GridIronKing34
☠️ Banned ☠️
As a Miami Dolphins fan, you know exactly how important the quarterback position is. We went from our high times of the likes of Bob Griese and Dan Marino to our low times of the likes of Ray Lucas and A.J. Feeley. Lately it seems like we just can't get anything right with the quarterback position. Bring in a big name quarterback through trade? Daunte Culpepper and Trent Green... check. Bring in a quarterback full of potential through trade? A.J. Feeley... check. Free agency? Sage Rosenfels and Gus Frerotte... check. Draft one... Wait? Oh yeah, John Beck... check.
So what's next? So we have any other options? You bet we do. I looked at our options in depth and gave some commentary on what I feel about each.
1. Let John Beck stay for the starting role.
This seems to be very popular among the Dolphins fans are most feel that Beck wasn't given a fair shot. They may be right, they may be wrong. But any football fan could tell that Beck went against some pretty tough odds. His first start was against a blitz happy defense from Philadelphia. The weather wasn't exactly great either. John Beck looked exactly like he was: A rookie quarterback. The next week came and John Beck went up against the likes of another tough defense in Pittsburgh... to make matters worse? Oh I don't know, maybe the three inches of water on the field. That meant lots of running the ball and very little passing for Miami. He also went up against the New York Jets... who pretty much annihilated us. People wanted us to open up the passing game and we did... it proved that Beck really wasn't ready to stand out as a gunslinger quite yet. He threw 3 interceptions that game, whether they were his fault or not, we have to live with them. He was benched in the Buffalo game in favor of Cleo Lemon and he returned for a short stint versus Cincinnati in week 17. Beck threw his first touchdown and showed much more promise that final game. That left us with one question.. is Beck the answer? He has started in 4 games and played in 5 throwing for 559 yards, sacked 10 times, fumbled 7 times and 5 out of those 7 were lost, and threw 1 TD and 3 INTs... which equated to a lovely 66.1 passer rating. Now you're thinking, hey is there really a bright side to this story? You bet there is... John Beck went into that final game versus Cincinnati when Lemon went down and played his best game in his career for the Miami Dolphins. Beck threw for 135 yards and threw one touchdown and ZERO interceptions and was sacked ZERO times but he fumbled once and lost that fumble as well. Maybe that isn't exactly a great game, but it's a great improvement from the past... Beck has shown he has the talent, attitude, and dedication to be a top NFL quarterback, now he just needs to prove it. Can he do it? I think he can, but that's up to the likes of Bill Parcells, Jeff Ireland, and Tony Sparano.
2. Trade our first and third for Derek Anderson.Wait... another trade? Again? I know some of you are wanting to kill me for even bringing this up, but it remains a possibility whether we like it or not. Derek Anderson, quarterback of the Cleveland Browns, came together as a top NFL quarterback for the Browns at the right time leading them to a 10-6 record, narrowly missing the playoffs. He spent his own time throwing for personal achievements that lead to a Pro Bowl appearance. He threw for 3,787 yards, 29 touchdowns and 19 interceptions, while only being brought to the ground 14 times. That equated to an above average passer rating of 82.5 Now this brings me to ask this question... Is Derek Anderson really that good? Or is he just reaping the benefits of having an outstanding offensive line, top ten wide receiver whose potential is sky-high, a top five tight end, and a running back that brings credibility to their run game? I would go with the latter because when you look at Derek Anderson and his teammates, you notice although he has a great offensive line with plenty of time to throw, he still has 19 interceptions. I've seen him play a few times and noticed he makes his fair share of mistakes and many boneheaded plays. Looking through his stats for every game, he threw more touchdowns than interceptions 7 times out of 16 games. Now compare that to some quarterbacks in the league that are more or less considered on the same level as him: Phillip Rivers, David Garrard, Matt Hassellback, and Kurt Warner... Warner: 6/10 for positive TD ratio (I didn't count one start being he had two attempts and felt it was unfair to put in the ratio); Rivers: 7/16... Same as Anderson... but he had 5/7 after the Chambers trade so I think that will bring him up in the long run.; Hassellback: 13/16.. Hassellback did that with much less talent than Anderson; Garrard: 11/11... well I guess that puts Garrard up a tier in the QB position... Basically Anderson is what he is, a quarterback that has little experience and relies on his teammates to make plays for him (like Rivers). Do we have the talent to make Anderson look like he does in Cleveland? Not at all. Braylon Edwards is much better than both Ginn and Booker, I'd take Kellen Winslow over Martin or Peele any day. The Browns offensive line versus Miami's offensive line? Let's not go there... Anderson may not be a bad quarterback for Miami to go after... but looking at that price tag of, likely, a first and third round pick... We best avoid him instead of making the same mistakes in the past.
