This is something that I brought up to adam and he was more then willing to do it, and I figured whoelse to get to do it then the man that is always in Qb threads standing behind his comments. Adam is covering the pros and cons of AJ and I'm covering the the pros and cons of Gus. I know it's long, but worth the read. Enjoy.
To begin with This is the year that AJ needs to win the starting job to either prove or disprove the fact that he can be a good quarterback in the NFL.
I will begin by starting with the year Feeley went 4-1 with the Eagles due to the fact that that was the point when he appeared on GM's and scouts radars. This was effectively his rookie season. How many QBs can come off the bench and go 4-1 regardless of how good the team is. Not many. So what changed between that year and last year with the Dolphins. Lets examine the offense. To begin with the Eagles had a great offensive line that kept defenders off Feeley. Second he had a running game to rely on. Thirdly he had an excellent coaching staff that put together effective game plans. What he showed that year was that he could take what the offense gave him and when given time to throw he could hit his receivers. By no means did he make his team better but remember it was effectively his rookie season. A bad quarterback makes his team worse. An example would be Ray Lucas who i doubt wouldve won one game with that same Eagles team.
Now cut to last year. Feeley had to learn a new offense during a preseason where Wannstedt did everyhting in his power to sabotage Feeley. When he finally did start, he was awarded with a pop warner offensive game plan (There were actually plays where only Chambers ran a route), the worst offensive line in the game (one of the worst of all time in fact), and zero running backs to work with. Still he managed to win 3 games due mostly to the defense but in no small part to his ability to not crumble. Think about what he was given and then ask yourself How much better would another QB have done?
Now cut to this year, learning his third offensive scheme in three years (this one finally a professional offense) he had a good game 1, a poor game 2, a decent game 3 and a good game 4. He has improved in play recognition in every game and the last two showed this learning curve taking hold.
So bottom line what are the pros and cons as i see it going into the 2005 regular season
PROS:
1) Accuracy - In my mind the one trait a quarterback must have to even be considered a good quarterback. When given time (which unfortunately has not been that often), AJ has shown from day one that he can make all the throws and can hit receivers in stride.
2) Heart and Guts - The guy showed me something when he had to have his finger straightened on the sideline last season and on his first play back threw a perfect touchdown pass. Considering the way he was taking a beating on almost every pass it was amazing to see that he didnt crumble (ala Ken O Brien for all you old timers). He did panic in his first few starts but that seemed to go away as the season progressed and the offensive line started to get better and he started getting used to the short period of time he would have to make a decision and throw the ball. The way he handled his demotion to 2nd string this preseason also showed alot of heart. Rather than complain he elevated his game showing that when his back is against the wall he has the ability to rise to the challenge
3) Arm Strength - He has the ability to put the throw right between the numbers from twenty yards and in with great accuracy sideline to sideline. He has decent arm strength when going deep, although its true that hasnt been seen too much to this point. Look for some deep pass plays put in the game vs Atlanta so that Saban can see what he's got in that department.
4) Confidence bordering on ****iness - This guy for some reason never doubted his ability. He couldve felt sorry for himself when he got demoted this preseason or last year when he was giving games away with inoppurtune picks but he never did. That to me is a very important quality probably the only quality I will compare of his with Marino (although with Marino there was no doubt he could back it up)
5) Does not turn the ball over - I realize this seems on the surface to be a controversial statement due to his stats last year. But remember the turnovers occured while he was getting used to playing in that horrible offense. Once he got used to his teammates and their abilities (or rather inabilities) he adjusted and at that point he stopped turning the ball over. Will he have picks and fumbles? Off course, all qbs do. But it seems to me he has brought that game killer to an acceptable level to the point where it wont be a problem anymore.
