Cat-of-nine
NEVER MISSED A JAGS HOME GAME
BYRON LEFTWICH :
Overshadowed by Peyton Manning's history-making heroics, Quincy Carter's continued ascendance, and Donovan McNabb's season-long saga, it has been easy to overlook the emergence of something truly big on the NFL's quarterback scene: The dawning of the Byron Leftwich era in Jacksonville.
Leftwich earned his first victory as an NFL starter last week at home against winless San Diego, and Jaguars head coach Jack Del Rio made everyone's foregone conclusion official this week, passing the fulltime starting torch from accomplished veteran Mark Brunell to the big, promising rookie from Marshall.
From the looks of it, it's a well-timed move. Despite not signing until Aug. 12, Leftwich is already drawing rave reviews around the league for his poise, on-field presence and play-making ability. It's not so much the strong numbers in his first two starts, it's the savvy, veteran-like way he has gone about his business in Jacksonville's backfield that has folks duly impressed.
"I'd take him right now over any of the other good young quarterbacks in the league," said one longtime NFL insider. "His future is as good as any of those guys taken in the past five years. He's the total package. He's got tremendous pocket presence. He's poised, you can see he's smart, and the game's not too big for him. He's very, very accurate and he has a terrific arm. He already throws one of the best deep balls in the league.
"Plus he has some other things going for him. He's in an environment where he has a good young offensive coordinator in Bill Musgrave, with a defensive-minded head coach who'll build a defense that will take some pressure off him. He has a staunch backer in [Jaguars general manager] James Harris, and he gets to learn and grow as a quarterback without having to play under all the pressure of being in a major media market. It's a good situation he's in.''
Leftwich, the second quarterback taken in April's draft behind No. 1 overall pick Carson Palmer in Cincinnati, made Del Rio's decision to stick with him against San Diego last Sunday look shrewd. He threw for 336 yards in the 27-21 win over the Chargers, giving Del Rio his first victory as an NFL head coach. Leftwich has thrown for 567 yards in his first two starts, and needs a 305-yard effort at home against Miami this week to beat Vinny Testaverde's 1987 NFL rookie record of 871 yards for his first three starts.
"For that guy to do what he did against us at his age is uncivilized,'' San Diego defensive end Marcellus Wiley said of Leftwich, who was 19-of-28 against the Chargers, with two touchdowns and no interceptions.
Reached on Thursday, Wiley was still raving about the 23-year-old rookie who stands 6-5, 240.
"I got a sack on him and I got some hits in, and so did some other guys, but I mean you gotta jump on his back and say Psalms 23 sometimes,'' Wiley said. "He's a big dude, you know?
"Watching him on film you knew he had talent. But the thing that impressed me the most and surprised us was his patience and confidence in the pocket. Being a rookie quarterback he stood in there and made some great throws. He doesn't seem rattled and he doesn't get happy feet back there. And with that rocket arm, I think he's going to do very well very fast. I know guys who say he should have been the first quarterback taken, and I think he's on a mission to prove that.''
Leftwich went seventh overall, and one can only wonder what the eventual fallout might be in Chicago, where the quarterback-needy Bears at No. 4 traded out of their spot with the Jets, and wound up waiting until the No. 22 slot to select Florida's Rex Grossman.
"I haven't even thought about the other teams and how they had him rated, I'm just happy we have him,'' said Harris, the former NFL quarterback and first-time GM who made drafting Leftwich the signature move of his early Jacksonville tenure. "He was the highest rated guy on our board, and we liked all the intangibles he brought to the position.''
What's not to like so far? Leftwich's 95.8 rating is third best in the league among starters with at least 70 attempts, and his 8.97 yards per pass attempt is the NFL's best. Overall, Leftwich has seen action in four games -- he twice relieved Brunell -- and completed 47 of 77 for 691 yards, with five touchdowns and three interceptions.
He had Jacksonville (1-4) primed to win at Houston two weeks ago, but his fourth-quarter fumble allowed the Texans to come away with the victory on the game's final play. Last week against San Diego, Leftwich got a huge game in receiver Jimmy Smith's return to the lineup (eight catches for 137 yards), and held off a fourth-quarter Chargers rally after helping build a 20-7 lead after three.
