While I think JB deserves praise for stepping up in a difficult situation this early on, I don't see what a lot of you guys seem to see in him.
He might become a really good QB, but last night didn't provide any real evidence of that in my opinion. Coaching, defense, OL+running game won that game. JB obviously did his part, but he wasn't asked to do a lot.
He can move. no doubt, and he has a strong arm, but I think it was also clear that precision and touch on his passes are not that great. These things will surely get better with time, but his strength is clearly is ability to run. And maybe that is where I'm a bit biased, since I prefer pocket passers. Which again might be why I a lot higher on Jimmy than JB.
Maybe I'm missing something?
I think it's too early to judge. Garoppolo always had a quick release, which I don't see in JB. But IIRC Garoppolo also lacked an NFL pocket sense and was quick to tuck and run -- it took at least a year for him to calm down in the pocket. Now he's at ease, reading the defense, knowing the option routes, audibling to good plays, all of that. So MUCH has to pass through their minds in a few seconds. We sometimes think we know how a QB will perform on
other teams, but I believe with
this team, running an offense built around Brady, it's very, very difficult for a rookie, which is why Bill never (rarely?) puts a rookie in the position of being the next man up to Brady.
So we've never seen someone as raw as JB having to win a football game with his arm and to Josh's credit, we didn't really see that last night. JB has a long way to go and we don't know what he'll be like, but that was true of Garoppolo in his rookie year as well. Perhaps even more so.
What we did see was an element of calm, a willingness to stay within the game plan, to
do his job and not try to be someone he isn't. That means he has some elements predictive of future success. Already, by this time, it seemed that Mallet did not have those elements. And others that have passed through here as well. We'll just have to see if JB can develop the rapid thinking, the mastery of the game plan, the reading of defenses, and the accuracy that he'll need. But there's no reason to think he won't. He appears to have the mental and physical talents, the Bradyesque poise and the willingness to work hard. That's one heluva good start.
