Saturday, February 26, 2005
Quarterbacks- The Future Is When?
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Today we will be analyzing QBs. Our next update will examine the RBs.
Big Bro: The Chiefs have been pretty blessed with their QB situation the past few years. They gave up a 1st round pick to St. Louis in order to get Trent Green, and they have not regretted doing so. Green is probably the most underrated QB in the NFL right now. He is the only player (that's right, Peyton fans, even he hasn't done it) to post a 90+ QB rating in each of the last 3 years. He has thrown for over 4,000 yards in each of the last 2 seasons.
On paper, 2004 looked like Green's best season. A sterling 95.2 rating. Over 4,500 yards passing. A career-high 27 TD tosses and 66.4% completion percentage. And yet, 2004 was probably Green's most frustrating year since his 1st year with the Chiefs. His 17 INTs were his highest since 2001, and many of those came in crucial situations. He had plenty of opportunities to lead 4th quarter comebacks and failed. And, of course, he lost about 5 more games than expected.
Can everything be blamed on Green? Of course not. Inexplicably, his offensive line collapsed at the end of some games. WRs still dropped key passes. The running game was a little more inconsistent than Chiefs fans are used to. But as the leader of the team, Green does have to be careful. Perhaps he was putting too much pressure on himself because of the sorry state of the defense. But his decision-making was erratic at clutch times, which was rather surprising given his nearly mistake-free 2003 season. Hopefully, a better defense will also lead to better decision-making by Green.
One thing is for certain- the Chiefs need Green to be healthy. Almost miraculously, he has been healthy throughout his Chiefs career (cross my fingers). He doesn't get hit hard, which is a result of the combination of a great offensive line and surprising pocket presence by Green. And when he has time to throw, Green is generally one of the most accurate mid-range passers in the game. He also shows surprising accuracy on the move.
However, if Green gets hurt for a stretch, the Chiefs are in trouble. Collins is a good backup, but he is more Gary Kubiak than he is Tom Brady. Collins knows this offense and the receivers well enough to fill in for a quarter or a half, but he is not the guy you want coming out of the runway as the starting QB. Collins is no spring chicken either, so he is not a long term solution.
Currently, Damon Huard is the #3 QB. He is fine as a #3 QB, but he is also not a long term solution. The Chiefs will have to start looking soon, because Green probably only has two or three more effective years left in him. Casey Claussen right now is their "long term solution," and he was undrafted. This puts the Chiefs in a quandary- do they spend a draft pick on a QB for the future when those draft picks are badly needed to shore up their defense?
As it stands, the Chiefs will probably have to wait to draft their QB of the future. The Chiefs might want to look hard at Mike McMahon, but it would be hard to convince him to sign on as a #3 QB for the 2005 season without guaranteeing him a shot at the starting QB position in 2006.
Little Bro: Sports fans have a tendency to adopt players they like as their own. In many cases, we immortalize players who aren't that good. It was exactly this hubris that convinced so many fans in Chiefs nation that our defensive players would improve dramatically with the addition of one Gunther Cunningham. I will admit that I am one of those people who fell into that trap. Of any player that I defend the most as a Chiefs fan, it is definitely Trent Green. I have long said that Trent Green is the most underrated QB in the NFL. It seems like Kansas City fans are the only people in the entire nation that embrace this position, which made me wonder: is this a case of immortalizing a Chiefs player that really isn't that good? I still say NO! I hope that every football fan that refuses to put Trent Green in their top ten list of QB's will read this post.
The numbers should speak for themselves. Other than Peyton Manning, no QB has even come close to paralleling Green's numbers. His QB rating is consistently above 90. His completion percentage and yardage per attempt are always among the top of the league. His overall yardage is almost unparalleled.
It seems that the media searches for excuses rather than reasons for why a slow, deliberate, journeyman QB
should ever be considered in the upper tier. To some in the media, Green is only good because KC has a powerful running game; nevermind that Kyle Boller had a 2000 yard rusher in his backfield and still engineers one of the worst passing attacks in the NFL. To others, Green is only good because he has a great offensive line; nevermind that Peyton Manning was easily the best protected QB in the NFL and is immortalized by most members of the media. Others use the "super bowl" excuse: that Tom Brady has won Super Bowls and Trent Green has not. I challenge Tom Brady to win a Super Bowl with our pathetic excuse for a defense. I would LOVE to see Mr. Brady be labeled as Mr. Clutch when his defense can't make a single fourth quarter stop. And then, of course, the most contradictory statement of all--despite the fact that NFL "analysts" drone on about how badly KC needs better receivers, those same analysts claim that Green is only good because of the talent that surrounds him.