"He seems like the real deal, man,'' Texans linebacker Kailee Wong said. "I was really impressed with the guy. We were hoping with him being a rookie, he wouldn't be decisive or in command of the offense, but it was exactly the opposite. He played well against us. He seems like he's going to be something special in this league for a long time to come.''
Which is why Jacksonville is ready to part ways after this season with Brunell, who is really the only quarterback the franchise has ever had.
"Byron was outstanding in college, and he's been outstanding since he's been here,'' Harris said. "He made great throws in college and he has continued to make great throws here. The biggest thing is when you see a guy do it in college, you say, 'Can he convert those type plays to the NFL?' And he has made NFL-type plays and throws since he's been here.
"We're all very pleased with the way that he has played and responded. As a rookie he's been able to come in and play with poise and put the team into position to win. So many rookies get affected by their circumstances of inexperience and a lack of confidence. It's still early for him, and we all realize he's going to have some ups and downs playing the position, but we like his whole package. The package itself attracts you to him in general.''
If there was one thing Leftwich was deemed lacking during the scouting process, it was his mobility. But so far, Leftwich's inability to execute some fancy footwork hasn't led to turning him into a statuesque target in the pocket. He has taken just three sacks in 77 pass attempts, while rushing for only a modest 10 yards on four carries.
It's not a style of game that's going to give Michael Vick and Daunte Culpepper a run for their money, but it'll play as long as Leftwich stays upright and keeps that big right arm of his healthy for every Jaguars game.
"We realized that mobility was one of the areas where he may not have a dominant trait,'' Harris said. "But we thought all the other attributes and qualities were so outstanding that he would be a good pro. In making the decision, we weren't necessarily looking for the best quarterback of all time. We were looking for a player who could be successful and we could win with, and the one we thought had the less chance of failing.''
So far, there's every reason to commend the Jaguars' judgment.
Overshadowed by Peyton Manning's history-making heroics, Quincy Carter's continued ascendance, and Donovan McNabb's season-long saga, it has been easy to overlook the emergence of something truly big on the NFL's quarterback scene: The dawning of the Byron Leftwich era in Jacksonville.
Leftwich earned his first victory as an NFL starter last week at home against winless San Diego, and Jaguars head coach Jack Del Rio made everyone's foregone conclusion official this week, passing the fulltime starting torch from accomplished veteran Mark Brunell to the big, promising rookie from Marshall.
From the looks of it, it's a well-timed move. Despite not signing until Aug. 12, Leftwich is already drawing rave reviews around the league for his poise, on-field presence and play-making ability. It's not so much the strong numbers in his first two starts, it's the savvy, veteran-like way he has gone about his business in Jacksonville's backfield that has folks duly impressed.
"I'd take him right now over any of the other good young quarterbacks in the league," said one longtime NFL insider. "His future is as good as any of those guys taken in the past five years. He's the total package. He's got tremendous pocket presence. He's poised, you can see he's smart, and the game's not too big for him. He's very, very accurate and he has a terrific arm. He already throws one of the best deep balls in the league.
"Plus he has some other things going for him. He's in an environment where he has a good young offensive coordinator in Bill Musgrave, with a defensive-minded head coach who'll build a defense that will take some pressure off him. He has a staunch backer in [Jaguars general manager] James Harris, and he gets to learn and grow as a quarterback without having to play under all the pressure of being in a major media market. It's a good situation he's in.''
Leftwich, the second quarterback taken in April's draft behind No. 1 overall pick Carson Palmer in Cincinnati, made Del Rio's decision to stick with him against San Diego last Sunday look shrewd. He threw for 336 yards in the 27-21 win over the Chargers, giving Del Rio his first victory as an NFL head coach. Leftwich has thrown for 567 yards in his first two starts, and needs a 305-yard effort at home against Miami this week to beat Vinny Testaverde's 1987 NFL rookie record of 871 yards for his first three starts.