3. Draft Matt Ryan, quarterback out of Boston College, with our first round selection
Somewhere out there, I hear adamprez2003 cheering... Matt Ryan has great size of an NFL quarterback, standing at 6'5" and weighing in at a hair less than 220. When you look at many quarterbacks such as Dan Marino, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Steve Young, Brett Favre, and John Elway.. They all measure in anywhere from 6'2" to 6'5" and 215lb-230lb. That puts Matt Ryan in the middle for the weight and at the top for height, which definitely isn't a bad thing. Ryan is known for his intelligence, leadership, and throwing mechanics. He is also very passionate about the game of football and like Marino, is a fierce competitor. There are a few drawbacks of Matt Ryan which are his arm strength, not very fast (but quick in the pocket ala Marino), and throws very erratic at times which leads to interceptions. Ryan would normally be an excellent selection for the Miami Dolphins, but with John Beck, last year's second round draft pick, it makes us think twice. That leaves us to decide whether or not Beck is our man and whether Ryan could be our man. I don't know the answer to that, but I do know that Ireland will be looking at this question inside out and he's the guy we have to trust.
4. Take a shot at Brohm or the lower-tier quarterbacks
This is the more likely scenario if we choose to target a quarterback in this years draft. It's not very likely that Brohm drops to our second round selection, but if he does, I am sure he will be given a look. There are many options at quarterback, some of the more popular options are Brian Brohm, Joe Flacco, Erik Ainge, Sam Keller, and Matt Flynn. Each of these quarterbacks would likely go in different rounds and are attainable. I think it would be wise to draft a quarterback this year, maybe not early in the draft, but at the very least, in the later rounds. We cannot go into the season with Trent Green and John Beck. I think we will give another rookie a chance to compete with the other two during training camp. All five of the quarterbacks I listed above have good size, ranging from 6'3" to 6'6" and 220lb to 230lb, and each have their strong points and weak points. I'll go a little more in depth about the five quarterbacks I listed:
--Brian Brohm, quarterback of Louisville, is a first round grade prospect who has great size and great intangibles. He's a much more sound quarterback than most rookies as he throws very little interceptions due to his football knowledge and precise accuracy. He's a pretty decent leader, but injuries has slowed him down which makes some want to steer clear. He could be a franchise quarterback for Miami, but is gambling on his durability worth it?
--Joe Flacco, quarterback of Delaware, is a second-third round grade prospect who also have great size and a lot of upside. He has a great arm and pretty solid accuracy. He's a great leader who lead his team to the DI-AA championship, coming up short versus Appalachian State. When looking at that DI-AA competition though, you really question if he is only as good as his competition. He would be a good prospect to draft if he fell to the forth round or so.
--Erik Ainge, quarterback of Tennessee, is a third-forth round grade prospect who is also blessed with exceptional size and intangibles. His arm strength is a shade above mediocre, but his accuracy is pretty solid. He's somewhat inconsistent with his play and is more of a developmental player. He has been hampered by injuries in the past so he is another player that might not be worth the risk.
--Sam Keller, quarterback of Nebraska is a likely third-forth round grade prospect who could slide higher or lower than he should. He was really hyped up after filling in for Andrew Walters in the Sun Bowl, but never lived up to his potential. He has all the tools to be a solid quarterback in the NFL, but injuries and inconsistency has held him back. He has a strong arm and solid accuracy, as well as pretty good awareness that helps him spread the ball around. He is a boom or bust player and has plenty of upside.
--Matt Flynn, quarterback of LSU is a fifth-sixth round grade prospect who has great size and speed and could be a great quarterback in the NFL. Flynn, a shifty quarterback who can buy time in the pocket, has a strong arm and decent accuracy. One thing stands out about Flynn though, he is a winner. He has lead LSU to many wins against top competition and just lead LSU to a national championship. He could be Miami's target in the later rounds, but nagging injuries will leave him questionable.
5. Sign a free agent quarterback from the streets
I don't really see this happening unless it's a veteran to take Green's place. I really don't see Miami going after a quarterback being there isn't much to choose from. The top quarterbacks are Rex Grossman, Daunte Culpepper, Cleo Lemon, and Billy Volek. None of those really put a sparkle in my eye and they probably won't put a sparkle in the Dolphins front office's eye. This is probably not a likely scenario to occur, but it's very possible.
