Campaigns I haven’t seen: Tank for Tom. Destruct for Drew. Rot for Rodgers. Malfunction for Mahomes. Wet the bed for Wilson. I think this says something about the level of certainty that these guys will be sure fire stars and the “impossible” notion that there’s someone else out there beyond the sizzling name who can be a superstar QB, like they have some lower ceiling or something if Mel Kiper doesn’t have them ranked as the consensus beat QB prospect. Almost any team in the NFL could have traded up to draft Mahomes two years ago. He was the third QB selected and up until a few months before the draft was rated as a mid-round pick. And he’s more talented than any of these guys teams have tanked for: Luck, Locker, RGIII, Darnold, Mariota, could make a really long list. I think some people were saying Hackenberg was tank worthy after a year in college. You even have guys on the bench recently (Garoppollo, Foles) who are better than anyone coming out of college.
What Belichick said was, "Hey! You know, you left college 'cause it was bogus; but here we got some cool rules. 'Cause without them, we'd be bogus, too! Come and learn some football on 'our time'." He's awesome! Belichick's a totally awesome dude!"
I think Brugler just comp'd him to Carr which fits imo give or take. Lock's arm is definitely stronger. Drew has a whip for sure. Not elite but really good. Mechanics, to me aren't great. I'm not a QB guru but he's almost never set in any way. Like his footwork is probably his worse aspect. He'll have a good series w that & look awkward as hell up top. Almost any game you'll see him back foot a ton of stuff. Never really impressed w his feet. Don't think he can escape or manipulate a pocket. Very rarely steps up. One thing Rosen, Darnold & Mayfield all have are exceptional arms in the sense the can almost bend the arc of the pass to fit in a ball almost anywhere. Saw it a lot w Darnold & Mayfield esp. I don't see that enough w Lock. I think that'll lead to INTs along w his poor passes from his lower half. He definitely improved in terms of going through reads. Not a ton but I saw a difference. He never took that step you wanted but in this class he's probably a guy you feel best about taking a shot w.
Lawrence will get a ton of hate for his looks. Hes literally been living w it since freshman year. Supposedly is very religious. Wants to marry young & start a family. Idk could be worse if you ask me. Pats fans would be the luckiest group on Earth if we landed him.
How do you feel about height at the Position. I’m a bit of a “heighter” myself. I prefer the taller QBs but not opposed smaller ones if they can do their job. I think some people make too big a deal about it but I don’t think it’s completely meaningless
I mean yeah I'd generally like someone 6'2-6'5 but I think we're in for more Mayfield's from college. The position is just becoming more athletic so the NFL will have to adapt. Actually been thinking about smaller guys a lot bc of Murray. Whether it matters once you hit or pass 6'. Like does it really matter if you're 6, 5'10 or 5'9 when the bullets start flying. Idk I mean those guys are just used to it.
I love watching Tua in college but the excellence we see in college won't fully translate to the NFL. Firstly, the majority of the passes he's been throwing are slants, which while are good, don't necessarily correspond to the array of passes he's gonna have to make in the NFL. Furthermore, he has an incredible cast of pass catchers, which naturally boosts his performance. When Tua is subbed out for Jalen Hurts, it's not like we see a completely different offense or significantly less explosion. Tua's probably gonna be a great QB, but his near perfect season isn't just him. I wouldn't tank for any player - I mean, were Brady, Brees, Rodgers, Mahomes, Watson, or Wilson top 5 picks?
That might be the way to go but I also would really love a great DL in the next draft to strengthen our team for a possible last run with this current core at the Lombardi. Going to be interesting.
Don't worry, it'll be hidden under the helmet. I know we've been spoiled by Brady's movie star looks, but....
I also am an Alabama fan (I live in Birmingham), and Tua does seem to have that certain "something". I can't find the quote on the internet, but on one of the games earlier in the year there was a long-time announcer that said in all of his years of watching and announcing college football there was only one college quarterback that had the same remarkable inate ability as Tua to know exactly where everyone was on the field: Drew Brees at Purdue. That is high praise indeed. Plus, there is a writer on "The Ringer" (Bill Simmons website) that seems to think that Tua is going to be the next truly great quarterback: Tua Tagovailoa Is the Quarterback of Both the Future and Present. He also correctly points out in the same article (with an old reference link as proof) that he was one of the very few that predicted that Patrick Mahomes was going to become what he has become. That said, it just seems like tanking is completely anathama to BB, I just can't imagine him ever doing that. I've heard many interviews where he seems to be prouder of his record of sustained excellence than anything else. It's also difficult for me to believe that the Pats will be near enough to the top of the draft to trade the farm for him. However, just like Brees is, Tua is a bit of a non-traditional talent, and I'm not sure if he would fit on every team, I think it will take a pretty unique offensive mind to use him correctly (similar to how Sean Payton uses Brees). Perhaps the best bet that the Pats getting him is if he gets picked to death in his junior year as too short, injury prone, etc., and he falls a bit in the draft. Heck, he seems to suddenly fall in everyone's eyes just due to one bad game when he injured his ankle against Georgia, so who knows what his eventual draft position will be.
If this DT class is as strong and as deep as it's reputed to be, there may not be much difference between the late 1st-round and the 2nd-round.
Not sold Daniel Jones may be a solid qb but he's not going to be a top line starter. But maybe that's the thing. Maybe the pats just roll with a solid guy ala a Phil Simms or Eli Manning type rather than a stud quarterback. If that's the case it's going to take some getting used to after watching all the years of excellence from Tom Brady.