Kontra is right. Murray is a gunslinger and not really the type of QB that you want in an offense that values not turning over the ball as much as we do. I agree with you that he potentially has a lot of value, I'm just not sure it's for us.
Well, I'm not sure I agree with the characterization of Murray as a 'gunslinger' per say because personnel, system, matchups, and gameplans can all influence how a QB throws. When a QB throws into tight windows does that make him a 'gunslinger' or is it because his receivers can't get separation, or is it because his OL is not holding their block a half second longer, and forcing the QB to get rid of the ball a touch sooner than he'd like?
The counter argument to 'gunslinger' is that a QB is only a 'system QB' because he only makes the wide open throw, the checkdown, the safe throw. The inference is that he doesn't have the arm strength or the talent to make throws into smaller windows, to take advantages of mismatches down the field. In other words it is very easy to criticize QBs on both sides of the coin.
And to top it off, when examining Murray's college career statistics, I find it hard to back the inference of 'gunslinger'.
Aaron Murray Stats, News, Videos, Pictures, Bio - Georgia Bulldogs - ESPN
Murray's career TD to INT ratio is 121-41. In other words on average for every 3 TDs he throws, he throws one pick. Not exactly an alarming ratio.
Let's also consider his INT to pass attempts ratio. Out of 1478 career passing attempts he has 41 interceptions. That makes for a 2.8% interception rate. Again not an alarming pass to INT ratio.
Can we compare these numbers to a certain Tom Brady for perspective?
Tom Brady Stats | College Football at Sports-Reference.com
In Michigan, Brady was the owner of a career 30 TD to 17 INT ratio. In other words on average for ever two TDs he threw, he also threw 1 pick.
Let's look at the INT to attempts ratio to see how wild a 'gunslinger' Brady was in his Michigan days.
638 pass attempts with 17 INTs yields... *drumroll* a 2.7% interception rate.
In other words Brady's INT rate per attempt was exactly 1/10th of a percent better than Murray's while his TD to INT ratio was significantly worse at only 2 to 1.
In both cases, I expect the players to be able to IMPROVE from their college selves, otherwise Brady would have been an eternal benchwarmer for Drew. But he was different. He was more than the stats would indicate.
Hopefully the same can hold true of a guy like Murray who has likely been counted out by a lot of people before he even gets onto the field. I'd hope with the proper coaching, we could turn a 'prospect' like Murray into a better football player than he ever was in college.
But coaching can only do so much, the player must have the intelligence, drive, and character to take it to the next level. The best thing I like about Murray are the positive reports on those intangibles. Now sure he might not pan out, but I'm more than willing to risk a late pick on a guy with fire in his belly and all the right intangibles than on a guy who is just physically talented but might be a head case (read Mallet). Nothing against Mallet, but the writing is on the wall, he's probably out the door soon for a decent pick and we'll need a new successor to groom.