So what's the choice here? Stick with Beck, trade for Anderson, draft a quarterback, or sign a quarterback through free agency? My take would be sticking with Beck, as Green as the mentor, and Ireland brings in a late round quarterback to compete with Matt Baker as the number three option. This offseason is going to be very interesting and I hope this helps some of you on how the quarterback situation could unfold.
So what's next? So we have any other options? You bet we do. I looked at our options in depth and gave some commentary on what I feel about each.
1. Let John Beck stay for the starting role.
This seems to be very popular among the Dolphins fans are most feel that Beck wasn't given a fair shot. They may be right, they may be wrong. But any football fan could tell that Beck went against some pretty tough odds. His first start was against a blitz happy defense from Philadelphia. The weather wasn't exactly great either. John Beck looked exactly like he was: A rookie quarterback. The next week came and John Beck went up against the likes of another tough defense in Pittsburgh... to make matters worse? Oh I don't know, maybe the three inches of water on the field. That meant lots of running the ball and very little passing for Miami. He also went up against the New York Jets... who pretty much annihilated us. People wanted us to open up the passing game and we did... it proved that Beck really wasn't ready to stand out as a gunslinger quite yet. He threw 3 interceptions that game, whether they were his fault or not, we have to live with them. He was benched in the Buffalo game in favor of Cleo Lemon and he returned for a short stint versus Cincinnati in week 17. Beck threw his first touchdown and showed much more promise that final game. That left us with one question.. is Beck the answer? He has started in 4 games and played in 5 throwing for 559 yards, sacked 10 times, fumbled 7 times and 5 out of those 7 were lost, and threw 1 TD and 3 INTs... which equated to a lovely 66.1 passer rating. Now you're thinking, hey is there really a bright side to this story? You bet there is... John Beck went into that final game versus Cincinnati when Lemon went down and played his best game in his career for the Miami Dolphins. Beck threw for 135 yards and threw one touchdown and ZERO interceptions and was sacked ZERO times but he fumbled once and lost that fumble as well. Maybe that isn't exactly a great game, but it's a great improvement from the past... Beck has shown he has the talent, attitude, and dedication to be a top NFL quarterback, now he just needs to prove it. Can he do it? I think he can, but that's up to the likes of Bill Parcells, Jeff Ireland, and Tony Sparano.
2. Trade our first and third for Derek Anderson.Wait... another trade? Again? I know some of you are wanting to kill me for even bringing this up, but it remains a possibility whether we like it or not. Derek Anderson, quarterback of the Cleveland Browns, came together as a top NFL quarterback for the Browns at the right time leading them to a 10-6 record, narrowly missing the playoffs. He spent his own time throwing for personal achievements that lead to a Pro Bowl appearance. He threw for 3,787 yards, 29 touchdowns and 19 interceptions, while only being brought to the ground 14 times. That equated to an above average passer rating of 82.5 Now this brings me to ask this question... Is Derek Anderson really that good? Or is he just reaping the benefits of having an outstanding offensive line, top ten wide receiver whose potential is sky-high, a top five tight end, and a running back that brings credibility to their run game? I would go with the latter because when you look at Derek Anderson and his teammates, you notice although he has a great offensive line with plenty of time to throw, he still has 19 interceptions. I've seen him play a few times and noticed he makes his fair share of mistakes and many boneheaded plays. Looking through his stats for every game, he threw more touchdowns than interceptions 7 times out of 16 games. Now compare that to some quarterbacks in the league that are more or less considered on the same level as him: Phillip Rivers, David Garrard, Matt Hassellback, and Kurt Warner... Warner: 6/10 for positive TD ratio (I didn't count one start being he had two attempts and felt it was unfair to put in the ratio); Rivers: 7/16... Same as Anderson... but he had 5/7 after the Chambers trade so I think that will bring him up in the long run.; Hassellback: 13/16.. Hassellback did that with much less talent than Anderson; Garrard: 11/11... well I guess that puts Garrard up a tier in the QB position... Basically Anderson is what he is, a quarterback that has little experience and relies on his teammates to make plays for him (like Rivers). Do we have the talent to make Anderson look like he does in Cleveland? Not at all. Braylon Edwards is much better than both Ginn and Booker, I'd take Kellen Winslow over Martin or Peele any day. The Browns offensive line versus Miami's offensive line? Let's not go there... Anderson may not be a bad quarterback for Miami to go after... but looking at that price tag of, likely, a first and third round pick... We best avoid him instead of making the same mistakes in the past.
