CamTheMan

Yep. Not a single unit on offense is playing even average right now. Receivers are having trouble separating, the OL isn't creating gaps in the run game or giving Bryce consistent time, the RBs aren't breaking tackles, the play calling is conservative and boring, and the quarterback is missing the few opportunities we do get. Going back to the graph, some of the blame definitely is on the WRs but Bryce has been leaving the pocket too early and just doesn't seem confident in anything. Sam Darnolding this kid into bad habits and ruining his career before it even starts would really suck.

He is an above average pass rusher, not even close to elite (so far).

Seriously. It was considered one of his strong suits until a test that you take on a computer said he has bad processing. CJ Stroud was BY FAR the favorite for the #1 pick up until a few weeks after the combine and then suddenly fell off the face of the planet for some reason. It’s a little ridiculous how far the pendulum swung when nobody played a game or even threw a football in shorts.

LMAO I'm going to miss these pre-draft shitposts

How I feel exactly. I really like the guy and he seems to be a generational football mind, but I just don’t see any way he works long term. He has one of the worst physical profiles I can think of and his play style relies on his mobility. The #1 overall pick should expand what you’re capable of doing schematically, not limit it. We’d be scheming around Bryce Young’s weaknesses, not his strengths. You can’t say the same for any of the other top quarterbacks.

Side note, but why take the player with such physical limitations and arguably the lowest ceiling out of all the top 4 quarterbacks when we were so aggressive in our staff hires? We have all the pieces in place to groom a quarterback with mental and mechanical holes in their game but there are no fixes to being small with a middle of the pack arm.

This is what I think too. You don’t want any quarterback to be running around like that inside the pocket, let alone a tiny one. I just don’t really see much of his game translating. I love how intelligent is and I don’t think he’ll completely bust because of that intelligence but his physical limitations exist and I don’t get why they’re so ignored just because he’s fun to watch. Feel like we’ve already had tons of examples of guys fitting that description who just don’t work out in the NFL.

I didn't say that he absolutely cannot play under center, I said "if" he can't. He has never done it before. There are adjustments Bryce Young needs to make to play in the pros and there really aren't for Stroud. Is it possible he makes the proper adjustments? Absolutely. Is it still a risk? Absolutely. Stroud is the safest quarterback in the draft but also has tons of potential. If we want to take risks for potentially greater reward, why not just go with Richardson?

Yeah you're absolutely correct. But 20% out of shotgun is still a few hundred plays a season and if he can't play under center then there will be problems. In my opinion, Young will be limited to West Coast offense his entire career no matter how the NFL evolves while Stroud has the skillset to play in almost any scheme. I see Young as an unnecessary risk with only marginally better upside than Stroud, personally.

Agreed. The lack of snaps under center, the time to throw, and the drop back depth really turn me off. Our offensive line is built for the run game and I’d like to stay that way, but I’m not sure how possible that is with Young. I understand he was great at throwing over the middle in college, but could it have been due to variables that are harder to replicate in the NFL (time to throw, drop back depth, etc.)? I don’t really like the dink and dunk offenses and I feel like that’s what we’ll be limited to with Bryce. For those who are okay with that kind of offense, I can see why Bryce would be the guy.

I hate that so few can have a conversation now without going so extreme. A lot of the Stroud guys are pretending like Young is undraftable because of his size and a lot of the Young guys are pretending like his size is completely irrelevant. It's annoying because I just want to read good football discussions!!!!!!11!!1 Anyway, being 200 pounds (on a good day) is risky for a QB who spends so much time in the pocket and is getting hit by people 100-150 pounds larger than him and just as athletic. Can he overcome it? Sure, he's smart as hell. It's a risk, nonetheless. Side note, don't count on him gaining size in the NFL. He gained 11 pounds over the course of his college career in a S&C + Nutrition program that is as good as any in the NFL. He'll naturally get a little bigger but he'll always be small. If the coaching staff feels that he's head and shoulders above Stroud at actually playing football, I'll disagree with their assessment (stop pretending these guys know better 100% of the time just because they are in the NFL, they get it wrong all the time too) but I'll trust them enough to support the decision. I just want to us win football games!!!

For me, the QB debate comes down to one phrase: "I don't know." There are so many qualities about Bryce Young that point to him being a generational talent but there are also qualities that make me say "I don't know" if he's going to be able to get away with that in the NFL. His drop back depth being so deep, his time to throw being so long, etc. Obviously his frame is talked about and that's another question mark, but every prospect can get injured. Bottom line: even though Bryce Young has elite traits, there are also a lot of questions about how he plays and adapts at the next level. CJ Stroud might not have as many truly elite traits, but I can't think of a single question mark. He is above average at every aspect of the quarterback position while being a truly elite passer of the football. For a franchise that has had the inconsistencies we have had and the recent stretch of awfulness we've gone through, I think there is a genuine risk to our long-term future if we draft a bust. I know it is the NFL, but I don't see a way CJ Stroud busts (barring a freak incident). Think he is the best fit for our franchise and would bring a level of consistency we've never had.

Why not all three?

Ugh we could have had Darnold and Dalton. Those beautiful red beards together would have truly been magnificent to see.

