chris1969
Footballguy
I'm going to try to give an objective report as I can on DA, but I'm starting with the disclaimers. First and foremost I am a die-hard Browns fan. I know that may taint some of my accolades since DA has done so well for the Browns, but I hope I demonstrate enough temperance to remain relevant. It does give me the opportunity to see DA a lot more than the average football fan though and I hope that shines through. The second disclaimer is that when I get to what the Browns should do with DA, I'm solely concerned with what will help the Browns the most. It has nothing to do with Fantasy Football or popularity contests.
Ok, let's get started...
Size: 6' 6", 230 lbs I'm not sure It can get much better than that. He can see over those big lineman well and has the frame to take some hits.
Arm Strength: This is probably DA's strong suit. He throws the deep out with enough velocity that the CB doesn't have enough time to break on it.
Accuracy: This is one of the things that DA gets mis-graded on the most. Most of you see the highlight films, where he threads the deep out between 2 defenders and think he has laser like accuracy. He can and will make those throws all day long, but he is below average on the short and intermediate routes. 2 key indicators that would be red flags for scouts are wide open WR's having to go to the ground for the catch and throwing the ball to the wrong shoulder of the RB's on swing patterns. The interesting thing here is that most scouts like to give 2 separate grades on accuracy. 1 for the short/intermediate ball and 1 for the deep ball. DA grades the opposite of most QB's in that situation.
Touch: This is another Jekyl/Hide grade for DA. He has really good touch on the deep ball, but throws the short stuff like the ball is on fire. This one is most dismaying to me as Brown's fan because more often than not, his offensive line has given him plenty of time to make the easy throw, but he just doesn't see it. I'm not sure if this is shell shock from last season, but this one is very correctable and I haven't seen any improvement yet. This should be an easy fix, but no progress yet.
Set Up: Again fantastic here, not much commentary to add. Takes good strides, sets his feet well, and throws.
Delivery/Release: He has if not the quickest release in football, close to it.
Running Ability: This one cracks me up every time I hear an announcer say that DA can make special plays with his feet. I've seen him run exactly 3 times and all 3 he got good yardage, but he's ran only 3 times for a reason. He had size 17 shoes when he was 10. He makes Bernie Kosar look like Vince Young. He's smart enough to know that running is a last resort. His offensive line joke about how slow he is, because most of them out-run him.
Pocket Presence: Great on the long ball and bad on the short ball. He's got plenty of time on both types of throws, but rushes the short ones.
Poise: See above, he does well when he's in the pocket when they are going deep and he can use his peripheral vision but when he turns his back to one sideline to throw to the short flat he panics.
Decision Making: Average. This was really bad weeks 2 and 3, but has steadily been improving. I have confidence that he will be above average in this by the end of the year.
Locating receivers: This one is hard for me to evaluate. He does lock onto the primary receiver too much, but since he can make the throw before the CB can react, he gets away with it. It's disappointing to see the 2nd or 3rd WR wide open on the instant replay though.
Leadership: A+ in this category. He is really quiet and soft spoken, but his team-mates rally behind him. He'll put his shoulder into a tackle on a turnover and he'll layout on a block. His team-mates think he's a football player and not an overpaid QB.
Game Management: Average here too! He is excellent at making sure everybody is where they should be pre-snap. In Chud's offense, this is no small feat. He also gets the ball snapped on time even when guys aren't in the right place or miss their motion. Again these are the harder things to master in this category. What he struggles with are his audibles and pre-snap reads. He'll miss the mis-match at the LOS or Audible a play right into the strength of the defense. Its these things that frustrate you the most. He masters the most difficult things but consistently fails on the simplest ones.
Overall I think all the threads on the Brown's QB situation are 100% keep DA or 100% get rid of DA and play Quinn. It's not that easy. I think the Browns can keep DA and do well as a team. I think they could also let him go and do just as well and maybe even better. I think Quinn has more upside than DA personally so if any team offered us the same trade for either QB, I'd trade DA. I think we only franchise DA if we think somebody will sign him and give us 2 #1's or better than a 1st and a 3rd. I think we'll only trade either one if we get more than we gave and that has more to do with the players available in the draft than anything. I think it's most likely that we give DA max tender and see who's willing to give up a 1st and a 3rd for him. I think in everyone else's eyes, DA has more value than Quinn and that is great for the Browns. I think that no matter what our QB situation benefits the Browns more than anything and it's almost impossible to blow this one. I also think that no matter what, Phil Savage knows more about grading talent than I do and whatever he decides will be the best decision for the Browns.
This post will now be followed by the people that only care about fantasy stats telling me I'm crazy for thinking we should trade DA or other people telling me that I give DA too much credit and their Grandma Hazel could do as well in this offense.
Ok, let's get started...
Size: 6' 6", 230 lbs I'm not sure It can get much better than that. He can see over those big lineman well and has the frame to take some hits.
Arm Strength: This is probably DA's strong suit. He throws the deep out with enough velocity that the CB doesn't have enough time to break on it.
Accuracy: This is one of the things that DA gets mis-graded on the most. Most of you see the highlight films, where he threads the deep out between 2 defenders and think he has laser like accuracy. He can and will make those throws all day long, but he is below average on the short and intermediate routes. 2 key indicators that would be red flags for scouts are wide open WR's having to go to the ground for the catch and throwing the ball to the wrong shoulder of the RB's on swing patterns. The interesting thing here is that most scouts like to give 2 separate grades on accuracy. 1 for the short/intermediate ball and 1 for the deep ball. DA grades the opposite of most QB's in that situation.
