Zach was named the starter over Flacco going into the season so at least at some point not long ago, this CS believed Zach was playing better football than Joe. Credit to Joe, he bounced back well on Sunday after a poor performance in Week 1 and had a solid game with a great finish in Week 2. Maybe Zach would've played better these first 2 weeks, maybe he would've played worse, we'll never know. Like you said though, we need to see Zach turn his potential into results. The best way to know if he can do that is to get him on the field.
Mentally ready?? He started most of last year, wtf mental would he not be ready for? If he’s not mentally ready to play football then he’s not our QB, period. How much do we need to baby this kid?? These days the cream rises to the top quickly. Every great young QB in the league today availed their greatness after 2 years. Every crappy one had questions after 2 years. Some guys go on to have a decent mediocre career, but not one young guy out there today that’s dominating at his position still had questions after 2 years in the league. Zach needs to be on the field from the moment the doctors clear him, and they need to throw his ass to the wolves with a full playbook and a full expectation of greatness. Either he melts under pressure or forges himself into a great QB. Pussyfooting him into the next Mitch Trubisky or Daniel Jones is not gonna cut it
I wonder sometimes. Did you ever play a sport in your life? When he says mentally ready he means from the injury. The hardest part of coming back from an injury is trusting it. Joe Burrow even talked about it coming back from his ACL. I am not going into the rest of your untrue dribble.
I’m sure you were a superstar for Polk High scoring 4 TD’s against Spare Tire Nixon, so I can see why you’re the expert on mental preparedness. Me personally I prefer my football players to be tough. Sure he’ll be a little nervous to take his first hit, but if you’re physically healthy you get your ass on that field and take the hit and get it over with. What kind of mental preparedness do you give to a guy you’re exclaiming might be afraid to play because he might get hurt? What is he a toddler? Is the Knee healthy? Get the fuck on the field and play for the millions you’re paid to play for.
Let's be real, Zach was named the starter because Flacco's old, and we took Zach with the second pick last year. Not because Zach played better. Regardless, he definitely needs to start when healthy, and no more excuses for him.
You have no clue what mentally ready means. Zach feeling 100% and the medical staff clearing him to play are night and day different. If the player does not feel 100% in his motion irrespective of what the medical staff clears, he aint ready . If the CS is noticing him favoring one knee, tailoring plays to protect it, not using his full repertoire to avoid getting reinjured. He aint ready. It has fuck all to do with fear and pussy footness and every thing to do with wanting to contribute in the game right away , even when less than 100%. So throwing him to the wolfs under those conditions is utter BS to satisfy some fan need for instant "show me now" crap. The CS is evaluating that aspect of the game as we speak, and both Saleh and MLF had said that much, something that is worked with all pro athletes. Anyone that knows two shits about this game know is the mental readiness is the tougher of the two to rehab. The kid is barely over his first season for Pete's sake. The bold BTW is such a global, incorrect self servient of a statement as very few have achieved greatness after two years with no question marks, in fact even for Josh was year three that made him FQB. But that topic was discussed at nausea else where, and if you follow that thinking Pittsburgh among many teams would have missed winning three SBs.
But it wasn't just the coaching staff who said Zach looked good-great this offseason. Go back to the Training Camp thread if you need confirmation but literally everybody on the beat who saw the team practice during the offseason and TC said he was the better QB.
That is an assumption. If the call is coming from above them then Joe could have lit it up and the Wood is like no...we gotta sell some Jerseys. I won't put it passed them.
Some players cut their fingers off to get back on the field, others need mommy’s hugs and love I guess. Unfortunately it seems Zach needs hugs. And I didn’t say superstars in year 2, I said they clearly showed they were going to be superstars. Mahomes, Burrow, Murray, Prescott, R Wilson, Herbert, Jackson, Watson…. All had no questions whatsoever after 2 years that they were worthy of being a long term top tier QB. They may not have been elite yet, but they were obviously and unquestionably the long term solution. Guys like Trubisky, Jones, Goff, Tannehill, Winston, Hurts, Carr, Mariota…. All still had questions after their 2nd year. Baker Mayfield and Wentz are the only QB’s I can recently recall having a solid year 2 that was enough to say he’s the guy that didn’t actually pan out. Conversely I can’t find one QB in the last 10-15 years that blatantly sucked or showed very little in their first 2 years that went on to be a franchise guy.
actually yes I was, had two major injuries. One was a complete reconstruction of my right ankle with a completely severed Achilles tendon. The other was a neck injury that ultimately resulted in 3 discs being fused. I was itching to play after both healed. Fear of re-injury wasn’t even a thought in my mind.
Murray is still questionable, I live in Dallas and Dak has non stopped been questioned, Burrow has already come back down to earth, Russell WIlson was carried by a stacked team his first two years and came along gradually, Jackson is just a Unique player but as far as a passer he is just starting to come into his own.
It is not a fear it is trusting the knee will hold up. Zach might already be past it we don't know. You are missing the point,
The point was if Zach’s doctors say his knee is medically as stable as it was pre-injury, or medically stable as it’s ever going to be and good enough to clear him to play then his ass better be on the field. I don’t care how scared he might be.
I didn’t think my HS days were relevant either, but Mr Polk High superstar apparently felt his HS superstardom makes him more of an expert on NFL mental toughness, at least enough so to double down on his insistence I’ve “never played sports man, you don’t know how it is in the trenches man”
So your point is 3 players that had solid second seasons didn’t actually pan out into superstars. Ok I’ll give you that. Come back when you find one that’s had 2 shitty/questionable years that went on to be a franchise QB. Hence why I said that Zach needs to play, and if he’s still shitty and questionable at the end of this season we need to move on. What I don’t subscribe to is the idea we have to continue with Flacco when Zach’s knee is healthy because Zach is mentally scared of reinjury. He can be scared all he wants, he better get out on that field and toughen up.
Sure. Let's just dismiss the fact that Zach was playing almost exclusively with the 1's pre-injury. And the fact that Saleh literally just 2 days ago said that Zach is this team's starting QB when he's healthy. And the fact that this CS is now 5-14 in 19 games so they have every reason to continue winning games. But you’re probably right, Woody told Saleh and JD to name Zach the starter to sell more jerseys. Definitely a much more logical assumption.
See, this is different. If he has discomfort or is not 100%, then you do sit him. I think most fans would agree. I remember when he came back last year he said his knee did not feel right or stable, which was concerning to me, but I guess that is just the feeling a player gets sometimes with that injury. Hopefully the surgery will make him feel even better when he returns this time. If he is cleared by doctors and feels good enough, he should play. If Flacco plays amazing Sunday, maybe you revisit the situation Monday, but if not, it should be Zach. I do remember (I want to say it was 2003) when Chad Pennington came back from his wrist injury, Vinny Testaverde got the start in Philadelphia. Then Chad entered in the middle of the game. Not sure why Herm Edwards did that still. You could do that in theory, if Joe Flacco is amazing on Sunday. Week 4 he could start with Zach Wilson as the back-up. Just doesn't make much sense though. If Zach is ready, let him roll!
