DougDew

Fixed it back to what I said. Thanks.

I don't mind rooting for wins, but its kind of a false season if we do well. A big asterisk because it was achieved with the backup. Just not the same feeling for me.

I'd wager that AR tests better than Mahomes, but AR does not have the escapability Mahomes does. AR actually looks a bit slower than what I thought he would look coming into the NFL. Bigger humans simply aren't as quick footed.

The difference between you and me on this is that I don't care how many games we win this year. Its all about the development of the franchise QB that we might have for 12 years. But winning is always more fun on Sunday's than losing. Let me ask you this, would you rather have AR play and develop but maybe we have a 7-10 season, or would you rather have a 10-7 season and Division title with Minshew playing and AR out for the year? (The option of a 10-7 season with AR is something I'm not asking)

I think a prolonged absence from playing this year hurts him. 8 weeks is beginning to cross that line, IMO. I would ideally want him to redshirt and be part of an NFL strength training program for a year before he exposes his body again, but I think he needs to play when he gets back. 4th overall picks need to play or else the contract situation gets foobarred, IMO.

Yes. learning from the bench is not the way to learn. He gets the mental part of the game pretty well by all accounts. He needs game interaction and speed to help his situational and improv decision making and throwing.

Its my understanding the test is about processing speed, not necessarily about analytical skills. Its not even a written test. A specific stimulus appears on the screen, and the student's reaction is timed and measured along with what decision was made. IOW, if a pass rusher is bearing down, how quickly does he see that and make the right throw. It was especially important for Stroud because there were questions about that with him coming out of OSU...he had such clean pockets and wide open receivers that he was rarely tested in game situations...outside of the UGA game. Young apparently tested well, but processing speed seems to be a problem with his play thus far. AR did very well in the test, and processing speed seems to be a strength of his game. Ever watch Magnum Force, where Clint Eastwood and "Hutch" have a shooting competition on a range? Make the right decisions quickly. There is value to the testing, but the test needs to be quality.

Wow, a post where I agree with everything you said. I would pump the brakes a bit on not calling running plays. That is a fundamental function of a dual threat QB. But I think most would prefer that their dual threat as a youngster evolves more into a simple scrambler to escape and extend the pass as the passing game improves. If he can survive the period where he has to use running plays to open up some passing threats, it looks like his passing acumen is great...just need consistent mechanics. That's something that PM practiced his entire career. Which is always a fun thing to do......

Yeah, if a person is not used to taking one particular kind of test, it can be a one-off environmental surprise thing. I think there is value to that kind of testing, but more things probably have to be understood about it.

Yeah, I thought it was common knowledge that Tepper was the force behind the Young pick and not Frank. IIRC, and its been a while, but CAR traded up to 1 long before they had to, and I thought that at the time of the trade the rumors that they were eyeing CJ Stroud with the pick. But then that wave of media love with Young sort of consumed all of the air out of the discussion and it became a given that CAR was going to take Young. Maybe Tepper was a source and caused the media to swing to Young, or maybe Tepper bought into the love of Young as a cute and cuddly personality for the franchise the media was selling and caused CAR to move to him. I don't recall the facts at the time though. I mean for never testing his physicality, Young sure didn't take much flak about it in terms of questioning his fitness to be number 1 over Stroud. I guess Stroud had that processing test hanging over him too by then.

Meh. Context. I think others' persistent and almost giddy usage of the word WRONG to immediately label his opinions over the years (when they merely disagree with the opinion) has earned him the capital to use the word RIGHT when its later shown he was.

The lack of an abundance of major college experience combined with college success via athleticism...then drafted in the top 5? Backed up by a QB that gets initially treated like an NFL cute pet? AR and Lance have that commonality.

I think Lenny would probably ask why were we down 23 and had not scored any points by then? Do you remember Lucks great comebacks...many of them were (in his case) throwing picks that got us in a hole to where he had to make a comeback. Not arguing your point, just pointing out that the glass is not always full with great comebacks in the NFL. Slow and steady sometimes gets you the win too.

Not wrong. At this point. The prognostication is a bit bold though.

He'll be top 10, provided he tests like he plays. Ballard will be in love with the TE room and won't grab this generational TE. Too bad.

Based on what? 1 game as a starter in a toilet bowl season? What is the feel good story, his brother and father passing? He has an equal or better college career than Bryce Young, for three straight years as a starter......look it up.......and that was the basis of him being drafted.

Most reports say that rookies greatly benefit from the NFLs weight and conditioning program (Raimann being a good example for the Colts). Who knows what ARs history was at Florida...only 13 starts with how much real football experience before that...seems like he was thrusted into the position because he was the best option. Before concluding that AR is injury prone, I'd like to see if there are any physical changes to him once he gets a full year of NFL strength training.

He'd be an easy scapegoat for the meddler. Not that CAR/Young couldn't benefit from a more modern offense.

AR could simply be built more fragile than Stroud, or any other QB you want to compare him to. With the relatively routine hits he's taken, I would say that his injuries are the result of something about his physiology at this point and not just three occurrences of bad luck. Weight training, strength training? A human body can be big and fast genetically, but not necessarily as tough as it needs to be to hold up to physical punishment without a lot of work. The running QB vs pocket passer doesn't really apply if you're talking about two differently constructed bodies (not saying that AR is fragile, but not saying he isn't either). If you compare apples to apples, then there is no doubt that the running QB is likely to get injured more than the pocket passer....especially with the rules that say tackling the passer by the legs is forbidden.

A GM doesn't act like a go-fer for his head coach, like goes shopping for him at the grocery store using a list. A GM has to have vision of his own. He AGREES with the HCs philosophy, which is why the HC was hired in the first place. Apparently, Ballard has changed his philosophy before Irsay fired him. Good for the Colts. Once they are all on the same page as to roster construction, the GM can look to his subordinates for evaluations of individual players.

The point is being misdirected to focus only on size. Young does not seem to possess any elite physical trait to make up for his lack of height. He's not particularly strong, not a rocket arm to throw the deep out, not NFL elite (but maybe college elite) footspeed and elusiveness, and I don't think he has elite accuracy. His height alone isn't the issue. The whole physical package is kinda meh-to-yuck.

I think his blocking grade pretty well too. Bowers, Ogletree and Mallory would be a great TE room. LOL.

Hopefully, Shane influenced Ballard on the Downs selection and will influence him again this coming offseason when it comes to receivers. Not speculating what Shane thinks about anybody, but I think Ballard and Frank saw things similarly when it came to the group and Shane might have a better take on it. Just saying that wherever the WR churning goes, I trust Ballard/Shane more than I trust Ballard/Frank.

Since you like to speculate (nothing wrong with that).....what has been ARs physical conditioning regiment over his high school and college career? Some kids work hard at it...because they have to...whereas AR seems to be a naturally gifted freak. The University of Florida football program is kind of a mess. Maybe more than the average college player entering the NFL..., AR needs more NFL professional/science strength conditioning and nutrition programs to keep his body together better. He's gotten injured on some fairly non violent hits and fumbled on another.

Luck basically needed shoulder reconstruction....major tears....and came back from that. I think this is a separation where the soft tissues are mainly in tact. I don't see it as a Luck situation at this point.