SCO96

Oops, only 3 were top 6 picks...the Mannings and Stafford. Mahomes was picked at #10 (my bad). We all know that if Stafford has stayed in Detroit he would not be on the list. QB's don't will themselves to SB wins, it takes: 1) Good Front office 2) Good Coaching 3) Talented/Deep roster 4) Soild QB play 5) Good ownership. This an overlooked piece of the puzzle. If an owner is meddlesome, cheap, impatient, or unable to hire the right people He won't be successful in the NFL.

Here's another interesting fact about QB's drafted in the top 10 (or even the the top 6) since 1997. Only 4 have won Super Bowls: The Manning brothers have two each, Mahomes won one in 2019, and Matt Stafford just won one a year ago. Big Ben has a couple but he last until the 11th pick. Those numbers would undoubtedly be a little higher if it weren't for Brady winning 7 rings, but even his success is an indicator that picking a QB in the top 10 is not a sure fire bet to win a SB title.

If we did get an elite LT @ 6, I'd be all for Darnold starting the season. We have a top tier player at RT. We just signed solid players to man the RG and C positions. We could possibly use BC at LG and let him play the whole season at one position. Our line would be significantly better than what we put out there in 2021. On top of that we now have a proven line coach to make them even better. Darnold has one year left. I'd like to see what we can do. If he sucks, cut bait at seasons' end. Going into 2023 we'll have a solid line, all of our high draft choices, and an opportunity to go all in for a QB via the draft, FA, or trade. I always looked at this as a 3 year rebuild, but last year was so bad that we're now a year behind. I'm willing to wait an extra year to make the playoffs if it means we can stay atop the division for the rest of the decade.

Former Cowboy linebacker Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson had a cocaine problem during that time as well. He's publically admitted that he snorted so much cocaine that he had a hole in his septum. As for Brown's issue, I'm sure it may have got him jacked up for games, but it couldn't have helped in the long run.

Why do you feel like he won't get much better? If he's taken this year he's going to inherit a much better situation than Darnold or any rookie would have had in 2021:, new and experienced OC, new O-lineman, and one of the best O-line coaches in football. Pickett has good arm strength & good athletic ability. I can see how some can say a players physical abilities can limit their peak for certain positions (CB, RB, WR, etc) but I've never understood how someone (not just you) can say a "QB" cannot get any better". The great QB's get better because they learn the game and thing slow down for them on the field.

Sometimes history has a way of repeating itself. Larry Brown was an unheralded back entered the NFL in 1969 (the same year as OJ Simpson). Although he was undersized, you can make a strong argument that he was the best running back in the NFL from 1969-1972. During that stretch he made the Pro Bowl every year. He was MVP of the league in 1972, the year the Redskins made the Super Bowl and lost to the undefeated Dolphins. He had another strong season in 1973. After that the injury bug hit him hard. He never had a season with more than a 163 carries or more than 430 yards after 1973. He was out of the league at the end of the 1976 season. Everyone who saw him play says he was great for a short stretch, but Redskin coach George Allen overworked him which shortened his career. CMAC is an all-world (but undersized back). MaCaffrey has a strong case for being the best back in the NFL from 2018-2019. He had a coach that over worked him...and now he can't stay healthy for an entire season. I'm hoping 2022 is the year he bounces back, but his last two injury plaqued seasons really concern me.

I don't know about the Top 10 (which wouldn't surprise me at all), but I think they will all be gone by pick 20, if not 15. I said this in another post, but I'll paraphrase it here. I don't think last year's QB class was that great. If you take Lawrence (who is considered a once in a generation prospect) out of the mix, why are the 4 QBs taken (Lance, Wilson, Fields, and Jones) in 2021 considered so much better than Willis, Pickett, and Corral? I think the latter 3 will have careers just as good (if not better) than any of the guys in the class of 2021, including Lawrence if he's not able to overcome the horrendous situation he inherited in Jacksonville. I'm all for taking a LT at six, but if we went with a QB I wouldn't be upset if we took either of these guys.

