Posted 04 January 2013 - 12:55 PM
I think the KC game (even though it was a loss Cam played very well) showed how far Cam has come and how he isn't as far away from his potential as some you may think. He just needs to become more consistent with time and experience.
But there were five throws in that game that really stood out to me, in order from least to most impressive:
1. On Cam's last TD to Murphy, the throw and footwork were perfect and he placed the slant on a rope exactly where it needed to be. However, he also stared Murphy down and the throw could have been much more dangerous if the linebackers that were following Cam's eyes had a split-second longer to get to where he was obviously going with the ball. But the throw itself was great, and led Murphy right into the endzone.
2. On Cam's first TD to Olsen, the line had given up pressure right up the middle and Cam literally flipped the ball twenty yards downfield without even setting his feet. What was great about it is that it was the perfect place to take that kind of risky throw because Olsen had no coverage over the top and his defender was oblivious to anything else because of how badly Olsen had burned him and was desperately trying to catch up, so if the pass was overthrown the worst that would have happened was an incomplete pass. But Olsen hauled it in and was off to the races on the kind of throw only a very few quarterbacks in the NFL could even attempt.
3. On Cam's long bomb to LaFell that should have been a touchdown, he recognized before the snap that the Chiefs were about to send a heavy blitz, stepped up to the line to shout out adjustments and then called hurriedly for the snap as the play clock was almost dead. The pass rush broke through almost immediately, and if anyone goes and looks at the All-22 video of the throw they would have to believe Cam had a psychic connection with LaFell because he starts the throw before LaFell has even made his double move on the defender, and the ball could not have been placed any more perfectly for LaFell than if Cam had handed it off to him. I hate so much that LaFell flat out dropped the ball, because it was an incredible throw made under heavy pressure.
4. On Cam's TD to Smith, he executed a fantastic pumpfake to get the defense rolling towards the right, then turns back and gives Smith a beautiful touch pass down the left sideline right into the endzone. Cam didn't even really lead into the throw, he just sort of calmly flicked it up and put it where only Smith had a shot at it, and Smitty turned on the jets and left the DB in the dust and pulled in a great catch for the score.
5. The most impressive of all of Cam's throws in this game wasn't even a potential scoring play, but on a third and long he saw Smith running an out route on the right sideline between bracket coverage, set his feet in perfect form, stepped fully into the throw, and threw a strike so absolutely on point that the underneath defender could only helplessly watch it streak over his head and fall perfectly into Smith's breadbasket. You could audibly hear Mike Martz jizz himself as he described the beauty of that pass, because many lesser quarterbacks wouldn't dream of attempting that kind of pass, much less completing it without the slightest contest from the defense.
If the Cam that showed up in the latter half of the year is a sign of what he will be in the future, then we've got the most complete package in the NFL at quarterback. Can't wait!
So even in that piece, I see Cam's desire to be a fundamentally sound QB)
