DriveFor1Outta5

I agree, this season will be a challenge, regardless of who plays QB. I’m not fond of giving up next seasons first round pick either. We need to surround the QB with talent. It’s not as if this team doesn’t have holes outside of the QB position.

I’m thinking that a player (Butler) who did something stupid before the Super Bowl wouldn’t be a process kind of guy.

I wouldn’t be shocked by Allen. He and Darnold seem to fit the McBeane mold best. I won’t discount the possibility of Mayfield or Rosen, but their personalities don’t seem to mesh with the process.

Rosen Darnold Allen Jackson Mayfield Rudolph

Very true. You also have to factor in the reality that most “bridge” guys stink. Fans and coaches alike become impatient, and are ready to start the rookie. That’s why I’m not a believer in the “bridge QB” method. Pick up a veteran for security as a backup, but just start the rookie on opening day. Why delay the inevitable?

I was joking. You mentioned Daboll’s UR education, and I brought up Matt Patricia (Pats DC) the “rocket scientist” not being able to stop Nick Foles in the Super Bowl.

It’s all completely unscientific. I’m not claiming to be in the know. I just know a lot of Bama fans who are not distraught over Daboll leaving. The second half of the National Championship certainly left a good final impression. Prior to that, it was far from all sunshine and roses. The rocket scientist in NE couldn’t stop Nick Foles, so I’m not sure how much I’m going to give Daboll credit based on his education. Let’s just hope that he turns out to be a great OC. We will all find out soon enough. I’m not impressed by his NFL OC resume, but we need to give him a chance.

There are still lots of Bama fans who are happy to see him gone.

I’m not really looking forward to the Daboll experience. That’s why I’m hoping we find a franchise QB who can cover other areas of deficiency. I think Daboll could be successful with a top notch signal caller, but I don’t see him as an OC who creates something from nothing. He could win with a top notch QB, but I don’t see him succeeding the way of a guy like Pedersen with Foles at a QB.

I did forget about that season, but there are still countless QB’s who started opening week of their rookie season. They include Wilson, Flacco, Ryan, Newton, and many more. Roethlisberger became the starter in the second game of his rookie season after an injury to Tommy Maddox. This worked out quite well for the Steelers. In fact, keeping Big Ben on the bench for Maddox would have been detrimental to that team. That coaching staff would have made an error, if not for the Maddox injury. Pro coaches are way too conservative with young QB’s. It makes sense to start the young guy with potential over the career backup vet. The career backup isn’t going to take you anywhere. You might as well go with the guy who might become something more. Fair enough, but there will never be a way to prove that sitting is the reason for a QB’s success or vice versa. Personally, I don’t see the value in sitting your high draft pick QB. A guy like Aaron Rodgers is immensely talented. It’s difficult for me to base his success on sitting. Too often I hear about a QB who “needs to sit because he isn’t ready”. How many times is this code for the guy simply not being an NFL level QB? Out of curiosity what recent elite NFL QB’s do you think benefited most from sitting on the bench? I’m just trying to see the other side of the coin.

Hopefullly college serves its purpose to prepare one for their career. Playing QB should be similar. Big time college football isn’t low level stuff. Highly touted college QB’s are often ready to start in the pros on day one. With that said, sometimes college doesn’t prepare us for our careers very well. I’ve had jobs that I wasn’t properly trained for, but I eventually learned how to do my job. Being ill prepared never “destroyed” my career, or ability to improve. I’m simply responding to the idea that starting a guy too soon can ruin his career. I think this idea is relic of traditional coaching that should have been disproved by this point.

How many successful NFL QB’s actually come from college offenses that don’t translate to the pros? This is why scouts love this QB class. There are several pro style QB’s. The only time college style QB’s succeed are when pro coaches become wise enough to use that offense on Sunday. Sitting on the bench doesn’t help with that imo.

What about all of the current franchise QB’s who started from day one? If early struggles can mentally destroy a young QB, he never had the makeup to be a legit NFL QB. Phillip Rivers entire career has been a struggle, but he’s still a top flight QB. He hasn’t let a crappy franchise destroy his abilities. He might not be winning titles, but he hasn’t busted out of the league. NFL coaches can be stupidly conservative. How does starting a backup level QB benefit a team over starting a guy who could be the next Peyton Manning?