We don't know for sure the above two guys are guilty of what you're implying. But, I can definitely understand your reasoning.

Here you go. Ooops! You said Bagles...not Bangles

Sometimes an athlete can put things together years later into his career. I grew up an avid fan of MLB history. I was always intrigued by Sandy Koufax. His W-L as a Dodger pitcher was 36-40 in his first SIX SEASONS. Over the next 6 seasons he went 129-47 and he won 3 CY Young Awards. Sometimes things just click later for some people than others.

If Pickett is taken at #6, I'd start him unless he hasn't grasped the offense by week 1. Our QB room consists of Sam Darnold and PJ Walker. If an incoming rookie drafted in the first round can't beat out/play as well as those two guys, we probably picked the wrong QB. Carolina has had three straight 5 win seasons. The atmosphere on the forums and the fanbase may be the lowest it's ever been since I started following the team back in 1995. Starting Pickett (or Willis, or Corral) would at least bring a bit of excitement to games in 2022.

I don't follow the Tarheels much. I know nothing about Sam Howell. But, your comment is interesting because it provides some context into Howell's on field performance in 2021. Things like this need to be taken into account when evaluating a players (especially QBs). How good is the supporting cast? A guy in Howell's situation might thrive on a team like INDY that has a strong O-line and solid (if not great) weapons on the outside.

If I were in Rhule's situation I wouldn't want to either

Thanks!!

Im not gonna disagree with you. But what's making him panic? Is he afraid of getting hit? Is the scheme too complicated? Has he lost his confidence? I think some guys just have inherit greatness? Some need to be nutured just a bit. I wouldn't care if Sam was off team in 2022. That said, I still think the right coach could probably get a lot more out of him than Adam Gase, Joe Brady, and Matt Rhule did.

I'm actually off tomorrow. Anyone know of way to tune in and watch it live?

Last year: 1) We had a terrible O-line 2) Our best offensive weapon missed most of the season. 3) Our OC had a predictable scheme that was ridiculed around the league 4) We could not make adjustments that allowed us to score in the 2nd half (especially quarter 3) 5) We received virtually no production at the TE position. Saying Sam didn't play well is an understatement, but all of the above things are weren't all his fault. Cam and PJ didn't look any better when they were taking snaps. All three had to run for their lives because of our poor pass blocking. I'll get flamed for this, but if we draft a LT instead of a QB I wouldn't be totally opposed to seeing what Darnold can do in a McAdoo offensive scheme and behind a James Kampen coached O-line. If he sucks (highly likely), then he'll be off the team and allowed to hit the market in 2023. But, what if the light comes on and leads to a ressurection of his almost dead career? I don't think any QB could be fairly judged playing behind the woeful Panther 2022 offensive line.

I don't think 2021 class as whole is that much better than than the QB class of 2022. Lawrence was clearly the best of the group. What exactly did he do to set the world on fire last year? He came into a really bad situation. I hope he does well, but things could go south there in a hurry. Trey Lance barely saw the field. We have no guarantee he's going to be elite. He put up big numbers in college, but he didnt' exactly play in the SEC weak in and weak out either. He could be a bust. The book hasn't even been really opened for him yet. Zach Wilson? He throws a nice ball. What else does he bring to the table. Justin Fields? First strike: Ohio State QB (they all suck). Strike 2: He's in Chicago (no Bear QB has come close to making the Hall of Fame since Sid Luckman retired in 1950. Strike 3: The Bears fired the coach who drafted him and hired a defensive minded coach in a pass happy league Matt Jones? He did ok in his rookie year. The last QB drafted had the best overall season and made the playoffs in his rookie season. Not surprising since he went to the best situation I don't see why Pickett, Willis, Corral are viewed so much worse than the guys above. I have no way of knowing, but I thimk they have just as much (if not more) of a chance of being successful in the NFL as the 5 guys drafted in 2021.

