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The QB I want

CJGoCanes

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Erik Ainge

I really don't know how he is rated as a 4th-5th rounder. He's 6'6 230 pounds. He's got a stong arm, with a quick release. He's started for Tennessee for 4 years in the toughest division in college. He's faced the best defenses in the country each week for 4 years. He's really bright and a real student of the game, with a great work ethic. He's the leader a QB should be. He comes from an athletic pedigree (his uncle is Danny Ainge) and was a star basketball player. He leads his team in pressure situations (4 OT game versus Kentucky, last 85 yard drive with time expiring in the Senior Bowl). He has learned under David Cutcliffe for the last 2 years, bringing his game to another level. Cutcliffe has coached both the Mannings, Heath Shuler and Brady Quinn for a while. Here is what Cutcliffe has to say about Ainge:

He's been a very good student in the two-year period I had him. ... I was fortunate to have the others for four or five years, I had Heath for three years. I inherited Erik. The biggest thing we had to work on was his accuracy and decision-making, and his knowledge of defensive football. He went from a sophomore year being a 47 percent passer to 67 percent his junior year. Then, he lost all his receivers as a senior, and did a good job of doing what we asked him to do. We got him to make good decisions and improve his pocket presence. In 328 drops, he only gave up three sacks, that's an incredible stat. I think Erik's best football is in front of him. Has he done it all yet? No. But he will be prepared and continue to improve. ... What you do with accuracy is build it through knowledge and decision-making. No one's accurate when they're not sure what they're doing. It was moving it back to ground zero with his mechanics. He always had a big arm, but there were issues with his feet. We took him literally from the ground up, working with footwork and mechanics. And with that, his accuracy improved. He had natural gifts with arm and size. ... I think (leadership) develops, I think you earn respect. He knew the right things to do. He didn't know how to go about it all the time. But his work ethic was there, and his knowledge of the game improved. You have to earn (a place as a leader). Over the two-year period I was there, those skills really increased in him. That's not learned, it's earned. ... He's got very similar arm (to the best I've coached). He's got the ability to throw it wherever he wants, he's similar to all of them that way. He's got a big-league arm. He's 6-6, 225, so that's there with plenty of arm strength. He was a two-year project, where we generally had more time with the others. ... I think he needed to get better getting a rhythm, a tempo, and working with his alignment. He's very athletic, sometimes too athletic. He was a basketball player, and you can shoot a basketball about 100 different ways. You can't throw a football 100 different ways. There were times where he tried to be too creative, and did things he shouldn't have, throwing from angles. Once he settled that down, and learned to quiet his lower body, he was better. ... I thought the biggest challenge going into his senior year was that he was working completely new starters that hadn't caught passes from him. He did a great job of training those guys, showing them what was expected over the summer. It was pretty phenomenal what occurred,. We had three or four receivers really succeed under his tutelage. That says a lot about your senior quarterback. He got us in the SEC Championship Game and that league, and I'm not in it anymore, is absolutely a defensive football league. It's not an easy task to do what he did. ... First of all, with him, his knowledge of defensive football improved through his discipline studying every day. And he started believing it, truly believing in what we were trying to do. He did a nice job. You pull tape on anybody at quarterback, in any league, and there are times you're gonna look bad. You gotta minimize those times. He did a good job with that. He'll get better at that. One of the biggest differences he'll have in the pros is what's covered in the college game, a lot of times, is open in the NFL. He'll have to learn that. ... He's smart, he wants to please. He has very high character, people don't have to worry about him. He's a pretty mature young man, he never redshirted, so he's still young. Someone's gonna get a bargain in him. ... Ideally, you'd want anybody want to sit and learn the game from the sidelines. But when somebody drafts a quarterback, they want him to play. I was around Brady Quinn, and I thought he was a guy who was going to be ready right away. But he benefits from sitting and watching too. Erik's mature, focused, and bright. He could surprise some people. Someone's getting a good, solid player, who's been around a lot of football. ... It's hard to compare people to the Mannings, they're once-in-a-lifetime, but he's that kind of player. He's smart, very fast-thinking, he processes information quick. He's there with them size-wise too. Do I compare anyone to those two? No. But Erik can do outstanding things as well. ... I think he probably needs to continue to know when to take risks. Erik's played a lot of football, but really came into his own the last year and a half, he started to see the big picture of game. The other thing is getting comfortable with pocket movement. Some of the great ones, they make great plays with subtle movements in pocket. A lot of people think that the great athletes tuck it and run, but that's not always true. A lot of times, the best athletes make the subtle movements in the pocket, so they're always in position to make the great throw. He's still working on that. ... He's an outstanding guy, couldn't be a better person. He's fun to be around. And he really matured over the last two years. He's a bright guy who people naturally like.
http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2008/04/dallas-cowboys-nfl-draft-series-tennesse-1.html