That may be true about Flacco, but I was thinking more about Harbaugh’s relationship with TT. Tyrod does not play well when teams are able to properly plan for him. Harbaugh’s familiarity with TT should allow him to expose TT’s weaknesses. Additionally, the Browns play the NFC South this season. With the exception of th Bucs game, does everyone remember how well TT played against that conference? TT deserves credit for pulling us out of our playoff drought. That doesn’t mean the 2018 Browns will be a .500 team. I just don’t see that happening as easily as some.

I’ll never trust a QB with such terrible tattoos. No thanks.

I don’t mean to pass judgement on McD. It’s just hard for me to see Rosen being his guy. A QB is the guy who allows the coach to keep his job. Personally, I wouldn’t put my job in the hands of someone with a belief system completely contrary to mine. McD might not think the same. We shall find out soon.

Rosen has actually publicly stated that he is an atheist. Just another of his many bold statements by NFL standards. I agree, it does make it difficult to see this as a fit for McD. I don’t know many devout Christians who’d be willing to put the fate of their career in the hands of an atheist. It seems petty, but this is just human nature.

Fair enough, but I don’t them as a playoff team whatsoever. The future is looking up for the Browns, but it’s not happening next season imo. I can imagine the Ravens having TT’s number with Harbaugh still around, and TT will never beat Roethlisberger in a dual. That’s four losses right there. The Browns rank low on the list of my concerns for 2018. TT will still stink, and Landry will probably be suspended for something stupid by mid season.

Agreed. Some will say that TT is an 8 win QB, and that 8 wins is a major upgrade for Cleveland. This is very flawed logic. TT was an 8 win QB with Buffalo. Cleveland is consistently in the basement for a reason. They are more than an average QB away from being an 8 win team imo. Landry and TT do not suddenly make the Browns a .500 club. TT would have been 4-12 without a stellar defense last season.

I’m not a fan of Fitz the player, but that’s far too high of a compliment for Peterman.

What is their definition of “Western New York”?

This ^ I’m quite neutral on this, except for the part where I believe we paid way too much to sign Ivory. I can’t justify that price tag for a 29 year old running back with fumbling issues. Limiting turnovers while allowing our defense to win games was the key to last season. I don’t see how introducing a turnover machine to the offense is good for “the process”, but at least we won’t see more Tolbert carries. I’m still not convinced that Beane wouldn’t possibly trade McCoy to move up in the draft.

I’d agree if this were true. I’m not going to be melodramatic over the loss of JMatt, but he has shown more than Reilly and Zay. Isn’t Zay the number two right now? If so, that’s scary. JMatt is nothing special, but we are extremely void of WR talent.

The 90’s was a different era. Social media allows these transgressions to become a distraction. The majority of today’s franchise QB’s are higher character guys who don’t have a rap sheet from their college days. Can anyone imagine Carson Wentz or Drew Brees getting in big trouble? I also don’t find it comparable to those of us who had character concerns in college, or as a younger person in general. The majority of us transitioned into adulthood by working a 9-5 job. We weren’t given multi million dollar contracts, and semi celebrity status that gave us access to everything we want. Transitioning from college to the workforce can be a humbling experience. Becoming a highly touted NFL draft choice does nothing to bring humility to braggadocious guys like Mayfield. I’d prefer to invest the future of my franchise in the hands of the countless others who don’t have these concerns.

Exactly. Foles may return to his baseline this season, which would be that of an average QB who occasionally has hot streaks. This could however, suit a team with a stellar offensive scheme. Contrary to popular TBD belief, second and third round QB’s aren’t guaranteed to be average starters. How many second and third round QB’s have busted out of the league in several years? With that said , I’m not sure if I’d be a fan of Foles in a Bills uni. The 2018 NFL season proved the value of innovative offensive coaching. Sean McVay and Doug Pederson both carried their teams to successful seasons. Jared Goff looked like a real QB in contrast to his rookie season, and Foles played like a HOF’er. That is a testament to great coaching. I’m not confident we have that luxury here in Buffalo. We will need a true franchise QB to carry us. The jury is out on Daboll (not impressed by his previous NFL stops), and McD is an incredibly conservative coach. McD would have punted that Super Bowl victory away. Mc D is a great defensive coach, and Daboll might be a solid play caller, but we have a coaching staff who are very traditional. We aren’t going to win like the 2018 Eagles. We will need a pocket passer who makes consistent plays imo.