3. Draft Matt Ryan, quarterback out of Boston College, with our first round selection
Somewhere out there, I hear adamprez2003 cheering... Matt Ryan has great size of an NFL quarterback, standing at 6'5" and weighing in at a hair less than 220. When you look at many quarterbacks such as Dan Marino, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Steve Young, Brett Favre, and John Elway.. They all measure in anywhere from 6'2" to 6'5" and 215lb-230lb. That puts Matt Ryan in the middle for the weight and at the top for height, which definitely isn't a bad thing. Ryan is known for his intelligence, leadership, and throwing mechanics. He is also very passionate about the game of football and like Marino, is a fierce competitor. There are a few drawbacks of Matt Ryan which are his arm strength, not very fast (but quick in the pocket ala Marino), and throws very erratic at times which leads to interceptions. Ryan would normally be an excellent selection for the Miami Dolphins, but with John Beck, last year's second round draft pick, it makes us think twice. That leaves us to decide whether or not Beck is our man and whether Ryan could be our man. I don't know the answer to that, but I do know that Ireland will be looking at this question inside out and he's the guy we have to trust.
4. Take a shot at Brohm or the lower-tier quarterbacks
This is the more likely scenario if we choose to target a quarterback in this years draft. It's not very likely that Brohm drops to our second round selection, but if he does, I am sure he will be given a look. There are many options at quarterback, some of the more popular options are Brian Brohm, Joe Flacco, Erik Ainge, Sam Keller, and Matt Flynn. Each of these quarterbacks would likely go in different rounds and are attainable. I think it would be wise to draft a quarterback this year, maybe not early in the draft, but at the very least, in the later rounds. We cannot go into the season with Trent Green and John Beck. I think we will give another rookie a chance to compete with the other two during training camp. All five of the quarterbacks I listed above have good size, ranging from 6'3" to 6'6" and 220lb to 230lb, and each have their strong points and weak points. I'll go a little more in depth about the five quarterbacks I listed:
--Brian Brohm, quarterback of Louisville, is a first round grade prospect who has great size and great intangibles. He's a much more sound quarterback than most rookies as he throws very little interceptions due to his football knowledge and precise accuracy. He's a pretty decent leader, but injuries has slowed him down which makes some want to steer clear. He could be a franchise quarterback for Miami, but is gambling on his durability worth it?
--Joe Flacco, quarterback of Delaware, is a second-third round grade prospect who also have great size and a lot of upside. He has a great arm and pretty solid accuracy. He's a great leader who lead his team to the DI-AA championship, coming up short versus Appalachian State. When looking at that DI-AA competition though, you really question if he is only as good as his competition. He would be a good prospect to draft if he fell to the forth round or so.
--Erik Ainge, quarterback of Tennessee, is a third-forth round grade prospect who is also blessed with exceptional size and intangibles. His arm strength is a shade above mediocre, but his accuracy is pretty solid. He's somewhat inconsistent with his play and is more of a developmental player. He has been hampered by injuries in the past so he is another player that might not be worth the risk.
--Sam Keller, quarterback of Nebraska is a likely third-forth round grade prospect who could slide higher or lower than he should. He was really hyped up after filling in for Andrew Walters in the Sun Bowl, but never lived up to his potential. He has all the tools to be a solid quarterback in the NFL, but injuries and inconsistency has held him back. He has a strong arm and solid accuracy, as well as pretty good awareness that helps him spread the ball around. He is a boom or bust player and has plenty of upside.
--Matt Flynn, quarterback of LSU is a fifth-sixth round grade prospect who has great size and speed and could be a great quarterback in the NFL. Flynn, a shifty quarterback who can buy time in the pocket, has a strong arm and decent accuracy. One thing stands out about Flynn though, he is a winner. He has lead LSU to many wins against top competition and just lead LSU to a national championship. He could be Miami's target in the later rounds, but nagging injuries will leave him questionable.
5. Sign a free agent quarterback from the streets
I don't really see this happening unless it's a veteran to take Green's place. I really don't see Miami going after a quarterback being there isn't much to choose from. The top quarterbacks are Rex Grossman, Daunte Culpepper, Cleo Lemon, and Billy Volek. None of those really put a sparkle in my eye and they probably won't put a sparkle in the Dolphins front office's eye. This is probably not a likely scenario to occur, but it's very possible.
So what's the choice here? Stick with Beck, trade for Anderson, draft a quarterback, or sign a quarterback through free agency? My take would be sticking with Beck, as Green as the mentor, and Ireland brings in a late round quarterback to compete with Matt Baker as the number three option. This offseason is going to be very interesting and I hope this helps some of you on how the quarterback situation could unfold.