"For that guy to do what he did against us at his age is uncivilized,'' San Diego defensive end Marcellus Wiley said of Leftwich, who was 19-of-28 against the Chargers, with two touchdowns and no interceptions.
Reached on Thursday, Wiley was still raving about the 23-year-old rookie who stands 6-5, 240.
"I got a sack on him and I got some hits in, and so did some other guys, but I mean you gotta jump on his back and say Psalms 23 sometimes,'' Wiley said. "He's a big dude, you know?
"Watching him on film you knew he had talent. But the thing that impressed me the most and surprised us was his patience and confidence in the pocket. Being a rookie quarterback he stood in there and made some great throws. He doesn't seem rattled and he doesn't get happy feet back there. And with that rocket arm, I think he's going to do very well very fast. I know guys who say he should have been the first quarterback taken, and I think he's on a mission to prove that.''
Leftwich went seventh overall, and one can only wonder what the eventual fallout might be in Chicago, where the quarterback-needy Bears at No. 4 traded out of their spot with the Jets, and wound up waiting until the No. 22 slot to select Florida's Rex Grossman.
"I haven't even thought about the other teams and how they had him rated, I'm just happy we have him,'' said Harris, the former NFL quarterback and first-time GM who made drafting Leftwich the signature move of his early Jacksonville tenure. "He was the highest rated guy on our board, and we liked all the intangibles he brought to the position.''
What's not to like so far? Leftwich's 95.8 rating is third best in the league among starters with at least 70 attempts, and his 8.97 yards per pass attempt is the NFL's best. Overall, Leftwich has seen action in four games -- he twice relieved Brunell -- and completed 47 of 77 for 691 yards, with five touchdowns and three interceptions.
He had Jacksonville (1-4) primed to win at Houston two weeks ago, but his fourth-quarter fumble allowed the Texans to come away with the victory on the game's final play. Last week against San Diego, Leftwich got a huge game in receiver Jimmy Smith's return to the lineup (eight catches for 137 yards), and held off a fourth-quarter Chargers rally after helping build a 20-7 lead after three.
"He seems like the real deal, man,'' Texans linebacker Kailee Wong said. "I was really impressed with the guy. We were hoping with him being a rookie, he wouldn't be decisive or in command of the offense, but it was exactly the opposite. He played well against us. He seems like he's going to be something special in this league for a long time to come.''
Which is why Jacksonville is ready to part ways after this season with Brunell, who is really the only quarterback the franchise has ever had.
"Byron was outstanding in college, and he's been outstanding since he's been here,'' Harris said. "He made great throws in college and he has continued to make great throws here. The biggest thing is when you see a guy do it in college, you say, 'Can he convert those type plays to the NFL?' And he has made NFL-type plays and throws since he's been here.
"We're all very pleased with the way that he has played and responded. As a rookie he's been able to come in and play with poise and put the team into position to win. So many rookies get affected by their circumstances of inexperience and a lack of confidence. It's still early for him, and we all realize he's going to have some ups and downs playing the position, but we like his whole package. The package itself attracts you to him in general.''
If there was one thing Leftwich was deemed lacking during the scouting process, it was his mobility. But so far, Leftwich's inability to execute some fancy footwork hasn't led to turning him into a statuesque target in the pocket. He has taken just three sacks in 77 pass attempts, while rushing for only a modest 10 yards on four carries.
It's not a style of game that's going to give Michael Vick and Daunte Culpepper a run for their money, but it'll play as long as Leftwich stays upright and keeps that big right arm of his healthy for every Jaguars game.
"We realized that mobility was one of the areas where he may not have a dominant trait,'' Harris said. "But we thought all the other attributes and qualities were so outstanding that he would be a good pro. In making the decision, we weren't necessarily looking for the best quarterback of all time. We were looking for a player who could be successful and we could win with, and the one we thought had the less chance of failing.''
So far, there's every reason to commend the Jaguars' judgment.
and insulting at the same time ! Usually a rookie qb plays a 16 game schedule before he is compared to HOFmers ....