I must be an absolute introverted loner c*nt as that kind of thing would fill me with utter dread if I was asked top do it, don't get me wrong I loved team sports etc but no way on earth would I get up and do that stuff in front of folk lol
I know it’s silly to get caught up in things like intangibles and hustle, but I honestly can’t get that play where Fields ran half the field to lay down a vicious block for the receiver to score a TD out of my head. It just makes me feel like this dude just loves football and winning, and if he somehow becomes the “steal of the draft” and a top NFL QB someday, I am going to be mad for not trusting my gut more.
Very interesting, thanks! I checked out the link to his Football Unlocked page and read his analysis of the 2020 QB draft class which was also very interesting: https://footballunlocked.com/2020/04/20/football-unlocked-nfl-2020-draft-qb-board/ It's a long read, but worth it. I'll note three things that jumped out at me: 1. He's very emphatic that many (most?) QBs need to have a system built around them to succeed - even Brady had this. Only a very, very, few truly elite QBs can go into any system and succeed. He called out Gase in particular, along with Nagy as HCs who have stubbornly failed to adapt their systems to their QBs. 2. He was very high on James Morgan - higher than Herbert, and said (then) he would be surprised if Morgan lasted until the 2nd round. Maybe Douglas does know QB talent after all. 3. He's still high on Darnold, even rating him higher than Burrows (then). I'm not saying he's infallible, but his system for analyzing QBs has a lot of common sense and seems to account for the "intangibles" better than others I've read. I'm looking forward to his take on the 2021 QB class.
So, in short, why was TL not generational, you mentioned all the other things bar the important question lol
We can watch all of the tape we want. Analyze as much as we want. Sometimes stuff in life is just obvious. Justin Fields stepped up and played lights out in the most important game of the college football season (until next week) against really tough competition too. It reminded me of the Burrow and Watson deniers. You watched them play and they were great in big moments. Now they do similar things in Cincinnati and Houston. Lawrence already proved he is a big game player. Fields just showed he is too. They will go #1 and #2 in the draft and rightfully so.
Well watch the video, he says it much more clearly than I can, but I'll try to summarize it. Lawrence is very good in a lot of areas, but he's really not elite in any. This was something I more sensed than could quantify in tape I've watched of him before, but if you go back and watch that film you'll see that he was never called upon to be elite. At the time I just chalked that up to: "Well he's certainly elite - everyone says so - he just doesn't have to display it because of the competition and the talent around him". But watching him last night confirmed my doubts. Yes, he's very good. And IMO better than Darnold - or more specifically, has a higher ceiling than Sam, And I wouldn't be unhappy if the Jets took him, but he's going to have to sit and learn and get used to the NFL speed. Last night again, he was very good...but he needed to be great and he wasn't. Fields showed he's the better QB IMO. Now TBF, this analyst doesn't much like Fields either - he's a big Wilson fan. But I'd love to hear his comments about Fields after last night. Maybe he wouldn't change his mind, but to his credit he has changed hi mind about other QBs he mis-evaluated in the past, and I suspect he might be revising his opinion on Fields now. In any case, I don't rely on just one source, That said, after reading the ling to his website I will give him a lot of credence.
Another thing I want to mention is there is an importance of one game. Especially for Justin Fields. Scouts, NFL Draft analysts, etc all had him at the #2 pick for most of the year. He looked good, but never did anything to "Wow" me or see why he was #2 pick worthy. Then Zach Wilson has a nice season and bowl game and some people jumped him to #2. Fields then countered with a game showing why all those people said he was the second best QB in the draft. He outplayed the guy who is considered the #1 QB in the draft. So one game can really be a big deal, and in this case, it was.
Yes, again, look past the stats of one game - what this one game revealed was a great will to win. Very few analysts even bother to mention this trait, if they even consider it at all, and yet I think it's one of the most consistent traits of great QBs. Fields displayed it last night. Maybe for the first time he had to in his college career. But it's there. He and OSU may lose to Alabama, but I'll be very surprised if Fields doesn't play well.
Fields was amazing last night, he looked like the better QB between him and Lawrence. He's not... What this shows me is its more important to build the team before the QB. A good team effort > a great QB, trade down and aquire more draft capital. Build a team that can compete than get the QB. See if Darnold (or Morgan) can be that guy if not pull a Denver (Manning), Tennessee (Tannehill), Indianapolis (Rivers), Minnesota (Favre), Tampa (Brady) not all teams win games with QBs that are drafted top 10, as a matter of fact most aren't. Build a team that can win first then find the final piece in the puzzle rather than expect one player to carry you. Lawrence couldn't last night, and he's supposed to be a generational talent.