It frustrates the hell out of anybody to believe that a QB like Green can be a superstar, let alone a starter for an NFL team. He isn't flashy like McNabb or Vick, but don't let that fool you--his pocket presence is superb for a man that does not like to run around a lot. He doesn't rifle the ball like a Brett Favre, but don't let that fool you--KC is not the dink-and-dunk team that so many people label them as. In fact, their bread-and-butter play is a 15-20 yard strike in the pocket of a zone. Somewhere along the line, we began to immortalize QBs who razzle-dazzled and we forgot about fundamentals. We forgot about QBs like Green and Brady, who are among the best at staring down safeties and LB's, and checking down receivers. We forgot about QBs like Green and Manning, who would rather read defenses than find the first opportunity to run.
Yes, Green did run into some late-game problems, but it is unfair to pin that blame on him. KC's offense demands perfection and when anyone makes a single mistake, the defense is not good enough to cover that mistake up. That is the fundamental difference between Green, and McNabb or Brady. Brady and McNabb make lots of late-game interceptions, but Green's INTs are put under the microscope because they usually end up being difference-makers. While Brady can resort to safe, conservative passes to move down the field, Green must think touchdown on every play. Needless to say, I am excited about what Trent Green can do with this team with a good defense. I would love for Green to make a late-minute interception and for the defense to say, "Don't worry, Trent. You were perfect the rest of the 4th quarter, and now it's time for us to make a stop." In our current state, we shudder when it's a tie-game, early in the 4th quarter and we are forced to punt. How pathetic is that, to demand that kind of perfection from your offense?
As for Collins and Huard, I feel comfortable with both of those guys as our backups. I don't think Collins is capable of bringing us to the promised land, but he is a very safe back-up. There comes a certain point when a man knows a system so well that his knowledge of the system trumps any lack of physical ability. This year may be the time to look later in the draft to find a good project QB to replace Green. Huard is a good backup, but he will never be a starter that can win games.
We just have to face the facts that it's Green, or nothing. It's a sad position, but Green is arguably the most important player on this Chiefs football team and I find it hard to imagine that there are a lot of QBs in this league who can parallel the performance he has put on over the past 3 years. It's hard to imagine that we can make it to the Super Bowl without him. With the protection Green gets and the relatively minor mental wear-and-tear, I would hope that we can protect him well enough to stay healthy for the next 2-3 years. Green is the best QB to play in KC since Len Dawson. In a lot of ways, that might apply even more pressure for us to win now, because it might be another 10-15 years before we find another QB that can lead this offense the way Green has over the past few seasons.
Today we will be analyzing QBs. Our next update will examine the RBs.
Big Bro: The Chiefs have been pretty blessed with their QB situation the past few years. They gave up a 1st round pick to St. Louis in order to get Trent Green, and they have not regretted doing so. Green is probably the most underrated QB in the NFL right now. He is the only player (that's right, Peyton fans, even he hasn't done it) to post a 90+ QB rating in each of the last 3 years. He has thrown for over 4,000 yards in each of the last 2 seasons.
On paper, 2004 looked like Green's best season. A sterling 95.2 rating. Over 4,500 yards passing. A career-high 27 TD tosses and 66.4% completion percentage. And yet, 2004 was probably Green's most frustrating year since his 1st year with the Chiefs. His 17 INTs were his highest since 2001, and many of those came in crucial situations. He had plenty of opportunities to lead 4th quarter comebacks and failed. And, of course, he lost about 5 more games than expected.
Can everything be blamed on Green? Of course not. Inexplicably, his offensive line collapsed at the end of some games. WRs still dropped key passes. The running game was a little more inconsistent than Chiefs fans are used to. But as the leader of the team, Green does have to be careful. Perhaps he was putting too much pressure on himself because of the sorry state of the defense. But his decision-making was erratic at clutch times, which was rather surprising given his nearly mistake-free 2003 season. Hopefully, a better defense will also lead to better decision-making by Green.
One thing is for certain- the Chiefs need Green to be healthy. Almost miraculously, he has been healthy throughout his Chiefs career (cross my fingers). He doesn't get hit hard, which is a result of the combination of a great offensive line and surprising pocket presence by Green. And when he has time to throw, Green is generally one of the most accurate mid-range passers in the game. He also shows surprising accuracy on the move.
However, if Green gets hurt for a stretch, the Chiefs are in trouble. Collins is a good backup, but he is more Gary Kubiak than he is Tom Brady. Collins knows this offense and the receivers well enough to fill in for a quarter or a half, but he is not the guy you want coming out of the runway as the starting QB. Collins is no spring chicken either, so he is not a long term solution.
Currently, Damon Huard is the #3 QB. He is fine as a #3 QB, but he is also not a long term solution. The Chiefs will have to start looking soon, because Green probably only has two or three more effective years left in him. Casey Claussen right now is their "long term solution," and he was undrafted. This puts the Chiefs in a quandary- do they spend a draft pick on a QB for the future when those draft picks are badly needed to shore up their defense?
