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The NFC East QB Situation Without McNabb
Written by Garry Cobb
Tuesday, 22 May 2007
I've made it very clear for an extended period of time that I'm big on production and don't judge players by nonsense. That's why you'll hear me time and time again support Donovan McNabb because he's produced and his teams have won. I want you to look at the NFC East for a moment and take a close look at the quarterback situations of the the four teams with the thinking that Donovan McNabb is no longer here. You might see the same disastrous picture that I see.
We all know the story here in Philly, McNabb's possible successor has been drafted and introduced to the city. Kevin Kolb went through the mini-camp and did a good job of processing all the information that was thrown before him. Kevin was able to conduct the offense which is a positive when you consider all the material that was thrown at him. The younger had quite a few missteps, such as late and errant passes, poor footwork and other lapses in concentration which expect out of a rookie. The most troubling thing that I saw was the problems he had taking the snap. Ball handling has been a problem in career because he’s fumbled over 25 times in college. Kolb showed an average to above average arm. He’s most comfortable making the short to intermediate throws and seems to struggle going deep.
Who knows right now about Kevin Kolb. He may develop into a top flight quarterback over time. But if he’s given the driver’s seat early, he will be compared to McNabb and there’ll be a lot of pressure on him to win immediately, which is an unrealistic demand of a young quarterback. The key for Kolb if he plays early will be his running game and his defense.
Next up is the Giants Eli Manning. I know that at times, Manning still looks like he's lost up there in New York, as he turns his head away from his target, when under pressure and throwing downfield. But he’s really not that far from becoming one of the top QB’s in the league. Eli would have had to have won a Super Bowl title already to live up to the expectation that accompanied his arrival in New York. When you stand back and evaluate his success, you see that he’s not that far away. He’s led the Giants to the playoffs the last two years and thrown for 24 touchdowns, two years in a row. Manning has shown he can come through in the clutch with two dramatic fourth quarter comebacks against the Eagles and Broncos a year ago. He’s gone through the fire his first three years and succeeded. 4th year and has already been to the playoffs twice. Here are his stats so far:
2004: Rookie record as a starter was 1-6…He showed a great deal of improvement at the end of the season while completing 95 passes in 197 attempts for 1,043 yards. That included 6 touchdowns and 9 interceptions.
2005: Started all 16 games, plus the NFC Wild Card Playoff Game…Record was 11-5 in the regular season, plus 0-1 in the postseason…Finished the season with 294 completions on 557 attempts for 3,762 yards with 24 touchdown, 17 interceptions, a long completion of 78 yards and a QB rating of 75.9.
2006: Started all 16 game, plus the NFC Wild Card Playoff Game. Record was 9-7 in the regular season, plus 0-1 in the postseason. Finished the season with 301 completions on 522 attempts for 24 touchdowns, 18 interceptions and a QB rating of 77.0.
Let me say again that Manning is going into only his 4th year and has already been to the playoffs twice. He's still very young and if he improves a bit, he could move into the top echelon of NFL quarterbacks. That could mean trouble for the Birds for years to come.
Down in Dallas, Tony Romo came onto the scene last year and started off like a ball of fire. He cooled as the year went along but he still wound up leading the Cowboys into the playoffs in his very first year as the starting quarterback. His numbers were amazing for a first year starter. He started 10 games, completed 220 passes out of 337 attempts for 2903 yards, which was an amazing 65% completion percentage; and he threw for 19 touchdowns, 13 interceptions, for a sparkling 95.1 quarterback rating. He even made the Pro Bowl.
It’s true Romo is throwing to one of the best wide receiver tandems in the league in Terrell Owens and Terry Glenn, but this kid is good. With McNabb in the division, I would give him the nod over Manning as the best QB in the division and he could get better. There’s no question that if Romo can do a better job of taking care of the football, he will move into the top ten QB’s in the league. He’s only 27 years old, so chances are he’ll be there starting for the next 5 years or so. That’s not good news for the Birds.
Last year the Redskins 2nd year quarterback Jason Campbell started 7 games, threw for 1297 yards with 10 touchdowns and 6 interceptions; completed 110 of his 207 attempts for a 53.7% completion percentage; and finished the season with a 76 QB rating. This was Campbell's first taste of NFL action and he didn't start out great, but he did show glimpses of the ability to be a good quarterback. Campbell is a good athlete with excellent height and size, plus he has a strong arm. The jury is still out on this kid.
