more and he was doing decent considering what he had to work with. 
This is a pretty big season for his career now that they gave him quite a bit of talent. 
Stroud still needs to survive those crucial first couple years under a terrible franchise and new coach like fields did, so I’ll pick him to bust. 

[Rico]

I’m surprised Fields is leading. Never too late to change your mind and change your vote.  

[Nelius]

May need to watch more Fields I guess but he was statistically early Josh Allen lite last year and showed improvement so it almost seems like an unfair comparison. An actual 1100 rushing season is something. Vote goes to Stroud.

Edited August 11, 2023 by Nelius

[dave mcbride]

On 8/9/2023 at 7:19 PM, Rico said:

True. I do remember reading that Bears fans were very upset that he didn't make the Pro Bowl last year, so it seems expectations are very high there... and to me, busting in Chicago is a whole lot bigger than busting in Houston.

I dunno. While Chicago's metro area is a bit bigger (8.9 million), it's not that much bigger (Houston's is 7.3 million). And last I heard football is pretty big in Texas.

6 hours ago, C.Biscuit97 said:

Gonna sprinkle some money on Fields’ MVP. Was a 60% passer with absolute garbage around him. Like both the Bears and Texans over in wins this year. I think both team’s surprise. 
 

I’ve been guilty of it but it’s kinda silly how people want to write off young qbs. The hardest job in sports and people want to say that suck after a year or 2 if they aren’t all pros. Kinda silly. 
 

that said, I will write off Zach Wilson and Mac Jones already. 

Mac Jones has been objectively better than Fields (factor in that Fields was absolutely abysmal in his rookie season while Jones was modestly competent), even though Jones is not very good. You realize that Fields was sacked 55 times in only 15 games last season? It takes a certain kind of talent to be sacked that often. You thought Derek Carr was worse than EJ Manuel, which has stuck with me over the years.

Edited August 11, 2023 by dave mcbride

[78thealltimegreat]

Fields pocket presence is abysmal so I will go with Stroud who I think will eventually get it. 

[Rico]

19 minutes ago, dave mcbride said:

I dunno. While Chicago's metro area is a bit bigger (8.9 million), it's not that much bigger (Houston's is 7.3 million). And last I heard football is pretty big in Texas.

 

True. The Bears though are one of the most storied franchises in the history of the league and the Texans have always been circling the bottom.

[dave mcbride]

18 hours ago, C.Biscuit97 said:

Gonna sprinkle some money on Fields’ MVP. Was a 60% passer with absolute garbage around him. Like both the Bears and Texans over in wins this year. I think both team’s surprise. 
 

I’ve been guilty of it but it’s kinda silly how people want to write off young qbs. The hardest job in sports and people want to say that suck after a year or 2 if they aren’t all pros. Kinda silly. 
 

that said, I will write off Zach Wilson and Mac Jones already. 

I think the issue with guys like Fields, Stroud, Mac Jones, Bryce Young, and Tua is that it's so hard to assess how good they really are given that they are surrounded by massive talent at OSU and Alabama. As a totality, the receivers, o-linemen, and RBs at both of those schools in the last decade have been ridiculously more talented than the competition. Every once in a while, another school puts it together--Clemson and LSU--but they don't sustain the dominance. Georgia looks to be another one, though. They made Stetson Bennett look amazing. But I don't think he'll ever do much. Christ, we wasted a draft pick on Jake Fromm, who obviously can't play. 

As for Fields, I was down on him in college -- slow eyes and a pronounced hitch in his throw. I thought he'd get sacked a ton in the NFL, and he has. I wouldn't want him. That said, I was very down on Jalen Hurts early on his career (partly based on his play at Philly and partly based on how he played at Alabama), but look at him now. He's a terrific player and borderline elite. He'll likely have a long and good career. So who knows? 

 

One thing to consider: Ohio State QBs universally suck in the NFL. It's kind of an iron law. Maybe Stroud ends the law; he looks like he could be good. But again, the receivers he's been throwing to the past couple of years have been absolute studs.