CONS
Before i begin listing them I will state that I have seen improvement in every area that I am about to mention. The reason I do mention them is because this improvement has taken place mostly in the preseason and until I see it in the regular season I will not confirm that he has improved in these areas
1) Gets panicky when a strong rush occurs. This is still the area he needs to improve upon the most. I dont think it will occur as much this season due mostly to my prediction that we will evolve into a top twenty offensive line at some point this season. If I am wrong about our offensive line this will be the determining factor of whether he has a good year or bad. This is where last year AJ threw picks. This preseason seems to indicate that he will take the sack or throw the ball away. I dont believe he understands how to move around the pocket effectively enough to buy time. Maybe he learns it maybe he doesnt. I think this will ultimately determine whether he will ever develop into a good QB.
2) Poor defense recognition. This has seemingly improved but its only the preseason so I will go into the regular season saying that he is still poor at reading defenses. This is the main reason I believe he needs a full year as starter. Defense recognition only comes with playing and he still has not played an entire season. With an additonal season under his belt we will be able to tell whether this is a permanent problem or whether it was due to lack of playing time.
3) Touch - I dont believe he has any problem with touch when it comes to ten yard and above line drive passes. Where he needs to work is on short passes where he might throw too hard to catch or on deep passes where he might need to get an arc on the ball. I have seen enough improvement on the deep passes that I see that as something that may be of the past but I still see him throwing too hard or erratically on some short passes.
4) Locking on - This has improved dramatically. Its difficult to tell sometimes due to Linehan's system which often requires the QB to lock on a half of the field. Linehan likes to flood zones. So sometimes it may look like he's locking on but actually he's looking at three receivers in the same quarter of the field. On plays that are spread out he has improved to the point of almost always looking at a second option and he's actually looking at a third once in awhile. I would predict that this deficiency from last year will be completely gone if he starts the entire year. It already is much improved. One example I will give of improvement is the TD pass to Farmer last week. To the untrained eye it looked like he locked onto Farmer. But when viewed closely, what Feeley did was bait the db covering Farmer. AJ stared at Farmer the entire time and then quickly pump faked, the db bit and farmer got the seperation he needed to score the game winning touchdown. There have been many here who have criticized his birddoggin but that was a perfect example of when to birddog. To get a db to bite you have to lock on and make him think the pass is coming. You want the db to break on the pump fake and thats exactly what happened. That was an example of a very sophisticated qb play that shows Feeley is learning the nuances of the game.
In summation I believe AJ continues to improve and I would hate to see that improvement halted by him having to sit. I will also state that although I believe AJ is better at this stage than Gus, Gus is not as bad as he has looked the past two weeks. I have been ripping him but its only due to competitive nature that the feeley supporters and gus supporters have been showing. You are almost compelled to rip the other guy to defend your own guy. Whoever starts in Denver I will be fully behind. But until then I still got a whole lotta smack to give
Since Adamprez did such a great and indepth thing, I will cut to the chase on my end and just do the Pros and Cons list, that way the post isn't a full page long. I may or may not give a actual look into Gus past, but you can catch me in pretty much all the QB threads stating my thoughts.
The pros of Gus:
1). Gus has been Linehan's offensive scheme and has done very well in it. I know people say thats because of Moss and all that, but if you back and read some of the stats from the game, Gus was not throwing to Moss the whole game each game he was standing in for Daunte. He knows exactly where Linehan is taking the offense and can easily change it up into another Linehan play on the field if the defense catches what we will be doing on that down.
2). He is not the quickest or best in making defensive players miss, but he can scramble and get the play off on his end, we've seen that in two of the games this preseason, but sometimes the WRs would drop the ball or something would go wrong and everyone would quickly dismantle Gus and say it was his fault. Gus will not just stand there like a deer caught in the headlights, he insteads does quick thinking and moving in the pocket if the offensive line gives him the chance.
3). Gus can throw a long bomb as easy as he can throw a quick five yard slant. That is something we haven't seen in a QB on our team for awhile now. Along with the strength, he has managed to put the ball in a spot where only the WR can get it, and if they can't get it, it still gives us another chance to move the ball down field instead of the defense intercepting it. I am not saying look for Gus to be launching the ball 60yards down the field, but I am saying along with his arm power and thinking, with the offensive scheme, Gus could produce what our Qbs have lacked the past few years.
