I just wanted to know your guys opionions on the top 3 QBs in this years draft. Im thinking more and more if the raiders were going to take a QB and they could pick between Young and Cutler they might try Cutler because they are a big play offense and Cutler has the arm for it.
Al Davis made it public that he likes Vince Young and could see him playing in Oakland next year. So I think if they had to choose between the two they'll take Young. Right now I still think the Titans and Jets and Radiers are all taking QB's in round 1. It's just a matter of where.
When I evaluate NFL QBs, I do so with these questions: 1.Can he make ALL the NFL throws? in other words, can he throw the deep out, can he dig it at 18 yards, can he air out the go, is his slant accurate enough to facilitate YAK, can he threaten the seam....its the 1st question I ask, but not the most important question....I ask it 1st, because I want to know if were dealing with a truely special thrower to start....the league is full of successful QBs, where the answer would be no....Brady is the 1st that comes to mind, he cant make all the throws, but he makes enough that the other factors minimize the drawback.... 2.Does he understand defensive sets? this might be the most important....if a QB doesnt understand what a defense is trying to accomplish, he cant exploit it....Akili Smith is a good example of a QB that would get a yes to question number 1 and a no to number 2, and therefore, couldnt play in the league 3.Next is a 2 parter....Has he been a winner? Is he a winner?....has he been isnt as important as is he....a lot of QBs have been winners in the college lvl because they have exceptoinal teammates around them, and they are winners, but that doesnt mean the have the skills to play QB in the league....I want a guy thats been a winner, but more importantly, I want a guy that is a winner.... 4.Does he have IT? IT is the moxie to get in the face of a 10 year vet that just took a play off and tell him to get with it, or get out of the game....some guys clearly have IT....Favre is the best example I know if today,having no problem getting in your face if he doesnt like your effort. Manning and Brady have the same moxie. McNabb does not. 5.Will the league change him? This is where stars become busts....Fame, Fortune, and Females....a million people with a million agendas tugging on you in every directions. If a guy cant handle that, hes going to implode(Ryan Leaf)....is a guy likely to be content once hes set for life financially? it does happen in the league.... Based on these questions, I think you can get a pretty good profile of future potential, heres how the top-3 QBs rate to me.... Lineart.... 1.Can he make all the throws? No....not by a long shot....he has average arm strength for an NFL QB....no way the deep out is even an option... 2.Does he understand defensive sets? Yes. Better than most QBs coming into the draft. This might be his best asset. 3.Has he been a winner? Is he a winner? Yes. Hes been as big a winner as anyone could ever hope for in college....clearly hes a winner.... 4.Does he have IT? I dont know. I didnt see him get in a lot of peoples faces at USC, but he didnt have too, they out talented 90% of the teams they played. I think this is a question mark. 5.Will the leauge change him? I doubt it....hes already a major celebrity in the countries 2nd largest media market....if he can handle that, Im sure he can handle whats coming.... Young.... 1.Can he make the throws? Maybe....we really havent seen him do it, but he does flick the ball effortlessly, and he does but tremendous spiral on the football, usually an indication that velocity and accuracy are possible....At this point Id say no, but he could....I wish he had thrown at the combine, so I could answer this question 2.Does he understand defensive sets? Id guessing he doesnt....he didnt play in a sophisticated offense at Texas, he was allowed to freelance most of the time and his test scores have been below avg....before the draft, potential teams will bring him in and send him to the blackboard with a piece of chalk....teams that dont like his preformance there, may pass on him....if he starts to free fall in the draft, this would be the reason why... 3.Has he been a winner? Is he a winner. Yes to both....he won it all on a team that had inferior talent(to USC), and he carried them in the title game. This might be his best area. 4.Does he have IT? Once again, I dont know....I havent seen IT, but Ive only seen him a few times....dancing in the huddle of the title game, a few minutes before taking over and winning the game certainly seems like IT..... 5.Will the league change him? I suspect it will....this is the area he scares me the most....but falling a few picks in the draft could previde the exact motivation he needs to avoid this.... Cutler.... 1.Can he make all the throws? No, but he can make more than the others....I worry about his short range accuracy....hes got the cannon, but Im not sure he can always aim it and the more he gets hit, the more unorthodox his mechanics become.... 2.Does he understand defensive sets? This remains to be seen. He played well in a high talent conference and thats a plus, but he didnt put up the numbers the others did and he didnt exploit defenses like they did. Of course he didnt have teh talent around him to do much. 3.Has he been a winner? Is he a winner? No and Yes. He had a losing record at Vandy, but won some games they had no business winning. 4.Does he have IT? Tough to say, but I think he does. At the combine, he choose to lift when he didnt have too(and outlifted all the RBs except 1)....then he choose to throw when he didnt have too(and threw it well)....I think of him as an "Uncle Rico" type player, betting you that he could throw this football over the mountains....hes not afraid to compete, and I would expect hes not afraid to get in someones face....I think this is his strongest quality.... 5.Will the league change him? Maybe....hes going to be more famous and rich than he would have ever thought when only Vandy offered him a D1 scholorship....he played in major confernce, but in a small market....hes faced down 100k people in Knoxville, and he wont face anything more hostile than that on the field in the pros, but its not the same....I worry about this more with him than the others..... All in all, Id say that Lineart has the highest floor, followed by Cutler and then Young, but it reverses when you talk about ceiling....Lineart is the safest, Young is the riskiest, and Cutler is in between on both....you could win big with Leinart but the other 2 are very intruiging....Id take Cutler 1st, Leinart 2nd, Young 3rd....