Touch: This is another Jekyl/Hide grade for DA. He has really good touch on the deep ball, but throws the short stuff like the ball is on fire. This one is most dismaying to me as Brown's fan because more often than not, his offensive line has given him plenty of time to make the easy throw, but he just doesn't see it. I'm not sure if this is shell shock from last season, but this one is very correctable and I haven't seen any improvement yet. This should be an easy fix, but no progress yet.
Set Up: Again fantastic here, not much commentary to add. Takes good strides, sets his feet well, and throws.
Delivery/Release: He has if not the quickest release in football, close to it.
Running Ability: This one cracks me up every time I hear an announcer say that DA can make special plays with his feet. I've seen him run exactly 3 times and all 3 he got good yardage, but he's ran only 3 times for a reason. He had size 17 shoes when he was 10. He makes Bernie Kosar look like Vince Young. He's smart enough to know that running is a last resort. His offensive line joke about how slow he is, because most of them out-run him.
Pocket Presence: Great on the long ball and bad on the short ball. He's got plenty of time on both types of throws, but rushes the short ones.
Poise: See above, he does well when he's in the pocket when they are going deep and he can use his peripheral vision but when he turns his back to one sideline to throw to the short flat he panics.
Decision Making: Average. This was really bad weeks 2 and 3, but has steadily been improving. I have confidence that he will be above average in this by the end of the year.
Locating receivers: This one is hard for me to evaluate. He does lock onto the primary receiver too much, but since he can make the throw before the CB can react, he gets away with it. It's disappointing to see the 2nd or 3rd WR wide open on the instant replay though.
Leadership: A+ in this category. He is really quiet and soft spoken, but his team-mates rally behind him. He'll put his shoulder into a tackle on a turnover and he'll layout on a block. His team-mates think he's a football player and not an overpaid QB.
Game Management: Average here too! He is excellent at making sure everybody is where they should be pre-snap. In Chud's offense, this is no small feat. He also gets the ball snapped on time even when guys aren't in the right place or miss their motion. Again these are the harder things to master in this category. What he struggles with are his audibles and pre-snap reads. He'll miss the mis-match at the LOS or Audible a play right into the strength of the defense. Its these things that frustrate you the most. He masters the most difficult things but consistently fails on the simplest ones.
Overall I think all the threads on the Brown's QB situation are 100% keep DA or 100% get rid of DA and play Quinn. It's not that easy. I think the Browns can keep DA and do well as a team. I think they could also let him go and do just as well and maybe even better. I think Quinn has more upside than DA personally so if any team offered us the same trade for either QB, I'd trade DA. I think we only franchise DA if we think somebody will sign him and give us 2 #1's or better than a 1st and a 3rd. I think we'll only trade either one if we get more than we gave and that has more to do with the players available in the draft than anything. I think it's most likely that we give DA max tender and see who's willing to give up a 1st and a 3rd for him. I think in everyone else's eyes, DA has more value than Quinn and that is great for the Browns. I think that no matter what our QB situation benefits the Browns more than anything and it's almost impossible to blow this one. I also think that no matter what, Phil Savage knows more about grading talent than I do and whatever he decides will be the best decision for the Browns.
This post will now be followed by the people that only care about fantasy stats telling me I'm crazy for thinking we should trade DA or other people telling me that I give DA too much credit and their Grandma Hazel could do as well in this offense.
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According to retail figures nationwide, the top 12 selling jerseys belong to: 1. Romo, 2. LaDainian Tomlinson, 3. Reggie Bush, 4. Brian Urlacher, 5. Peyton Manning, 6. Owens, 7. Troy Polamalu, 8. Vince Young, 9. Williams, 10. Brady Quinn, 11. Brett Favre, 12. Tom Brady.That Favre and Brady would round out the Top 12 is not that uncommon for older players. Normally players who have been around for a while have fewer jerseys sold since people likely already have their jerseys.
Still, Quinn may be a fantastic QB (and I'm in the group that believes this) but DA is already a very good QB and thats more than most teams can say about their squad. He's 24, I say run with it, give him this year and next to fix his issues and you could be looking at the next great QB.
Still, Quinn may be a fantastic QB (and I'm in the group that believes this) but DA is already a very good QB and thats more than most teams can say about their squad. He's 24, I say run with it, give him this year and next to fix his issues and you could be looking at the next great QB.
I thought it was pretty much a given that Russell and Johnson were going #1 and #2 and everybody thought the Browns were taking AD, Quinn, or Thomas in that order.
I thought it was pretty much a given that Russell and Johnson were going #1 and #2 and everybody thought the Browns were taking AD, Quinn, or Thomas in that order.
I'm not bashing the front office, I'm just pointing out that gloating about taking Thomas instead of Russell or Johnson is a bit hollow when I'm convinced they would have taken those guys if they were available. I'm aware BTW of Edwards being there, but let's not forget that he was coming off of a knee injury and Johnson was being likened to Randy Moss around draft time, in other words a once-in-five-to-ten years WR prospect.
