Interesting scenario:
Right now Mallet has to get over himself and incorporate into his reportedly self-centered mindset exactly where he is. Let's say he does that.
Here are his reported characteristics:
- tendency to screw up. Published reports are all just heavy drinking and being a "me" guy because at the college level everyone thought he was God's gift to QBs.
- incredibly hard worker, very football smart, SOC "son of a COACH"
- as mentioned, maturity/ego problem
- Physical skills off the chart
- tendency to make favre-esque bad decisions
He's exactly what we'd all be screaming we needed had we never seen what happens when you've got a talented kid who's not publicly arrogant.
Tom's the "nice kid" that people accuse of being arrogant even when he won't even talk to the press outside the podium he's on, except once in 2008 or so when he said starvation might be more important than the NFL or something, and everybody was calling for his head.
Mallet, as of now, according to what's been heard & what's known, is a jackass that can throw. In fact I don't know that any receiver that hasn't been catching Brady passes a couple of years will be able to catch Mallett passes anyway. If Mallet
does follow Brady, at least our receivers will be Mallett-ready, which is more than most teams would be able to say.
Now here's an interesting point:
Favre famously refused to have much to do w/Rodgers. He said it's not his job to train his replacement.
What Favre says out loud is usually an exagerrated, emotional, drama-queen version of what must be going on in anyone's mind. He just never had any filter, and did not understand that the edge of the universe is not defined by his own skin.
My expectation is that "team guy" Brady goes into it being Mr. Mentor, if Mallett indeed emerges as the "heir apparent" based on something other than draft order.
Let's assume the skills translate, he's smart enough, and he even makes better decisions.
Still, what happens if the maturity's not there?
What you hope is he says "Hmmm greatest coach of all time, greatest QB of all time -- " or at least, valid arguments to be made for both -- "finally, these are jedi I can consider my mentors."
What if he's so farkin emotionally stunted that he can't see that?
I don't see that happening. But what if physical and mental skills progress to be a match for Brady at the NFL level; they're working on him as the "next Brady"; But he insists on Ryan being Ryan?
What do you do in 3 years
if Ryan = Tom
on the field, but Mallet continues to be a flaming butthole to his teammates, the general public, et al., off the field? (If indeed this tendency is not overblown?)
Do you go with a nice guy at the end of his career, or a flaming jackass with a future?
Just woolgathering before work. It won't matter for a while.... and likely this won't be our decision anyway, for various reasons.
But it'll be an interesting transition, regardless. Ryan ain't Tom. He's Ryan. No guarantee that that will ever matter -- just like it's only so important that Matt wasn't Tom.
But it does make you think... there's a what-if here.
No fair saying he'll be humbled by Tom & Bill's influence. Hell, we haven't even gotten to the point where Mallett convinces Brady to let his hair down so to speak and have a little fun every now and then
PFnV
