We can talk about running backs, wide receivers, offensive and defensive linemen, linebackers and defensive backs all we want, but at the end of the day, we all know that winning and losing in the NFL boils down to quarterback play.
I mean look at last season -- the final four teams were the Patriots, Colts, Seahawks and Packers, led by Tom Brady, Andrew Luck, Russell Wilson and Aaron Rodgers respectively. That's four of the top six quarterbacks in the world. Anyway, let's get to it...
50. Matt Schaub (Ravens): I honestly thought this guy retired. Once one of the better fantasy quarterbacks in the NFL when he was throwing to Andre Johnson in his prime, Schaub is now merely an emergency veteran in case Joe Flacco goes down. His arm strength -- which was always kind of suspect anyway -- isn't there anymore, and he'll never be a true starter again.
However, football wise, he's actually a very talented guy. He's the greatest quarterback in the history of the University of Connecticut, and he maintains a job as an NFL QB2 because of his solid natural ability. He has a big arm and little fear. He's also a very positive guy and good teammate.
48. Jimmy Garoppolo (Patriots): There was a bizarre article last season that said the Patriots were considering trading Tom Brady for Andre Johnson if they couldn't escape their early season struggles. The thought alone insinuates that they must really like Garoppolo. I'll have to see it before I believe it.
46. Austin Davis (Rams): We got a good look at him last season during his stint as Jeff Fisher's starter, and we didn't see much. The Rams won a game here and there with their electric defense, but Davis didn't have much to do with it. His best game came in a surprisingly strong performance against the Cowboys. Not much of an arm here, though. I doubt we'll see him as a starter again.
45. E.J. Manuel (Bills): Things looked so promising in Manuel's first few starts as a rookie, but it's been all downhill from there. He's very inaccurate and really struggles to stretch the field effectively. He is best suited as a roll out QB who dinks and dunks short, safe passes. There are rumblings that he's fallen behind Tyrod Taylor on the Bills' depth chart. Yikes.
43. Kirk Cousins (Redskins): Ahh, the famous "back-up quarterback is actually a superstar" hype. Generally speaking, when a guy is a back-up QB, it's because his professional coaching staff understands that he is not a starting caliber player. I tend to trust the experienced coaches over beat writers who say, "The guy dominates practice. He looks incredible and makes all the throws." Yeah, well, the lights came on and Cousins shit the bed.
42. Chad Henne (Jaguars): I guess he's kind of similar to Cousins, in some ways. People always say, "Henne is big, strong, talented and can make all of the throws downfield." And yet, whenever he gets the opportunity to start his game numbers look something like this: 156 yards, 1 touchdown, 2 interceptions.
That's called a back-up quarterback.
41. Colt McCoy (Redskins): In quite possibly my favorite game of the 2014 NFL regular season, Colt McCoy -- initially Jay Gruden's third-string quarterback -- went home to Dallas and shocked the Cowboys with an entertaining road victory. This kid radiates positive energy. He's a tough guy who will always get the most out of his limited physical ability. A pro's pro.
40. Derek Anderson (Panthers): A steady professional back-up QB. Has represented himself well in a number of different cities. Doesn't kill you when he's out there, and can actually win a handful of games for you when he's on.
39. Matt Cassel (Bills): My good friend, Steven Summer (happy 30th birthday, Stevo!), was once on vacation in the islands and ran into Steelers offensive coordinator Todd Haley. At the time, Haley had just finished up his successful-but-unfairly-short stint as head coach of the Chiefs. When Steve asked Haley about his time in Kansas City, he said, "Hey, I made the playoffs with Matt Cassel as my starting quarterback -- I'd say I did pretty damn good."
Nuff said.
38. Matt Moore (Dolphins): The season before Ryan Tannehill was drafted by the Dolphins, Moore was named the team's Most Valuable Player by the coaches and players. He's a good leader and gamer who has had a very respectable professional career. My kind of guy.
37. Mike Glennon (Bucs): Has had a couple of chances in Tampa Bay and never gets over the hump. He's a decent quarterback who shows some positive flashes. Doesn't have the sustainability to be a reliable starter.
35. Blake Bortles (Jaguars): If you ask me, the kid has a broken arm and makes too many mind-boggling decisions. He sometimes thinks he is Brett Favre or Aaron Rodgers forcing "bullets" into dangerously small windows. Except, his bullets are ducks. Luckily for Bortles, Julius Thomas and Allen Robinson should help his statistical production a bit.
34. Brian Hoyer (Texans): Pretty much covered him in Mallett's summary. He's a gamer but isn't gifted. Gets the respect of many of his teammates because he is gritty, but he just simply isn't a pure quarterback. He's more of a football player than a quarterback.
32. Drew Stanton (Cardinals): An excellent back-up quarterback. Cardinals may have beaten the Panthers in the playoffs if they had Stanton available instead of the laughable Ryan Lindley. Stanton has surprisingly good poise in the pocket and can make very difficult throws look relatively easy. I'm a Drew Stanton guy.
31. Shaun Hill (Vikings): A reliable journeyman who has been a positive contributor everywhere he goes. In terms of tools and playing style, I think a comparison to Chad Pennington is very fair here. When starters go down, Hill often takes over and outplays them. It doesn't always look pretty but he certainly gets the job done. An admirable player.
