Merill Hoge on Gabbert and Newton (1 Viewer)

Analyst thinks Blaine Gabbert and Cam Newton not what Arizona Cardinals need

By Greg Esposito/Arizona Sports

Published: March 31, 2011 @ 8:33am

If you think the Arizona Cardinals should draft Blaine Gabbert or Cam Newton with the No. 5 overall pick in this year's NFL draft, you might want to think again. That is if you put much stock into what ESPN NFL analyst Merril Hoge has to say.

Hoge isn't exactly what you'd call a fan of either player and he isn't afraid to voice his disdain for their games.

"If [blaine Gabbert] goes in the top 10 I think he's going to be a bust," he told Sports 620 KTAR's Gambo and Ash Thursday.

He didn't pull any punches when it came to Newton either.

"When you look at Cam Newton on a scale from one to 10 as far as athleticism he may be a 12," he proclaimed. "When you look at him as a quarterback he probably pushing around a four."

While he has obvious issues with both quarterbacks, it is for different reasons.

The analyst thinks that Gabbert lacks pocket presence which will hurt him in the NFL.

"I watched his pocket presence. I don't believe he has any," he told the hosts. "I watch him and I see if his first guy isn't there he's running. Someone said that's how he was trained there. That makes it an even bigger negative for me. Somebody who gets him has to break that massive habit they've established."

Accuracy is the knock Hoge has on Newton.

"Donovan [McNabb] would be a Kurt Warner compared to Cam Newton as far as accuracy goes."

"The only word I can use after watching four games is atrocious," he said. "You never know where that ball will end up. In fact, he was more of a runner than he ever was a passer."

If those comments aren't enough to sour you on the thought of either being drafted and thrown right into the mix for the starting job, how about this. Hoge feels both players need to sit for at least two years and require a strong defense and running game to be successful. All things Ken Whisenhunt and the Cards can't offer a quarterback.

The team needs a solid young quarterback that can solidify the position not only in the future but right now. If you trust Hoge then Gabbert and Newton aren't that guy. The question then becomes, who is?

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'Steed said:

Hoge got a lot of flack for poopooing Vince Young, especially after his hot rookie year. Turns out he was prophetic.

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'GroveDiesel said:

I heard that some were comparing Gabbert to Trent Edwards. That's not a good thing. And if the knock on Gabbert is that he has no pocket presence, then I can see where they're coming from. I still think Edwards could be a decent QB if he had pocket presence and wasn't afraid to throw downfield. But if you don't have pocket presence in the NFL, you're not going to last long.

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'GroveDiesel said:

I heard that some were comparing Gabbert to Trent Edwards. That's not a good thing. And if the knock on Gabbert is that he has no pocket presence, then I can see where they're coming from. I still think Edwards could be a decent QB if he had pocket presence and wasn't afraid to throw downfield. But if you don't have pocket presence in the NFL, you're not going to last long.

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'Warpig said:

'GroveDiesel said:

I heard that some were comparing Gabbert to Trent Edwards. That's not a good thing. And if the knock on Gabbert is that he has no pocket presence, then I can see where they're coming from. I still think Edwards could be a decent QB if he had pocket presence and wasn't afraid to throw downfield. But if you don't have pocket presence in the NFL, you're not going to last long.

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Someone also compared Christian Ponder to Trent Edwards. Trent seems to be fresh in everyone's minds lately...maybe he should take advantage and demand to be a starter.

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'Jason Wood said:

So ultimately I think Hoge's thoughts on these two QBs are not without merit, but whether you give them real weight or not is probably going to come down to whether you've generally agreed with Hoge or not in the past.

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'Jason Wood said:

My only problem with pointing out a "look what Pundit X said" is that every pundit, almost by definition, can be made to look awful or sage. Kiper has had calls that worked out perfectly, and he's had calls that have looked ridiculous in retrospect. Same for Joel B (RIP), Mayock, or any other draft analyst you want to dig up. And let's extend that to NFL GMs and personnel executives. If we could go back and review all their official draft boards, we would see a LOT of rankings that appear way off the mark in retrospect. So ultimately I think Hoge's thoughts on these two QBs are not without merit, but whether you give them real weight or not is probably going to come down to whether you've generally agreed with Hoge or not in the past.

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