4). I know had the fumble and the int over the past two preseason games, but other then those, he has shown that he can protect the ball and keep it on the offensive side of the field. If you have caught some of the games he played for the Vikings, you will see exactly what I am speaking about. Now no QB is perfect with turnovers, but Gus has proven to be a realiable person to be leading the helm of this offense.
The cons of Gus:
1). Number one con of Gus is that along with his arm strength, he tends to put the ball over the Wr or totally out of reach of anyone. I don't know if it's because he was able to just toss the ball anywhere and Moss be able to get it or what, but I believe this is why Gus has fallen back into the QB challenge with AJ. Or maybe he is trying to show Saban that he can throw the ball and match Scott L.'s picture of the Qb for this offense, like I said, it's my major concern with Gus.
2). Gus attempts to squeeze the ball into a tightspot way to much, if you watch the film of our preseason games, he attempting to squeeze the ball inbetween one or sometimes two defenders atleast 3 to 4 times per game. Half of me is saying it's because the offensive line makes him throw to early and force the tight squeeze, but the other half of me is saying his vision is just not seeing the real picture on the field. Again, this may because when he was playing with the Vikings, their Wrs, rbs, and te were able to make amazing plays and look good while doing it, but our core of guys are football playing type of guys, not the showtime make 9figures and media lovedoll that are all over the NFL now'a'days.
3). When Gus was flushed out of the pocket in Minny, he had the puzzled look on his face like he was scared or didn't know what to do while running. I truely believe when flushed out of the pocket, the worst in Gus comes out, he will either move around and try to razzle dazzle while doing it or he will launch the ball way to far. He may be able to allude in the pocket, but out of the pocket, Gus is looks like a beat down VW hippie bus.
I would like to add that I am not 100% Gus nor AJ and nor do I think one should start over the other and all that, I set out to give an honest look at our Qbs and with adamprez's help, I do believe that I have managed that.
To begin with This is the year that AJ needs to win the starting job to either prove or disprove the fact that he can be a good quarterback in the NFL.
I will begin by starting with the year Feeley went 4-1 with the Eagles due to the fact that that was the point when he appeared on GM's and scouts radars. This was effectively his rookie season. How many QBs can come off the bench and go 4-1 regardless of how good the team is. Not many. So what changed between that year and last year with the Dolphins. Lets examine the offense. To begin with the Eagles had a great offensive line that kept defenders off Feeley. Second he had a running game to rely on. Thirdly he had an excellent coaching staff that put together effective game plans. What he showed that year was that he could take what the offense gave him and when given time to throw he could hit his receivers. By no means did he make his team better but remember it was effectively his rookie season. A bad quarterback makes his team worse. An example would be Ray Lucas who i doubt wouldve won one game with that same Eagles team.
Now cut to last year. Feeley had to learn a new offense during a preseason where Wannstedt did everyhting in his power to sabotage Feeley. When he finally did start, he was awarded with a pop warner offensive game plan (There were actually plays where only Chambers ran a route), the worst offensive line in the game (one of the worst of all time in fact), and zero running backs to work with. Still he managed to win 3 games due mostly to the defense but in no small part to his ability to not crumble. Think about what he was given and then ask yourself How much better would another QB have done?
Now cut to this year, learning his third offensive scheme in three years (this one finally a professional offense) he had a good game 1, a poor game 2, a decent game 3 and a good game 4. He has improved in play recognition in every game and the last two showed this learning curve taking hold.
So bottom line what are the pros and cons as i see it going into the 2005 regular season
PROS:
1) Accuracy - In my mind the one trait a quarterback must have to even be considered a good quarterback. When given time (which unfortunately has not been that often), AJ has shown from day one that he can make all the throws and can hit receivers in stride.