30. Josh McCown (Browns): When he pulled a Kurt Warner or Tom Brady during his run as a Chicago Bear, I was firmly seated in his bandwagon. However, a couple years later, it appears that McCown's incredible success was a product of Marc Trestman's savvy playcalling and Alshon Jeffery, Brandon Marshall and Matt Forte's tremendous talent. McCown is basically a borderline starter at this point.
27. Geno Smith (Jets): I still believe in his natural ability, and I really like the combo of Eric Decker and Brandon Marshall for him. He may never be a starter in the NFL again, though. I suppose time will tell.
25. Sam Bradford (Eagles): The latest report says the Eagles' coaching staff is "ecstatic" with Bradford -- umm, he hasn't even played a regular season game yet. Gettin' all fired up about nothing. Bradford has been injury-prone and quite underwhelming throughout his somewhat bizarre NFL career. He's a really nice kid with a good attitude, but that's part of his facade. He gets everyone to like him so they look past the fact that he isn't a great quarterback. He'll have career-best numbers in Chip Kelly's offense, but he'll shock their staff with surprisingly poor play.
Surprising to them, at least.
24. Teddy Bridgewater (Vikings): It's been an interesting few years for Teddy. Once regarded as the consensus No. 1 quarterback of his draft class, he ended up falling to the bottom of the first round due to some suspect work at the Combine. Who gives a shit? It's just drills. In games, Bridgewater has always been a tough kid who makes athletic plays. His teammates rally behind him. He may not be a pure passer but he's going to win games. He has a little magic in him.
23. Derek Carr (Raiders): Has a much stronger and smoother arm than his older brother, David. There's definitely potential here. Hopefully he and Amari Cooper will turn this sorry franchise around. Dare I say...the Raiders are on the rise?
However, he was superb after Nick Foles went down last season. His strong overall performance turned a lot of heads, but not mine. I know this guy can play. He's a solid-but-unspectacular NFL quarterback.
21. Andy Dalton (Bengals): Not a great quarterback, but I like his talent pool with A.J. Green, Jeremy Hill, Giovani Bernard, Tyler Eifert, Marvin Jones and Mohamed Sanu. "The Red Rifle" should be decent this season. I have a good vibe on the Bengals this year.
20. Alex Smith (Chiefs): Doesn't turn the ball over, doesn't make big plays. Doesn't kill you. Gotta run the ball and play D with Smith. He's one of the best of the pure "ball control" quarterbacks.
18. Nick Foles (Rams): I'm a Nick Foles guy. Was really hoping the Jets were going to end up with him when he was being shopped around. Very solid move for Jeff Fisher and the Rams. I think people are giving Chip Kelly too much credit when it comes to Foles. I think he truly has the intangibles. He could possibly get up into the #14 quarterback range.
17. Colin Kaepernick (49ers): Needs a bounce-back season. Hopefully Torrey Smith will help and Vernon Davis will actually show up. Reggie Bush should also help on dump-offs.
16. Carson Palmer (Cardinals): I've never been much of a Carson Palmer guy, but it was clear how much the Cardinals missed him when he went down last season. Drew Stanton was excellent as his back-up, but once it got to Ryan Lindley it was an absolute shitshow. Palmer is still a solid player. He needs Michael Floyd to be more consistent. John Brown may end up being the key receiver for him.
14. Ryan Tannehill (Dolphins): Very good all-around, just like his team. Not awesome, but very good. I don't think he'll ever be a consistent top 10 quarterback, but he should always be in the 12 to 18 range. He's one of my "blank-minded" quarterbacks. He doesn't think much; he's more of an instinctual and reactionary quarterback. There are two more guys like that coming on the list.
13. Matthew Stafford (Lions): We're waiting and waiting and waiting for this guy to become a star, but he never does. He's just not consistent enough. Has the ability but needs to refine the mental skills that have made Peyton Manning and Tom Brady great.
10. Philip Rivers (Chargers): Possible decline this season. Could fall as far as #16 or 17. Antonio Gates is suspended for four games, Eddie Royal is gone and I'm worried about Philip's arm strength. He's a warrior, though. I'll give him that.
9. Drew Brees (Saints): Same as Rivers. Arm strength is clearly diminishing. Jimmy Graham and Kenny Stills are gone. This season could mark the end of an incredible run.
7. Matt Ryan (Falcons): A great quarterback in his prime. Like Peyton, his preparation is outstanding and his knowledge of the game is world class. He reads opposing coverages extremely well and delivers his timing throws beautifully. Too bad the Falcons can never make a defensive stop.
6. Russell Wilson (Seahawks): Everyone knows I'm a Russell Wilson guy, but his horrific playoff performance against the Packers did scare me. He also threw an interception that cost his team the Super Bowl. I've dropped Wilson to #6 because he should have audibled out of that atrocious playcall. Manning, Brady, Rodgers, Ben...they all would have known better. Wilson is TOO nice. He respects his coaches TOO much. At the end of the day this is his team, and he should have taken control of the ship. Should be a two-time Super Bowl champ, but isn't.
2. Tom Brady (Patriots): C'mon, it's Tom Brady! Do I really have to summarize what he brings to the table? Another Super Bowl win. He's a winner in the class of Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and Derek Jeter. One of the best players in the history of the game.
Bring on the arguments!!!
Ovechkin? Stop it. That's my only critique fro.
ReplyDeleteI think you just dislike Ovechkin because he's a prick on the ice. To me, that doesn't take anything away from his ability. He's the Bryce Harper of the NHL.
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