cltchperf
Pro Bowler
- Joined
- May 12, 2005
- Messages
- 10,570
- Reaction score
- 6,236
I read an article on phinfever.com, where you can look at it yourself below "latest headlines", even though I'm going to put the whole article down. It is an optimistic article, the guy wasn't saying that anything was going to happen, but it isn't possible, or it is quite possible for Frerrote or Feeley to do well in Miami, and he backs this up with good stats, similar situations, comparisons with Feeley/Frerotte with two other good qbs. Well here's the article:
GANNON OR HASSELBECK, ANYONE?
The consensus is that neither Frerotte nor Feeley represents the future for the Dolphins. However, each has a successful historical precedent to suggest that he might be the answer at QB beyond 2005.
Oh, I know, the odds are against it, but this is the eve of training camp. The time for optimism. Hell, last year at this time, I was pointing to an incredibly soft schedule as a reason that we just might win in spite of Wannstedt’s rehiring.
In spite of what followed that suggestion, I’m willing to try again, if you’re still reading:
The second coming of…..Rich Gannon?
Rich Gannon was a 32 year old journeyman QB in 1997, with a largely undistinguished 10 year career behind him in Minnesota, Washington and Kansas City. Then a funny thing happened late in the 1997 season: given the opportunity to fill in for the injured Elvis Grbac, Gannon rallied the Chiefs to 5 late season wins to complete a 13-3 season.
Though he was passed over for the playoff start (which the Chiefs lost), Gannon had shown one observer that he’d finally found the perfect system for his talents, the West Coast offense. That observer was Jon Gruden, who brought him to Oakland in 1999 as the starter after Gannon split time for one more season (12 starts) in Kansas City. The ultimate late bloomer, Gannon started 64 consecutive games over the next 4 seasons and led the Raiders to a Super Bowl and to 3 consecutive division championships.
In other words, the Rich Gannon of late 1997 looked an awful lot like the Gus Frerotte of the Minnesota Vikings, circa 2003/2004.
Frerotte’s TD/INT ratio entering his Minnesota stint: 70/68. Gannon’s from 1987-96: 49/44. Frerotte’s total starts entering his Miami stint: 64. Gannon’s total starts heading into Oakland: 58. Gannon turned 34 his first season in Oakland. Frerotte turns 34 on July 31st.
Frerotte’s career was just as undistinguished as Gannon’s during his first 10 seasons. But he looked like a different player in the QB-friendly offense run by Scott Linehan in Minnesota during his limited opportunity there, with a QB rating of 118 and over 10 yards per attempt in leading the Vikings to consecutive victories while Culpepper nursed a cracked bone in his back in 2003.
Is Frerotte just a journeyman who had the good fortune to start against a couple of lousy defenses in Culpepper’s absence? Or did he finally find the perfect system for his talents in his early 30’s, the same way Rich Gannon did?
The odds are against it at this late date, but as Rich Gannon showed, it isn’t impossible. Gus Frerotte could….could……be more than a stopgap if he wins the job. IF Scott Linehan is his Gruden.
The second coming of……Matt Hasselbeck?
Matt Hasselbeck developed behind Bret Favre in the Green Bay version of the West Coast offense; the same version that Andy Reid took with him to the Philadelphia Eagles, where he drafted A. J. Feeley as a developmental QB behind the similarly entrenched Donovan McNabb.
Feeley and Hasselbeck were both traded for a high draft pick, as was the pattern that Ron Wolf established in Green Bay (Mark Brunell, Ty Detmer, Aaron Brooks).
Unfortunately, neither did well in his first season after the trade. While Feeley’s struggles during the 2004 season are well documented, few remember now that Matt Hasselbeck had a lousy first season in Seattle after his 2001 trade.
Hasselbeck was acquired to start, but soon lost his job to journeyman Trent Dilfer in 2001, throwing 8 INT’s to only 7 TD’s, completing only 54.8 percent of his passes and being thoroughly outplayed by Dilfer, who won all 4 of his late-season starts and posted superior stats across the board. Subsequently, Hasselback started the 2002 season, his second in
Seattle, on the bench.
The same place that A. J. Feeley is expected to start his second Dolphins’ season, after throwing more INT’s than TD’s (11/15 ratio, to be exact) and going 3-6 as a starter last season (Hasselbeck in 2001: 5-7).
But the light bulb came on for Hasselbeck in season two, at age 27, after he received a second chance when an Achilles injury ended Dilfer's 2002 season. Hasselbeck improved in all areas; the benching seemed to awaken him. He completed 63 percent of his passes over the final 10 games of the 2002 season, and posted 15 TD passes to only 10 INT’s.
Since turning the corner he’s started 40 games in Seattle, with a TD/INT ratio of 63/40, and the Seahawks are coming off back to back playoff appearances. Once the light bulb came on, it stayed on.