2) Heart and Guts - The guy showed me something when he had to have his finger straightened on the sideline last season and on his first play back threw a perfect touchdown pass. Considering the way he was taking a beating on almost every pass it was amazing to see that he didnt crumble (ala Ken O Brien for all you old timers). He did panic in his first few starts but that seemed to go away as the season progressed and the offensive line started to get better and he started getting used to the short period of time he would have to make a decision and throw the ball. The way he handled his demotion to 2nd string this preseason also showed alot of heart. Rather than complain he elevated his game showing that when his back is against the wall he has the ability to rise to the challenge
3) Arm Strength - He has the ability to put the throw right between the numbers from twenty yards and in with great accuracy sideline to sideline. He has decent arm strength when going deep, although its true that hasnt been seen too much to this point. Look for some deep pass plays put in the game vs Atlanta so that Saban can see what he's got in that department.
4) Confidence bordering on ****iness - This guy for some reason never doubted his ability. He couldve felt sorry for himself when he got demoted this preseason or last year when he was giving games away with inoppurtune picks but he never did. That to me is a very important quality probably the only quality I will compare of his with Marino (although with Marino there was no doubt he could back it up)
5) Does not turn the ball over - I realize this seems on the surface to be a controversial statement due to his stats last year. But remember the turnovers occured while he was getting used to playing in that horrible offense. Once he got used to his teammates and their abilities (or rather inabilities) he adjusted and at that point he stopped turning the ball over. Will he have picks and fumbles? Off course, all qbs do. But it seems to me he has brought that game killer to an acceptable level to the point where it wont be a problem anymore.
CONS
Before i begin listing them I will state that I have seen improvement in every area that I am about to mention. The reason I do mention them is because this improvement has taken place mostly in the preseason and until I see it in the regular season I will not confirm that he has improved in these areas
1) Gets panicky when a strong rush occurs. This is still the area he needs to improve upon the most. I dont think it will occur as much this season due mostly to my prediction that we will evolve into a top twenty offensive line at some point this season. If I am wrong about our offensive line this will be the determining factor of whether he has a good year or bad. This is where last year AJ threw picks. This preseason seems to indicate that he will take the sack or throw the ball away. I dont believe he understands how to move around the pocket effectively enough to buy time. Maybe he learns it maybe he doesnt. I think this will ultimately determine whether he will ever develop into a good QB.
2) Poor defense recognition. This has seemingly improved but its only the preseason so I will go into the regular season saying that he is still poor at reading defenses. This is the main reason I believe he needs a full year as starter. Defense recognition only comes with playing and he still has not played an entire season. With an additonal season under his belt we will be able to tell whether this is a permanent problem or whether it was due to lack of playing time.
3) Touch - I dont believe he has any problem with touch when it comes to ten yard and above line drive passes. Where he needs to work is on short passes where he might throw too hard to catch or on deep passes where he might need to get an arc on the ball. I have seen enough improvement on the deep passes that I see that as something that may be of the past but I still see him throwing too hard or erratically on some short passes.
4) Locking on - This has improved dramatically. Its difficult to tell sometimes due to Linehan's system which often requires the QB to lock on a half of the field. Linehan likes to flood zones. So sometimes it may look like he's locking on but actually he's looking at three receivers in the same quarter of the field. On plays that are spread out he has improved to the point of almost always looking at a second option and he's actually looking at a third once in awhile. I would predict that this deficiency from last year will be completely gone if he starts the entire year. It already is much improved. One example I will give of improvement is the TD pass to Farmer last week. To the untrained eye it looked like he locked onto Farmer. But when viewed closely, what Feeley did was bait the db covering Farmer. AJ stared at Farmer the entire time and then quickly pump faked, the db bit and farmer got the seperation he needed to score the game winning touchdown. There have been many here who have criticized his birddoggin but that was a perfect example of when to birddog. To get a db to bite you have to lock on and make him think the pass is coming. You want the db to break on the pump fake and thats exactly what happened. That was an example of a very sophisticated qb play that shows Feeley is learning the nuances of the game.