He quite literally has had a negative record in both high school and college football. To think he's going to come here and consistently win with us, a team that is has picked inside the top-10 for going on 5 years, because he can run fast and jump high is straight up delusional. Him getting hyped up as a first round pick does not change the fact that he can't win football games at any level of football. I feel like if Cam Newton never existed, this guy wouldn't even be getting consideration as a first round pick.

But he wasn't because talent combined with production gets you drafted high. There are guys who don't have talent but get it done anyway and there are guys with all the talent in the world who fail. I'd rather we took someone with both the talent and history of success. For goodness sake, he went 2-8 as a senior at a public high school. He straight up is not a winner and I think that matters a lot.

It 1000000% matters. Believing a guy is going to magically improve because he touches an NFL field and faces way harder competition is not realistic. Just because it has happened before does not mean it is the recipe for success. People like to use Josh Allen as an excuse like he wasn't manhandling linebackers and launching the football 70 yards in the air. He got put into a perfect NFL system for him and developed great. It happens sometimes. The bottom line is that the overwhelming majority of successful NFL players were also successful in college.

Seriously. Some people need to go back and watch some of Cam Newton in college. He didn't have that great of a team either but damn near singlehandedly went undefeated. He is one of the most dominant college athletes ever and AR15, respectfully, is not even in the same conversation.

I'm confused as to how Anthony Richardson performing well at the combine changes anything. Did anyone not know he was super athletic and big? Him being that crazy of a physical specimen and still not being that great of a college football player isn't alarming to anyone? I might be the only one that feels this way but I don't actually get that impressed when he runs. He's talented and the athleticism is clearly there but he didn't seem to be consistently running through or around people. Every once in a while he'd make a straight up insane play (his highlights are crazy), but I watched half of their games and was just kinda underwhelmed the entire time. Taking him at #9 and trying to coach him makes a lot of sense but trading up for him seems like the risk is substantially greater than the reward imo

In my opinion, you shouldn't be giving up future assets for prospects who don't satisfy one of these requirements: a) realistic potential generational talent b) guaranteed above average talent (I know there is never such thing as a guarantee in the NFL, but some guys come close enough) Personally, I don't see anyone in the class that fits either of those. Stroud is the closest in this class to being a guaranteed above average quarterback and I can see why people would have him in that category, so I wouldn't be upset if we did move up for him. For the first time in my life as a fan, we actually have a staff that makes me feel comfortable almost no matter what we do. Barring a trade in which we completely tank our future assets, I trust them to make good with whichever decision they make.

Darnold actually has a higher winning % than Brissett and Darnold's winning % is pretty similar to Teddy's in the past 3 years. Brissett went 4-7 with a Cleveland team that isn't too much better or worse than ours. Teddy went 7-7 in Denver and 0-2 in Miami. I'd agree that Teddy is probably better than Darnold in a lot of ways but personally, I'd rather watch Darnold chuck it to the other team than watch Teddy throw 3 yard passes every play and refuse to push it down field regardless of the situation or who is open. Don't disagree. Lots of average quarterbacks to be had, comes down to a value thing and how much they are going to want from us. That is why the argument for Darnold is dependent on a great contract, as has been repeated many times. Regardless of who we get, we still need to plan for a replacement.

That game wasn't removed though? If I had, the following would have been his stats: 3740 yards (10th) 24 TDs (10th) 3 Ints (1st) 105.4 Rating (2nd) I included that game in the original post though. He played objectively average football throughout the course of 6 games. I wouldn't count on that regressing after he goes from McAdoo to Reich, personally. Seems like if anything, he'll get better. Most of the people against him are basing their arguments on how they personally feel about him, which is totally fine. Just say you want to move on because you're scarred from how bad he was in 2021. Completely acceptable take. What isn't an acceptable take is to pretend like he was genuinely bad last year.

Guy, if you're going to respond to what I just said with "but he had a bad game in a week 18 matchup where both teams were already eliminated and half the players were out," just let me know now so I can know not to engage further.

Darnold showed signs of improved processing and clearly improved mentally. Even those who don't want him back have to acknowledge that. He looked WAY calmer in the pocket and his footwork took a big step forward. He's younger than a few guys in this draft. I don't get why people are going balls to the wall to crap on him when pretty much everyone who wants him back is saying they want him on a cheap, short-term deal. Nobody is saying he is the future. Nobody is denying he has had a poor career. His coaches were Adam Gase (he is literally failing as a high school OC right now) and Matt Rhule (self explanatory). He played 6 games in his career without them and here are his stats stretched through a full season and where they rank in the league: 3238 yards (15th) 20 TDs (15th) 8 Ints (9th among QBs with more than 8 starts) 92.6 Rating (13th) 11-6 record There is damn near no objective way to say he is not worth a backup level contract.

There are so many different ways to approach this offseason and the QB position that I change what I want us to do every week. I'm mostly interested in seeing how he evaluates where we are as a team. If he thinks we're ready to seriously compete, I think we move for a specific quarterback. If he thinks we're a few years away, might be a bit more passive. It's going to be a fun few months