Can it turn on for Feeley, at a similar point in his career? He’s entering his 5th season, the same season that Hasselbeck put it all together in 2002. Since Feeley is also expected to open the season on the bench, maybe he will stage a similar rally.
GANNON OR HASSELBECK, ANYONE?
The consensus is that neither Frerotte nor Feeley represents the future for the Dolphins. However, each has a successful historical precedent to suggest that he might be the answer at QB beyond 2005.
Oh, I know, the odds are against it, but this is the eve of training camp. The time for optimism. Hell, last year at this time, I was pointing to an incredibly soft schedule as a reason that we just might win in spite of Wannstedt’s rehiring.
In spite of what followed that suggestion, I’m willing to try again, if you’re still reading:
The second coming of…..Rich Gannon?
Rich Gannon was a 32 year old journeyman QB in 1997, with a largely undistinguished 10 year career behind him in Minnesota, Washington and Kansas City. Then a funny thing happened late in the 1997 season: given the opportunity to fill in for the injured Elvis Grbac, Gannon rallied the Chiefs to 5 late season wins to complete a 13-3 season.
Though he was passed over for the playoff start (which the Chiefs lost), Gannon had shown one observer that he’d finally found the perfect system for his talents, the West Coast offense. That observer was Jon Gruden, who brought him to Oakland in 1999 as the starter after Gannon split time for one more season (12 starts) in Kansas City. The ultimate late bloomer, Gannon started 64 consecutive games over the next 4 seasons and led the Raiders to a Super Bowl and to 3 consecutive division championships.
In other words, the Rich Gannon of late 1997 looked an awful lot like the Gus Frerotte of the Minnesota Vikings, circa 2003/2004.
Frerotte’s TD/INT ratio entering his Minnesota stint: 70/68. Gannon’s from 1987-96: 49/44. Frerotte’s total starts entering his Miami stint: 64. Gannon’s total starts heading into Oakland: 58. Gannon turned 34 his first season in Oakland. Frerotte turns 34 on July 31st.
Frerotte’s career was just as undistinguished as Gannon’s during his first 10 seasons. But he looked like a different player in the QB-friendly offense run by Scott Linehan in Minnesota during his limited opportunity there, with a QB rating of 118 and over 10 yards per attempt in leading the Vikings to consecutive victories while Culpepper nursed a cracked bone in his back in 2003.
Is Frerotte just a journeyman who had the good fortune to start against a couple of lousy defenses in Culpepper’s absence? Or did he finally find the perfect system for his talents in his early 30’s, the same way Rich Gannon did?
The odds are against it at this late date, but as Rich Gannon showed, it isn’t impossible. Gus Frerotte could….could……be more than a stopgap if he wins the job. IF Scott Linehan is his Gruden.
The second coming of……Matt Hasselbeck?
Matt Hasselbeck developed behind Bret Favre in the Green Bay version of the West Coast offense; the same version that Andy Reid took with him to the Philadelphia Eagles, where he drafted A. J. Feeley as a developmental QB behind the similarly entrenched Donovan McNabb.
Feeley and Hasselbeck were both traded for a high draft pick, as was the pattern that Ron Wolf established in Green Bay (Mark Brunell, Ty Detmer, Aaron Brooks).
Unfortunately, neither did well in his first season after the trade. While Feeley’s struggles during the 2004 season are well documented, few remember now that Matt Hasselbeck had a lousy first season in Seattle after his 2001 trade.
Hasselbeck was acquired to start, but soon lost his job to journeyman Trent Dilfer in 2001, throwing 8 INT’s to only 7 TD’s, completing only 54.8 percent of his passes and being thoroughly outplayed by Dilfer, who won all 4 of his late-season starts and posted superior stats across the board. Subsequently, Hasselback started the 2002 season, his second in
Seattle, on the bench.
The same place that A. J. Feeley is expected to start his second Dolphins’ season, after throwing more INT’s than TD’s (11/15 ratio, to be exact) and going 3-6 as a starter last season (Hasselbeck in 2001: 5-7).
But the light bulb came on for Hasselbeck in season two, at age 27, after he received a second chance when an Achilles injury ended Dilfer's 2002 season. Hasselbeck improved in all areas; the benching seemed to awaken him. He completed 63 percent of his passes over the final 10 games of the 2002 season, and posted 15 TD passes to only 10 INT’s.
Since turning the corner he’s started 40 games in Seattle, with a TD/INT ratio of 63/40, and the Seahawks are coming off back to back playoff appearances. Once the light bulb came on, it stayed on.
Can it turn on for Feeley, at a similar point in his career? He’s entering his 5th season, the same season that Hasselbeck put it all together in 2002. Since Feeley is also expected to open the season on the bench, maybe he will stage a similar rally.
