ok, I have read alot of posts on here from people either praising or bashing leinert and almost NONE of them are qualified enough to even be giving an opinion. Being a BIG SC fan as well as a huge fin fan I think I have the ability to give a very accurate and fair review of leinert. Unlike alot of the people on the board, I havent just seen a handful of matt's games.... I have seen every single one.... above that I also saw him 3 games in high school.... above even that I have been an SC fan for 25 years, and therefore have also seen all but 2 of carson palmer's games,etc etc. ... First off I would like to say ANYONE who is comparing leinert to the likes of andre ware, josh huepel, or ken dorsey have no idea what they are talking about. They either havent seen matt play more than a game or two or they are making statements with absolutely no foundation. I have seen alot of posts asking for a comparison of carson palmer to matt leinert, so here it goes...
ARM STRENGTH- Carson has and has always had one of the finest arms I have seen. maybe not dan marino or warren moon, but in todays NFL standards he has a rifle. Matt leinert doesnt have that kind of arm, no news flash there but he IS NOT josh huepel either. Matt wont be throwing brett favre type rifles to his recievers in themid range passing game, he simply doesnt have that kind of ability. This being said, matt still has a good arm... matt actually EXCELS at throwing the ball downfield. His lack of a marino type arm has never kept him from throw the ball deep down the field. I think he has every bit the arm strength of a alex smith, brian griese, tom brady or even (gasp!) a peyton manning. If everyone remembers correctly, one of the biggest knocks on peyton coming out to the NFL was his arm strength.... and I see leinert evaluated in a simliar way. Peyton wasnt known for the zip he put on the ball either, but it never hindered him now or then on throwing the ball deep down the field. Matt is the same way, he doesnt have great zip but he can deliver a big throw down the field.....
ACCURACY- Carson was a VERY streaky QB at USC when it came to accuracy. SC fans and coaches always expected alot of carson, even as a freshman but he was prone to going through extended periods of inaccuracy right up until midway through his senior year. It took carson awhile to get get the idea of putting the right kind of "touch" on certain throws. Even now when I watch carson I see a couple throws that he still struggles with his touch on. As for Leinert, in my book, he is the king of the touch thrown. What he does so well, is put the ball where he only gives his reciever a chance to catch it. He is also a master at being able to throw the ball to places where he can hit his reciever in stride, which in turn gives the WR a chance to make plays down the field after the catch. Matt is simply the best I have ever seen at this at USC or almost anywhere else... he is the most accurate QB at his age I have probably ever seen ....
INTELLIGENCE/DECISION MAKING- This was the biggest downfall for carson at USC as almost any true trojan fan will tell you. Carson could make the big play and then on the next play make a throwing a decision that would almost make you choke on your bratwurst. It was something as a fan, that would always be in the back of your mind in any SC game with carson at QB. there would be almost no doubt he was gonna thrown for close to 300 yeard with a couple TD'S (especially his jr and sr years) but when was bad decision carson going to rear its ugly head.... we almost would wait for it every game. Now to leinert...I can say this is one problem we have never had. Most of matt's INT's come from tipped or dropped balls.... he rarely ever makes a bad decision on where to throw the football. Part of this is because he has alot of playmakers around him, but part of it is because he simply a very quick and smart decision maker. This is one spot where Matt is simply head and shoulders above carson. Matt also is a great student of the game and has the ability to call his own plays at the line. He is VERY peyton-esk at the line of scrimmage, he can audible to the right play and knows how to read a defense.... IMO this is matt's greatest future strength, he will be able to be a great field general and knows what plays to call to beat the defensive formation.
POCKET PRESENCE/SCRAMBLING- ok I am running out of time so I am combining this and making it a rather quick analysis. Carson, while not a classic scrambler was excellent at buying time in the pocket, making the first rusher miss and zipping the ball around the field. MANY MANY a yard was made this way with carson at SC. He would buy his WR's a little extra time to get open and fire away. Matt is NOT very fleet of foot and I think it will show some early in his NFL career while he catches up to the speed of the game. But matt does a great job of staying in the pocket, and delivering the ball with the rush in his face. Simply MATT makes some very very gutsy throws and take some big hits for it.... good news is the matt is a VERY big QB and can absorb some big hits... although I do worry he may get hurt standing in against the rush in the NFL every play.
In short.... I like Leinert more as a player than palmer... I think Matt has the ability to be a great game manager ala tom brady and win football games in many ways....but despite what some believe, he DOES have the ability to take over a game here and there and simply pass his way to victory. Alot has been said about the talent around matt but I will leave you with this.... how many other college QB's have won with almost exclusively younger playmakers around him??? leinert has turned freshman like mike williams and dwayne jarrett into stars as freshmen and sophmores, NOT the other way around.... who was the last QB to basically turn freshman WR to superstars??? and believe me, without leinert those guys never would have made a name for themselves that early...
jim