In addition to that, I don't think Sam needs to play next year if he hopes to resurrect his career and reach his potential. He won't have the time to fix all that's wrong with him. He probably needs a new situation, and a lot of time and focused work on his issues. IMO bringing Sam back is either out of sentimentality/emotion, pie-in-the-sky thinking, or says that you don't give a damn about him or the team's record next season, because at best he likely will only be marginally improved, if that. If Sam and the team struggles again next season, the fanbase may go into full riot mode.
This is a good point. However, with the cap space, and draft picks the Jets have, plus the hope that they will no longer be drafting Top 10 in the future, I think they have the ability to go QB #2 overall this year. If Douglas goes the route you just said, and feels Sewell or Chase or one of those guys is a better piece than Fields, I would get it. It is risky though. Possibly too risky. I think I would rather be wrong and pick Fields and he is just okay, than pass on him and he is elite. Have to factor Zach Wilson into it too. Joe Douglas has a lot on his plate this off-season!
They are not mutually exclusive though. And Lawrence proved your point to be incorrect last year against Ohio State when they were down 16-0, their receivers were getting bullied by Ohio State corners all game long, and they were literally on the verge of losing in a similar blowout that we saw last night. We have plenty of assets to pick a big time QB at 2 and still build the team around him. I don't think Najee Harris will be there. But you can sign a receiver and possibly go Fields/Harris/IOL and your offense has been completely rebuilt while retaining Crowder and building on what McGovern/Becton have done this year. Then add a ton of defenders in the mid rounds.
How does it show you that? Fields and the OSU players all came in roughly within a year or so of each other. In college you recruit players, you don't draft them. In the NFL you don't get to recruit players. IMO you analyzed that totally incorrectly. Great QB prospects don't come along every day, and even when they do, you most likely won't have the opportunity to get them. QB is THE most important position and the hardest to fill adequately. Look around the NFL at all the bad QB play and all the teams searching for a FQB. The very reason so many bad QBs are able to hang on and make long careers bouncing from team to team is because there are so few QBs. Once you get the QB, you can build around him. It helps if you have some other pieces in place and he isn't the only good player on the team, but it isn't necessary. You get the QB, you can trade older vets to clear cap space, and if need be, to protect him from getting pounded, you can sit the QB for a season or two while you build the OL and get him some weapons. Conversely, the better the team, the better its W-L record, the lower it drafts, and the chances that it is in position to draft a FQB or even trade up for one is greatly diminished. Usually a team that needs a QB isn't going to trade down and pass up on a potential FQB. Teams that have a FQB rarely are in position to be drafting high enough to trade down, but when they are, they demand a haul in return. If you give up that haul then you have a very short window to win, because you'll have no high draft picks to upgrade the roster any further for the next 2-3 years or longer. Your team will probably get worse because you won't be able to replace older vets, because you don't have the necessary draft picks, so you have keep them and overpay them, or overpay for some FA vet to come in.
We could certainly trade down, only to realize that Sam isn't the answer and we need to trade back up for a QB. It's a wash. Take the QB and be done with it. The Jets can have up to 5 picks in the top 100 depending on where Seattle finishes and what they can get for Sam (probably not more than a 4th but you never know). They also have 72M in cap with 44 players under contract, now that, is a lot of money. They need another receiver opposite Mims. They could probably get two if they want to take Bateman and sign someone in FA like Golladay, who might come for less money because he had a rough year. The Jets desperately need a LG and an edge rusher to clean up for their nasty interior DL. Those are all things they could accomplish this year.
Yeah, I heard him on another football forum, maybe reddit? But he had Mahomes #1 in 2017 and he liked Lamar Jackson in 2018. He called Rosen and Haskins busts before their drafts. People don't want to hear it but he thinks Sam will look much better without Gase.
Absolutely. The longer we wait to add a quarterback and develop him, the further away we are from being a team that contends for a playoff spot every year. We're obviously going to be better next year with a new head coach and the solid draft class entering their second season along with adding more talent. The Jets were better than 2-13 this year at fuller strength, better coaching, not playing Frank Gore 50 snaps a game, etc. Not to say we weren't still a bad team and talent deficient but we should be in the 6-7 win range as long as Gase is gone and we don't hire a jackass. I don't get people who want to build the team up first when we already have some young pieces on offense albeit some being unproven. It's not like you build a championship roster, insert a rookie QB and then poof you go to the playoffs every year. Do what the Bills did. Get the QB and build around him.
Everyone will look better without Gase. This team will most likely win Sunday so that's 3 wins. They should have beaten the Raiders and NE on MNF, that's 5. I don't believe the Jets are that far off, if they do things right.
