I'm all for a 3rd/4th on a QB every 3 years. You need to continually be looking for "that guy." We did it wrong ever since Marino, and that is why we have been looking for a real QB for the last 15 years. You need to make it a part of your institutional plan to do so. It doesn't have to be every 3rd, but between 2 to 4 years...depending on who is coming out and what the last guy is producing...you need to keep doing it. If you don't...you end up like the Dolphins...
These are the QBs that were drafted in the 3rd round or later and were starters at the beginning of the season:
McCown - trying to replace him
Taylor - probably not the long term answer
Romo
Hoyer - in and out of the lineup
Fitzpatrick - career journeyman
Wilson
Brady
Foles - lost starting job
Cousins
That's 4 guys out of probably hundreds of candidates. The odds of hitting one of those guys is tiny. in contrast, 20 of the opening day starters were drafted in the first round with several more in the 2nd round.
You don't find starting QBs late. Draft starting QBs early when you need one. Build a team around him (including a backup QB) until you decide that the starter is not the long term answer. If he isn't, draft another EARLY. Maybe you get lucky and the guy you thought would be your backup becomes the starter (Brady, Cousins, Wilson, Romo) but that cannot be your strategy.
Miami's mistake since Marino was not due to not drafting a QB every few years.
It was NEVER drafting a QB early. They tried the later round picks via the draft or trade for years. It doesn't work. If you try it, you end up like the Dolphins were for so many years.
I cannot understand why this isn't obvious.
---------- Post added at 05:06 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:05 PM ----------
Those QB's are light years ahead of Tannehill, all them have more post season wins (and better record) than the great and magnificent Aaron Rodgers - look it up. Those guys have came up huge in the playoffs, Tannehill cant do that in the regular season when mattered the most.
Sorry, don't agree and neither do most people outside Tannehaterville.