Written by Garry Cobb
Tuesday, 22 May 2007
I've made it very clear for an extended period of time that I'm big on production and don't judge players by nonsense. That's why you'll hear me time and time again support Donovan McNabb because he's produced and his teams have won. I want you to look at the NFC East for a moment and take a close look at the quarterback situations of the the four teams with the thinking that Donovan McNabb is no longer here. You might see the same disastrous picture that I see.
We all know the story here in Philly, McNabb's possible successor has been drafted and introduced to the city. Kevin Kolb went through the mini-camp and did a good job of processing all the information that was thrown before him. Kevin was able to conduct the offense which is a positive when you consider all the material that was thrown at him. The younger had quite a few missteps, such as late and errant passes, poor footwork and other lapses in concentration which expect out of a rookie. The most troubling thing that I saw was the problems he had taking the snap. Ball handling has been a problem in career because he’s fumbled over 25 times in college. Kolb showed an average to above average arm. He’s most comfortable making the short to intermediate throws and seems to struggle going deep.
Who knows right now about Kevin Kolb. He may develop into a top flight quarterback over time. But if he’s given the driver’s seat early, he will be compared to McNabb and there’ll be a lot of pressure on him to win immediately, which is an unrealistic demand of a young quarterback. The key for Kolb if he plays early will be his running game and his defense.
Next up is the Giants Eli Manning. I know that at times, Manning still looks like he's lost up there in New York, as he turns his head away from his target, when under pressure and throwing downfield. But he’s really not that far from becoming one of the top QB’s in the league. Eli would have had to have won a Super Bowl title already to live up to the expectation that accompanied his arrival in New York. When you stand back and evaluate his success, you see that he’s not that far away. He’s led the Giants to the playoffs the last two years and thrown for 24 touchdowns, two years in a row. Manning has shown he can come through in the clutch with two dramatic fourth quarter comebacks against the Eagles and Broncos a year ago. He’s gone through the fire his first three years and succeeded. 4th year and has already been to the playoffs twice. Here are his stats so far:
2004: Rookie record as a starter was 1-6…He showed a great deal of improvement at the end of the season while completing 95 passes in 197 attempts for 1,043 yards. That included 6 touchdowns and 9 interceptions.
2005: Started all 16 games, plus the NFC Wild Card Playoff Game…Record was 11-5 in the regular season, plus 0-1 in the postseason…Finished the season with 294 completions on 557 attempts for 3,762 yards with 24 touchdown, 17 interceptions, a long completion of 78 yards and a QB rating of 75.9.
2006: Started all 16 game, plus the NFC Wild Card Playoff Game. Record was 9-7 in the regular season, plus 0-1 in the postseason. Finished the season with 301 completions on 522 attempts for 24 touchdowns, 18 interceptions and a QB rating of 77.0.
Let me say again that Manning is going into only his 4th year and has already been to the playoffs twice. He's still very young and if he improves a bit, he could move into the top echelon of NFL quarterbacks. That could mean trouble for the Birds for years to come.
Down in Dallas, Tony Romo came onto the scene last year and started off like a ball of fire. He cooled as the year went along but he still wound up leading the Cowboys into the playoffs in his very first year as the starting quarterback. His numbers were amazing for a first year starter. He started 10 games, completed 220 passes out of 337 attempts for 2903 yards, which was an amazing 65% completion percentage; and he threw for 19 touchdowns, 13 interceptions, for a sparkling 95.1 quarterback rating. He even made the Pro Bowl.
It’s true Romo is throwing to one of the best wide receiver tandems in the league in Terrell Owens and Terry Glenn, but this kid is good. With McNabb in the division, I would give him the nod over Manning as the best QB in the division and he could get better. There’s no question that if Romo can do a better job of taking care of the football, he will move into the top ten QB’s in the league. He’s only 27 years old, so chances are he’ll be there starting for the next 5 years or so. That’s not good news for the Birds.
Last year the Redskins 2nd year quarterback Jason Campbell started 7 games, threw for 1297 yards with 10 touchdowns and 6 interceptions; completed 110 of his 207 attempts for a 53.7% completion percentage; and finished the season with a 76 QB rating. This was Campbell's first taste of NFL action and he didn't start out great, but he did show glimpses of the ability to be a good quarterback. Campbell is a good athlete with excellent height and size, plus he has a strong arm. The jury is still out on this kid.
As for Kolb, I guess we don't know if he's the next Joe Montana or Tommy Maddox.
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