Franchise QB Joe Flacco? When you were were watching film on him, it was against James Madison? I love how Clemens has a tough 7 games, against real NFL D's with a James Madison OL.
A question that nobody has addressed about Flacco: The guy didn't start at Delaware but transferred from Pittsburgh. IMHO there are several questions about his competitiveness and ability to compete against DI, let alone NFL, players. The Senior Bowl will make or break him as far as I'm concerned. A bad Senior Bowl week will doom his draft stock.
To be fair, we really have no idea what the Jets are planning on doing yet with Clemens. This was just his first year as a starter, we'll have to wait and see what they do this off-season to tell how they feel about him. If Pennington returns with an equal opportunity of winning the job, and they don't rebuild the offense around Clemens' strengths, then I would have to agree with you.
Beli had Brady on the bench while he played Bledsoe. Wannstedt made a huge miscalculation by telling Flacco he'd never start at Pitt and Flacco made sure there was no doubt about it. I'm not sure how you can question his competitiveness because he obviously wasn't satisfied with sitting on the bench. He wanted to play and he did what he had to do to make it happen. Questioning his ability to play in division 1 is fair game of course, but at this point it's really about who can make it in the NFL, and there's no QB in this draft thats a lock. I agree with you about the Senior Bowl though. I think thats really the case for all QB's in this draft though...it's thin at the position. It's not the end all be all but it will go a long way in deciding how deep in the draft he'll be available.
Listen, I attend the University of Delaware and have seen Flacco in every game in his senior season. In a nutshell the guy is a stud. His arm strength is absolutley out of this world. he throws the ball harder than pennington and clemens combined. He enormous and rarely ever gets sacked even when there is pressure. In my opinion he is much better than Tyler Palko at Pitt, and if given the chance he would've been a star there. He was a Division 1 player playing with a lot of D1-AA players who couldn't catch his balls or play to his powerful style. The Jets haven't had a quarterback with strength like this guy in a while.....
Take a look at the drive at the end of the first half against Dallas. That was the setup to the run against arguably the second best team in the league on their home field. I don't say Eli is a great QB but he is far more than a skilled game manager he is a threat on the field against any team in the league on any down and distance play. If you like the game manager who losses in Dallas by 2 TD's or in Green Bay by a TD than Eli's not your guy.
He's projected as a 2nd or 3rd rounder. He certainly seems to have good potential but he also appears to be a project who would be at least two years away from being ready to play. Canon arm, quick release but a strangely compact throwing motion that has him cocking and releasing near ear level which significantly diminishes his 6'6'' height advantage. Not quite as low a release point as Bernie Kosar but close.
The last thing we need to go shopping for right now is a franchise QB. We need an offensive line and defensive line first, but even more emphasis on the offensive line. Guys, remember, Eli Manning was looking like a semi-bust for awhile and now he is going to the superbowl. Clemens from a skill point of view, is every bit the QB that Eli Manning is. Going QB shopping now, is just a knee-jerk reaction and will waste a draft pick.
Eli's first season as a starter was comparable to Clemens. 9 games, more ints thens TD's, poor accuracy, and even less yards. His next season, aside of his completion percentage, was pretty good statistically. Much better then anything we've had here in years. The Giants were forced to commit to Eli though, because of how much they gave up just to get him. They made a major commitment to him and it's payed off now. I don't get that same feeling with Clemens. Maybe it's just Mangini's style of coaching that keeps him from making a commitment, but it invites speculation that he wasn't really impressed. We need to fix both lines in a bad way, but what good will it be if we do that and have an average QB throwing the ball for us. I don't think there's ever really a bad time to look for a franchise QB if you don't already have a shore fire one on your roster. Mangini is in a tight spot this season imo. He needs good results and he has to decide which one of these two can get him there. Would shipping out Pennington and bringing in a 3rd round QB for an open competition buy him another season in green? Dunno, but most of us will at least agree that Pennington does not look to be the answer. Why not increase the odds of finding the guy that is?
The only reason i see him as a Jet is because in almost every piece of vid he's running for his life! :lol: psssst, Nagel had a gun too :wink:
I agree with everything you said, except shopping for a franchise QB. I am not saying that it may not be necessary, but I don't think Clemens has had a fair playing field to be judged upon. Plus, it is quite obvious that we are not going to get all the aspects of this team fixed in this off-season. There is just too much to fill. Let's accomplish at least one thing in FA and that is fix our offensive line to the point where at least it would be acknowledged that we have vastly improved going into camp. Let's give Clemens next year to show us what he has. After that, no matter what happens, we will know exactly what we have. At that point, if we have to go out and sign FA QB or draft a high ranking QB then so be it. Frankly, I do not think that will be the case.
If Clemens is comparable to Eli Manning, we're in big trouble. Eli has had an excellent playoffs, but it's because of the defense and running game that the Giants are even in the playoffs. Most teams with qb's who throw 20 picks are playing golf right now. I wouldn't really count on Eli long term. He's had a pretty good playoffs. He hasn't exactly been a world beater. He stepped up in Green Bay and he's been excellent in the playoffs, but he had his worst statistical regular season as a pro. Part of what's made him successful has been a simplified scheme and an emphasis on the running game. It will be interesting to see what he can do against New England the second time around. People talk about his subdued manner but he seems to be a guy whose emotions can overwhelm his ability to throw an accurate ball and make good decisions in the pocket. In other words, I don't think we've seen the last of "skittish" Eli. -X-
In other wods, Eli has had a good supporting cast this year. This is the same argument that can be made for both Clemens and Chad; they have completely lacked a supporting cast in 2007 and were lucky they didn't find themselves wearing one.
Clemens sucked this year, yes. However, he came into a very rough situation this year. The team was awful and had nothing to play for. He was playing behind a terrible Oline. He was backed up by a very average running game. His best WR was hobbled for most of the season. And he is 7 games into his career. He was a highly touted QB in college coming out of a major program. I'm not guaranteeing greatness, but he at least deserves a year or two so that he can prove he belongs here. I doubt we will be spending any more high picks on quarterbacks in this upcoming draft.
I don't necessarily disagree that he should be given a chance to win the starting job against Pennington. But I'd also like to consider using a mid-mid high draft pick on a QB just in case. Personally I really like what I have seen of Flacco and think that he could be our starter in 2009 if what I have seen of Clemens is true.
Just watch Flacco and not the result of the play. Watch him set up and throw. Watch him command the pocket. Notice the bounce he has in the pocket? Watch his mobility and quick release. Where are his eyes when he has the rush in his face? Always looking downfield. He has the tools. It doesn't matter what his competition was. Do you know where Steve McNair went to school? Ben Roethlisberger?