You see it the way I do. There's is no guarantee you'll be able to trade back. If you unable to move off of the 6th spot when you're on the clock what's the plan? And, let's say you do trade back, you still may not get the guy (s) you want. I definitely wouldn't draft a CB. A stud pass rusher would be nice, but I think you'd have to go with a QB, unless the team acquired a starter between now and the draft.

Bledsoe had a lot of misfortune in his career. He lost his job to Brady due to injury. He had to come in and bail out the team to beat Pittsburgh in the 2001 AFC title game after Brady go hurt. HE QB's them to a win and a SB appearance. After they win the SB Drew was traded to Buffalo. He goes to Buffalo and has a couple of good seasons and is then released after the 2004 season in favor of the great 1st round pick JP Losman. I bet all of you guys forgot about him. I know I sure did. He goes to Dallas to reunite with Parcells in Dallas. He ended up being replaced by Romo. He was really good QB in his prime. He almost won a SB with NE in 1996. He's forgotten by most because he'll always be in Brady's shadow.

Yesterday, one of the media pundits was highly in favor of this move. He said Baker has the talent to play in the NFL. But, he felt Baker was lacking maturity and wasn't mentally ready to lead a team. He reasoned who better to learn from than Tom Brady. Tom won't play forever. It might not be a bad idea to have his replacement in house. Plus, if Tom does get hurt and miss games, Baker isn't a bad guy to call off of the bench. I'm sure Kyle Trask would be ticked off, but it really isn't a bad strategy if you have the cap space and if Baker could swallow his pride.

You listed 9 QB's in your post. Only three of them were picked after pick #12: Jackson, Hurts, and Prescott. Jackson fell a little further than expected but still went in round one.. I don't think anyone thought Jalen Hurts was a 1st round talent. I'll be honest, I never even heard of Dak Prescott until the Cowboys drafted him. I'm not saying we should take a QB. But, if we do we need to make sure we get the guy we want. Don't leave anything to chance. Other teams try to manipulate the draft board as well. It only takes one GM to mess up our entire draft strategy. Somebody else may want the guy we want. True Story: the Cowboys needed a WR to replace Drew Pearson after his near fatal car accident prior to the 1984 season. Jerry Rice was the guy they were targeting. Bill Walsh had 3 receivers we wanted prior to the 1985 draft (Al Toon, Eddie Brown, and Jerry Rice). The Jets took Toon first. The Bengal wanted Eddie Brown, but Sam Wyche was willing to trade down with SF for a 1 and a 3. Walsh was willing to part with a 1 and a 4. Sam took Eddie Brown. Walsh knew Dallas wanted Rice so they traded up 1 spot ahead of Dallas and took Rice. Imagine how much different history would have been SF hadn't made that trade.

That article cannot possibly be right. Mel Kiper Jr (of ESPN) fame has stated that none of these guys are going in the top 10! He has Pickett going to NO @ 18, Willis going to PIT @ 20, and Corral going to the Lions @ 32! I'm being sarcastic of course. I think/expect all 3 of these guys will be gone before pick 20. I wouldn't be surprised if all 3 are gone before pick 15. If there's a guy in this class we like we need to pick while he's on the board. I don't think we can assume we can trade back more than two or three slots and have the option of selecting one of them.

Kurt Warner told a similar story. He was actually in the Packers training camp once as an undrafted free agent. He got cut, and even if he had made the team he would've never started because Brett Favre was entrenched as the QB in Green Bay. He ended up in Europe and the Arena League before getting another shot in the NFL. Warner won two MVP awards, played in 3 SB's (winning one, and losing the other 2 by less than 7 total points), and ended up in the Hall of Fame. He said had he somehow remained in GB behind Favre none of the above would have had a chance of happening. In fact Warner was never suppose to lead "The Greatest Show on Turf". He only got a chance when starter Trent Green went down with an injury early in the 1999 season. Warner was able to have fate smile on him. It makes you wonder how many other people could have had success in the NFL but were never given an opportunity shine because of a lack of opportunity (bad team, no playing time, injury, team politics, etc)