[DrDawkinstein]

How do all the Fields voters feel after Stroud's first starting performance?

 

2/4 13yds 3.3avg 0TD 1INT 1-15Sack 17.7Rtg and yanked

[Bleeding Bills Blue]

21 hours ago, Albany,n.y. said:

Anthony Richardson.  The comparisons with Josh because they're physically similar are ridiculous.  Should have stayed in college like Josh did in 2017.  

 

1 year starting is a big concern.  Culpepper started for 4 years.  Newton only had the 1 year starting (plus another Junior college year where he won the NJCAA championship)... but he won the heisman trophy and a national championship.  

Richardsons team went 6-6, he didn't put up much in the way of numbers, and its hard to get excited about some of the big wins when the team stat line includes 54 carries for 374 yards and 3 TDs.  

 

It's going to take some time - pocket management, blitz diagnosis, reading the field, using your eyes, rhythm passing... he needs a lot of work.  I'd avoid playing him this year at all if i could - but i expect he'll play a game or two at the end of the year once they're out of the playoff picture.  I also expect that he'll suck in those games. 

 

I know hooker is older, and is recovering from an injury... and levis is older and has a lot of the same wrinkles... but they just seem like better players when it comes to what happens on the field.  You used the 4th overall pick to draft a redshirt player, who might need 2 redshirt years.  

[FireChans]

Both QB’s will flame out and a new OSU QB will come out in the draft, and he will be “different.” Just like Stroud was different than Fields. Just like Fields was different than Haskins. Just like Haskins was different from Jones. Just like Jones was different from Barrett. Etc etc etc etc etc.

[Gugny]

On 8/9/2023 at 7:13 PM, Roundybout said:

Fields was just abysmal last season. He's great for some highlight-reel runs, but I ultimately think Stroud is a better passer. 

I feel like fields is one of the worst quarterbacks I’ve ever seen play in the nfl. He is absolutely horrible. 

[DrDawkinstein]

5 minutes ago, Gugny said:

I feel like fields is one of the worst quarterbacks I’ve ever seen play in the nfl. He is absolutely horrible. 

 

Coming from a Bills fan who was around for 2000-2018, this is straight up hyperbole.

 

I'm not a huge Fields fan by any means, was never a believer and was glad when he left UGA, but he isnt as bad as this thread makes him out to be either. Especially if they stick with the newer Offense that was more tailored to his skill set.

[Sammy Watkins' Rib]

9 minutes ago, Gugny said:

I feel like fields is one of the worst quarterbacks I’ve ever seen play in the nfl. He is absolutely horrible. 

His athletic ability alone keeps him out of that category IMO.

 

The Bears have easily had one of the 5 worst offensive personnel teams over he last two seasons. Hard for a lot of young QB’s, especially athletic  ones that need development time (think JA and Hurts) to look good in those situations. 
 

Put Fields on a stacked offense like the Eagles and I would think he looks quite a bit better.

 

 

[Gugny]

12 minutes ago, DrDawkinstein said:

 

Coming from a Bills fan who was around for 2000-2018, this is straight up hyperbole.

 

I'm not a huge Fields fan by any means, was never a believer and was glad when he left UGA, but he isnt as bad as this thread makes him out to be either. Especially if they stick with the newer Offense that was more tailored to his skill set.

But his only skill is running. He’s not big enough to sustain that style of play. 

[HappyDays]

5 hours ago, DrDawkinstein said:

How do all the Fields voters feel after Stroud's first starting performance?

 

2/4 13yds 3.3avg 0TD 1INT 1-15Sack 17.7Rtg and yanked

 

I try not to get on rookies too much for interceptions but his was really bad. Throwing an interception because you try to do too much or thought you could squeeze one into a tight window or misread a disguised coverage, those are acceptable or even necessary rookie mistakes. His interception however he clearly just didn't see the defender at all, he had a clean pocket and was facing a vanilla preseason defense. That combined with his awful S2 score, you can't help but wonder.

[GunnerBill]

Depends what people think bust means. I tend to have a much higher bar to call someone a bust.