The only downsides people have are that he's not extremely athletic (but he is athletic enough to make plays), he can't throw on the run as good, and he's been banged up (after 4 years in the SEC I would expect that). Get him in here, build him up, coach him up, and he will be a star.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swirXvK-cAg
 
Im not sure how i feel about taking a qb but I like ainge. Not as much as I like brohm but ainge will be around later in the draft
 
would not mind...

i have no problem grabbing a QB in that range, Ainge, Flynn, Johnson, etc
 
+1 on Ainge. I can see him possibly becoming another Anderson/Schaub in a few years.

If we don't take Henne or Brohm at 32 (and I'd prefer Cason in that spot if he's available), then that obviously speaks volumes about how Bill/Jeff/Tony feel about Beck and I think they'd be targeting Ainge in the later rounds. Our current 4th rounder might be a little high based on where Ainge is projected to go, so we might need to trade down once or twice to get a pick somewhere between late 4th and late 5th.

No matter what, I don't see how we could possibly come out of this draft without another QB since we only have 2 QBs on the roster (other than the camp arms that won't make it).
 
A lot of people are sleeping on Ainge, and that's mistake. This guy presents great value at where he'll be selected.
 
I've always liked Ainge. He fits the mold of a lanky guy who will mature late.

A whip arm combined with touch. Once I see that I'm paying attention, and not carried away by all the knocks. Matt Ryan would be a simple choice at #1 if he had Ainge's arm.

There's no doubt Ainge would be slotted much higher if his receivers had returned in '07, a point Cutcliffe made. Last season I'd watch him hesitate and get sacked, when the young receivers were struggling to get open, or understand their responsibility.

He beat a good Wisconsin team in the bowl game, a program that generally is very well prepared and plays it best in bowl games. I'm not going to overlook that. It was the only loser in my system of taking the higher rated team from Sporting News preseason rankings, if it is a bowl game underdog. Only Ainge beat me, among 8 in the sample.

He'll go higher than expected.
 
Erik Ainge

I really don't know how he is rated as a 4th-5th rounder. He's 6'6 230 pounds. He's got a stong arm, with a quick release. He's started for Tennessee for 4 years in the toughest division in college. He's faced the best defenses in the country each week for 4 years. He's really bright and a real student of the game, with a great work ethic. He's the leader a QB should be. He comes from an athletic pedigree (his uncle is Danny Ainge) and was a star basketball player. He leads his team in pressure situations (4 OT game versus Kentucky, last 85 yard drive with time expiring in the Senior Bowl). He has learned under David Cutcliffe for the last 2 years, bringing his game to another level. Cutcliffe has coached both the Mannings, Heath Shuler and Brady Quinn for a while. Here is what Cutcliffe has to say about Ainge:


http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2008/04/dallas-cowboys-nfl-draft-series-tennesse-1.html

The only downsides people have are that he's not extremely athletic (but he is athletic enough to make plays), he can't throw on the run as good, and he's been banged up (after 4 years in the SEC I would expect that). Get him in here, build him up, coach him up, and he will be a star.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swirXvK-cAg


I think if we are to any QB at all it should be E.Ainge, he's got everything going for him as well as any other of the QB's in the draft. I liked him before and can't understand why he's considered so low in the draft.

I read an article recently at http://BrainTypes.com-Brain Typing Discovers Quarterback Phenom and talks about certain Brain Types turn out to be great QB's. E.Ainge is the same as P.Manning and other greats before him. The guy predicted before their draft that R.Leaf would be a bust and P.Manning would be great. Now of course take this with a grain of salt but it does make sense to a certain degree.

I even think I sound like a wack job typing this but he's worth a look if we get a 5th somehow. It just shows you different ways to look at the differences between players besides stats and measurables.
 
Ainge is the IDEAL QB to draft . . . unfortunately . . . he more than likely will be gone by the time we pick in the 6th round.

Don't be suprised if we trade that first 3rd round pick and pick up another 3rd rounder and a late fourth or early 5th in the process . . . maybe more. Ainge would more than likely be considered in those circumstances.
 
I'd rather wait later and get Dennis Dixon. It's a guy who could possibly fail in the NFL, but we need to take care of all kinds of things before we get a QB anyway.
 
I'd rather wait later and get Dennis Dixon. It's a guy who could possibly fail in the NFL, but we need to take care of all kinds of things before we get a QB anyway.