As it stands, the Chiefs will probably have to wait to draft their QB of the future. The Chiefs might want to look hard at Mike McMahon, but it would be hard to convince him to sign on as a #3 QB for the 2005 season without guaranteeing him a shot at the starting QB position in 2006.
Little Bro: Sports fans have a tendency to adopt players they like as their own. In many cases, we immortalize players who aren't that good. It was exactly this hubris that convinced so many fans in Chiefs nation that our defensive players would improve dramatically with the addition of one Gunther Cunningham. I will admit that I am one of those people who fell into that trap. Of any player that I defend the most as a Chiefs fan, it is definitely Trent Green. I have long said that Trent Green is the most underrated QB in the NFL. It seems like Kansas City fans are the only people in the entire nation that embrace this position, which made me wonder: is this a case of immortalizing a Chiefs player that really isn't that good? I still say NO! I hope that every football fan that refuses to put Trent Green in their top ten list of QB's will read this post.
The numbers should speak for themselves. Other than Peyton Manning, no QB has even come close to paralleling Green's numbers. His QB rating is consistently above 90. His completion percentage and yardage per attempt are always among the top of the league. His overall yardage is almost unparalleled.
It seems that the media searches for excuses rather than reasons for why a slow, deliberate, journeyman QB
should ever be considered in the upper tier. To some in the media, Green is only good because KC has a powerful running game; nevermind that Kyle Boller had a 2000 yard rusher in his backfield and still engineers one of the worst passing attacks in the NFL. To others, Green is only good because he has a great offensive line; nevermind that Peyton Manning was easily the best protected QB in the NFL and is immortalized by most members of the media. Others use the "super bowl" excuse: that Tom Brady has won Super Bowls and Trent Green has not. I challenge Tom Brady to win a Super Bowl with our pathetic excuse for a defense. I would LOVE to see Mr. Brady be labeled as Mr. Clutch when his defense can't make a single fourth quarter stop. And then, of course, the most contradictory statement of all--despite the fact that NFL "analysts" drone on about how badly KC needs better receivers, those same analysts claim that Green is only good because of the talent that surrounds him.
It frustrates the hell out of anybody to believe that a QB like Green can be a superstar, let alone a starter for an NFL team. He isn't flashy like McNabb or Vick, but don't let that fool you--his pocket presence is superb for a man that does not like to run around a lot. He doesn't rifle the ball like a Brett Favre, but don't let that fool you--KC is not the dink-and-dunk team that so many people label them as. In fact, their bread-and-butter play is a 15-20 yard strike in the pocket of a zone. Somewhere along the line, we began to immortalize QBs who razzle-dazzled and we forgot about fundamentals. We forgot about QBs like Green and Brady, who are among the best at staring down safeties and LB's, and checking down receivers. We forgot about QBs like Green and Manning, who would rather read defenses than find the first opportunity to run.
Yes, Green did run into some late-game problems, but it is unfair to pin that blame on him. KC's offense demands perfection and when anyone makes a single mistake, the defense is not good enough to cover that mistake up. That is the fundamental difference between Green, and McNabb or Brady. Brady and McNabb make lots of late-game interceptions, but Green's INTs are put under the microscope because they usually end up being difference-makers. While Brady can resort to safe, conservative passes to move down the field, Green must think touchdown on every play. Needless to say, I am excited about what Trent Green can do with this team with a good defense. I would love for Green to make a late-minute interception and for the defense to say, "Don't worry, Trent. You were perfect the rest of the 4th quarter, and now it's time for us to make a stop." In our current state, we shudder when it's a tie-game, early in the 4th quarter and we are forced to punt. How pathetic is that, to demand that kind of perfection from your offense?
As for Collins and Huard, I feel comfortable with both of those guys as our backups. I don't think Collins is capable of bringing us to the promised land, but he is a very safe back-up. There comes a certain point when a man knows a system so well that his knowledge of the system trumps any lack of physical ability. This year may be the time to look later in the draft to find a good project QB to replace Green. Huard is a good backup, but he will never be a starter that can win games.
We just have to face the facts that it's Green, or nothing. It's a sad position, but Green is arguably the most important player on this Chiefs football team and I find it hard to imagine that there are a lot of QBs in this league who can parallel the performance he has put on over the past 3 years. It's hard to imagine that we can make it to the Super Bowl without him. With the protection Green gets and the relatively minor mental wear-and-tear, I would hope that we can protect him well enough to stay healthy for the next 2-3 years. Green is the best QB to play in KC since Len Dawson. In a lot of ways, that might apply even more pressure for us to win now, because it might be another 10-15 years before we find another QB that can lead this offense the way Green has over the past few seasons.
