Bortles had Fournette - that's the difference a stud RB can make. Now just having that SRB doesn't mean you'll win, and even if you do, if that's all you have you're not winning the SB, but it sure does make things easier for whatever QB you have. I want the Jets to take a QB at 6 if he's one of the op rated ones, but none are available then, and Barkley is, they need to pounce. Whoever they then have as a QB this year will have a much easier time of it. A mediocre QB and a RB by committee isn't going to do squat.
Some of you guys are missing the point. The point is that having a "franchise QB" gives you a much better chance to consistently field a competitively viable team that can actually contend for a championship. Starting QBs of the NFC Playoff teams - Carson Wentz, Case Keenum, Jared Goff, Drew Brees, Cam Newton, Matt Ryan. Starting QBs of the AFC Playoff teams - Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger, Blake Bortles, Alex Smith (debatable), Marcus Mariota, Tyrod Taylor. All of the bolded guys (8 out of 12 playoff QBs) are either well established franchise QBs OR look like they have a great chance to be. (Also, I could have easily included Alex Smith and Keenum is only 29). Making the playoffs (and possibly winning your division) is the first requisite step when competing for a championship. i.e. An anecdotal argument based on the final 4 QBs from one playoff season is hardly convincing or particularly relevant.
Maybe having an elite QB is not necessary to win consistently but you can't keep running bad young QB's and journeymen at the end of their career out there and expect to win anything. The only team in the NFL in recent years that managed to be consistently good and won a Super Bowl with that strategy was The Ravens from 1999 to 2006 or so and even with all their excellent drafting on defense they had to find a consistent QB to win the second Super Bowl.
Well, I don't recall ANYONE (and I do believe I am representing all of the posters on this board?) saying that the only thing we need is a franchise QB? Anyone that truly thinks that is simply not knowledgeable enough of what it takes to make a team.
I don't think a FQB will do anything for the Jets unless Bowles is gone. You have to have balance in your organization also. A good GM that can recognize your weakness and address them insted of just grabbing guys cause they are the highest on your board. Once you get the talent you need to develop it. Just drafting a player and doing nothing with him is a waste. Plus you also have to match up an offensive philiosphy with whatever QB you are drafting. Ok we draft a QB this year and next year Bowles and Macc are gone cause the Jets stink it up again this year. Now the new QB will be on his 2nd system and Hack will be on his 3rd. That is why they should have canned Bowles at least and installed the system the new coach (hopefully a offensive guy) would run. I could deal with Macc longer and he should be able to hire his own coach, instead of being tied to Bowles.
I don't think a FQB will do anything for the Jets unless Bowles is gone. You have to have balance in your organization also. A good GM that can recognize your weakness and address them insted of just grabbing guys cause they are the highest on your board. Once you get the talent you need to develop it. Just drafting a player and doing nothing with him is a waste. Plus you also have to match up an offensive philiosphy with whatever QB you are drafting. Ok we draft a QB this year and next year Bowles and Macc are gone cause the Jets stink it up again this year. Now the new QB will be on his 2nd system and Hack will be on his 3rd. That is why they should have canned Bowles at least and installed the system the new coach (hopefully a offensive guy) would run. I could deal with Macc longer and he should be able to hire his own coach, instead of being tied to Bowles.
We need a QB who can run an offense and not turn the ball over. If that's an Alex Smith, fine. If that's Kirk Cousins, fine. But we still NEED one.
What do you mean by Franchise QB anyway? Round 1 picks? I find that criteria pretty iffy here. Brees and Wilson don't qualify if that's the rule. If [any] franchise QB qualifies, then you are missing out whopping 8 rings from Niners/Cowboys dynasty. [Yes - EIGHT. You heard me right. EIGHT.] What's more - it doesn't look like you are only referring to the QBs of late eigher. [Elway and Marino reference tells me so.] And also remember that this is [just top of my head] argument. [If I had to look, I'd find more.] Why don't you think on this a bit more, look up some more facts then spew it out? It looks less than half-baked to me. P.S. The Cheater(TM) is the beneficiary of today's NFL rule change. If he were to play in the 80's - I don't think he would survive as long as he did. [Which makes Joe the ultimate GOAT for me. But then - the football was football back then.]
The NFL is a wild and crazy league, but this is not the norm. This season, in particular this postseason, has been a strange one indeed. Very good to great defense and a very good ground attack will win games in January. See the 2009 and 2010 Jets. The 2000 Ravens. The 2002 Bucs. The 1985 Bears. And so on and so forth. However, more often than not, teams do not win championships without a franchise QB and likely, New England wins this year anyway. That said, the Jets have nothing close to an elite defense or ground game, so don't get your hopes up... that and the NFL will be completely different next year, as it is every year.
Nah, it's just a unique year. A lot of the"franchise QBs' were simply hurt. (Aaron Rodgers, Andrew Luck, Carson Wentz, DeShaun Watson). Lets be real, Green Bay might easily be playing Sunday if Rodgers didn't get hurt and Jacksonville probably doesn't even win the AFC South to be in this position if Luck & Watson were healthy all year.
I have to nitpick, though I'm not arguing Watson isn't a franchise QB, I am not putting Watson, after only 7 NFL games, in the same conversation as the aforementioned. Also, Hopkins had a ridiculous season. It's clear he is getting open and pretty much any bum QB can hit him.
Sure, but elite QBs are franchise QBs (most of their career). I also think this is the crux of the argument around here. It's similar to the Bortles situation in Jax. Bortles has been a franchise QB but certainly not an elite one. What happens if Jax wins the SB? Their fans will still want a more competent QB.
I'm not really tryin to say Watson is either. I included him because he was a season ending injury and I don't think Blake Bortles is in the AFCCG if they had to contend with a healthy Houston Texans down the stretch. It is possible Jacksonville would not even be in the playoffs