Food for thought. We have 3, maybe even four quarterbacks available at any given time. None of them have produced even adequate results. Is it the system? Or did we completely drop the ball on qb recruitment and roster management?
??? I don't think any of us are happy that Lucas was injured in that game. But it's not like we're going to cancel the season if Johnson can't play. So fans do what fans do....they speculate about the next guy up...in this case Yates.
Or is it also a function of the line? Ever noticed how Matt Ryan looked like a stud in his MVP season when the same 5 offensive linemen started every game and played well, giving him plenty of time to throw and opened running lanes? But now he looks like dog crap because he gets hit on one out of every three passes he throws? Or how Tom Brady is probably the best QB to play ever in the NFL yet he looked pedestrian AF on Sunday night against Baltimore because he was getting hit over & over & over again? Offensive line play dictates much of how the QB plays.
I saw graham over throw like 5 short pitches and catches Saturday. It’s the line and QB play. Graham still has promise but we won’t know till next year.
We didn't have an ACC pro-pass QB on the roster when Collins was hired and those guys aren't just waiting around to be added to your team. This isn't the NFL where you can trade for someone you like. Most good QBs want to go to a good situation; that was NOT going to be GT in 2019. Maybe Collins should have signed a grad transfer but (just my speculation) I think he knew this year was going to be a total rebuild so why waste a guy's last year on that. I expect he also wanted to give the QBs on the roster a chance so that they would lead and work with the rest of the team through the transition. Most of the decisions that Collins made were based on keeping the locker room together and having players work hard on and off the field.
As @daBuzz already said, I think OL is a much bigger issue. I think QB recruiting had actually trended up recently under CPJ, as Graham and Yates were going to be legit dual threats unlike what we've had the past couple years, and Oliver was an excellent running QB for the 3O. OL recruiting, on the other hand... It was already pretty poor, but losing Braun/Lee/Cooper was a huge blow. Just like it's too early to give up on CDP, IMO it's too early to give up on any of the QBs. They really don't have time to execute on many plays, and when they do, they get happy feet because they're so used to having to run for their lives.
The comparison to Wilson is interesting. For some reason, I've read a lot about Wilson - apparently, what makes him such a good quarterback isn't as much his physical skills as his mental skills. Wilson is a sponge - give him a playbook and he has it not just memorized but internalized in a remarkably short period of time. He studies a lot and seems to have that special ability to look up and know exactly where the holes in the defense will be. I hope that is what his coach was referring to when making the comparison.
Collins went after Jalen Hurts, Brandon Wimbush from Notre Dame and a few more but they obviously went elsewhere. I think he would have liked to have a 1 year stud QB but was only going to take a grad transfer if the guy was a clear stud who could ease the transition. As it is, even though we're paying the penalty of an inexperienced QB right now, it will probably help those guys in the long run that they were baptized by fire this year.
Graham seemed to lock in on Brown come hell or high water. Lucas came in and completed a pass to the TE and to Tobias. If Graham is going to be the man, he needs to go through his progressions if the line gives him time. Also, remember that the issue in the passing game is not just the OL and QB. Our WR's that have been in CPJ's system for a year plus weren't out there running route trees all practice.
Food for thought. Four quarterbacks who were recruited for a completely different skill set and who are all too young to master any offense are struggling behind a walkon OL during the first year of a major offensive overhaul, and we have fans who think they should be better than they are right now.
I'm always reminded of Peyton Manning in these situations. I know he didn't have the same "prototype QB" issues that Wilson has, but he also didn't have that strong of an arm coming out of college. His preparation and work ethic were really what set him apart. Again, you're talking the difference between "good pro" and "Hall of Fame" with Manning, not "borderline NFL" and "all-star".