In summation I believe AJ continues to improve and I would hate to see that improvement halted by him having to sit. I will also state that although I believe AJ is better at this stage than Gus, Gus is not as bad as he has looked the past two weeks. I have been ripping him but its only due to competitive nature that the feeley supporters and gus supporters have been showing. You are almost compelled to rip the other guy to defend your own guy. Whoever starts in Denver I will be fully behind. But until then I still got a whole lotta smack to give
Since Adamprez did such a great and indepth thing, I will cut to the chase on my end and just do the Pros and Cons list, that way the post isn't a full page long. I may or may not give a actual look into Gus past, but you can catch me in pretty much all the QB threads stating my thoughts.
The pros of Gus:
1). Gus has been Linehan's offensive scheme and has done very well in it. I know people say thats because of Moss and all that, but if you back and read some of the stats from the game, Gus was not throwing to Moss the whole game each game he was standing in for Daunte. He knows exactly where Linehan is taking the offense and can easily change it up into another Linehan play on the field if the defense catches what we will be doing on that down.
2). He is not the quickest or best in making defensive players miss, but he can scramble and get the play off on his end, we've seen that in two of the games this preseason, but sometimes the WRs would drop the ball or something would go wrong and everyone would quickly dismantle Gus and say it was his fault. Gus will not just stand there like a deer caught in the headlights, he insteads does quick thinking and moving in the pocket if the offensive line gives him the chance.
3). Gus can throw a long bomb as easy as he can throw a quick five yard slant. That is something we haven't seen in a QB on our team for awhile now. Along with the strength, he has managed to put the ball in a spot where only the WR can get it, and if they can't get it, it still gives us another chance to move the ball down field instead of the defense intercepting it. I am not saying look for Gus to be launching the ball 60yards down the field, but I am saying along with his arm power and thinking, with the offensive scheme, Gus could produce what our Qbs have lacked the past few years.
4). I know had the fumble and the int over the past two preseason games, but other then those, he has shown that he can protect the ball and keep it on the offensive side of the field. If you have caught some of the games he played for the Vikings, you will see exactly what I am speaking about. Now no QB is perfect with turnovers, but Gus has proven to be a realiable person to be leading the helm of this offense.
The cons of Gus:
1). Number one con of Gus is that along with his arm strength, he tends to put the ball over the Wr or totally out of reach of anyone. I don't know if it's because he was able to just toss the ball anywhere and Moss be able to get it or what, but I believe this is why Gus has fallen back into the QB challenge with AJ. Or maybe he is trying to show Saban that he can throw the ball and match Scott L.'s picture of the Qb for this offense, like I said, it's my major concern with Gus.
2). Gus attempts to squeeze the ball into a tightspot way to much, if you watch the film of our preseason games, he attempting to squeeze the ball inbetween one or sometimes two defenders atleast 3 to 4 times per game. Half of me is saying it's because the offensive line makes him throw to early and force the tight squeeze, but the other half of me is saying his vision is just not seeing the real picture on the field. Again, this may because when he was playing with the Vikings, their Wrs, rbs, and te were able to make amazing plays and look good while doing it, but our core of guys are football playing type of guys, not the showtime make 9figures and media lovedoll that are all over the NFL now'a'days.
3). When Gus was flushed out of the pocket in Minny, he had the puzzled look on his face like he was scared or didn't know what to do while running. I truely believe when flushed out of the pocket, the worst in Gus comes out, he will either move around and try to razzle dazzle while doing it or he will launch the ball way to far. He may be able to allude in the pocket, but out of the pocket, Gus is looks like a beat down VW hippie bus.
I would like to add that I am not 100% Gus nor AJ and nor do I think one should start over the other and all that, I set out to give an honest look at our Qbs and with adamprez's help, I do believe that I have managed that.