Nah we have ZERO QB's behind Beck and McCown . . . this would be the PERFECT spot to take a late round QB and develop him just in case. I think Parcells will do just that.
 
ainge is a bum.

Analysis
Positives: Needs to add muscle tone, but has a frame that can carry at least another 10 pounds of bulk, good arm length and good-sized hands...Classic pocket passer who is very good at dealing with the mental side of the game, as he does a good job of scanning the field and attacking the soft spots, when he does not try to get too creative (will force throws because of confidence in his arm strength, but due to low trajectory, a good portion of his passes have been intercepted)...Smart, instinctive athlete with a good grasp of the playbook...Puts in the extra hours studying game film and is a respected team leader...Good program player with an easy-going personality...Lacks speed to escape pocket pressure, but is adequate driving back from center to his throwing point...Has a quick over-the-top release that helps him compensate for poor foot speed...Has marginal timed speed, but shows decent quickness driving away from center...Has adequate base and balance, but shows decent arm whip to get the ball out quickly...Puts good velocity on his deep throws and knows how to vary speed on those tosses to squeeze passes through tight spaces...Better when he stands in the pocket than when throwing from the outside hashes, as he does a nice job of scanning the field and making progression reads...Can hit his targets without the receiver having to make adjustments when throwing into the short area, but needs to do it with more consistency (more of a rhythm passer)...Has some hip rotation to put zip on his short throws, showing good touch in this area, especially on swing passes and screens...Utilizes all of his targets and is patient waiting for the play to develop, doing a nice job of looking off his primary target and locating his secondary receivers...Not really a vocal leader, but he has earned respect and is a good communicator who has control of the huddle...With his height, he is efficient looking over the line and making quick pre-snap decisions...Doesn't show consistency on the fade and deep routes, but does have the arm strength to air it out (needs to refine his foot mechanics)...Times his short-to-intermediate passes well, generally hitting receivers coming out of their breaks...Uses his over-the-top release to get the ball out quickly when the pocket is collapsing...Carries the ball chest-high and, when he plants to throw, he can unload the deep pass...In 2007, he showed much better timing on his throws, as he has seemed to have learned the concept of making good progression reads...Has decent touch on his vertical throws, but when he throws off the wrong foot, the ball will float.


Negatives: Has a tall, slender frame, built more in the lines of a basketball forward than a football player...Has marginal muscle tone and definition with slender shoulders, but has a frame that can carry additional bulk...Displays marginal quickness on the move and loses accuracy when forced to throw when flushed out of the pocket...Does not have the speed to be a valid threat carrying the ball...Not the type of athlete that can play through pain and there are questions about his physical and mental toughness...Has good arm strength, but it is not always evident in his long throws, as he puts a lot of air behind those tosses and fails to place it along the outside shoulder of his target...Has an adequate feel for pressure and looks sluggish when sliding to avoid it...Lacks the loose hips to avoid the pass rush and does a poor job of setting his feet before throwing when flushed...Can put air behind his deep throws, but needs to step into those attempts better (will throw off his back foot at times), as he throws a lot of passes that are easily deflected due to low trajectory (had 51 throws deflected in 2007)...Has had a series of minor lingering injuries, raising durability concerns...When he stands in the pocket too long, it is because he fails to sense backside pressure...Must do a better job selling pump fakes; defensive backs don't usually bite...Needs to learn how to step up and out of the pocket, as his accuracy suffers on the move...Improved his foot mechanics as a senior, but when he fails to set his feet, he struggles with the follow through on his pass attempts...Will get into a rhythm where he misfires, but rather than hand the ball off, he will continue to fire into spots.


Compares To: KEN DORSEY-Cleveland...With his lanky frame, Ainge is in dire need of a weight trainer to add bulk and strength. He lacks the foot speed to elude pocket pressure and his accuracy suffers when forced to throw after being flushed out of the pocket. He is a precise short-to-intermediate passer, but even though he puts a lot of air behind his deep throws, he fails to place it over the outside shoulder of his target. Because of his slight frame, he has had a fair share of injuries, but he is slow to recover, making one wonder if he has the physical and mental toughness to be more than a clipboard holder at the next level, much like Dorsey.
 
Erik Ainge

I really don't know how he is rated as a 4th-5th rounder.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swirXvK-cAg

I don't get it either, Brodie Croyle went late first or early second last year. I'm from SEC country and I don't know anyone including Bama fans who think Brodie is/was better than Ainge. He would be a steal in the Fourth or Fifth. That said I'm still all for taking Brohm if he falls to us (nothing against Beck I just think we should hedge our bets at the most important position on the field)
 
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