The Case for Bradford
by TheQ on Dec 6, 2008 10:09 AM CST
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PrintI want to preface this post by making one thing clear: I am a Missouri Tiger fan. I will try to keep that in mind this Saturday night as they match up against the Oklahoma Sooners in the Big 12 Championship game at Arrowhead Stadium. My favorite college quarterback is playing (bum thumb and all) and he doesn't play for the Tigers.
I should also say that I was never a "Croyle Believer" or thought that Damon Huard had a few good years left in him when the season started. And Herm forbid that I naysay the gospel that Thigpen is spreading (the guy's playing pretty darn good). But has he completely negated the need for a QB? Forgive me for being skeptical, but even if you have a Tom Brady there is no guarantee that an injury won't derail your Super Bowl hopes. Looking at prospective college quarterbacks, I for one think Bradford is going to be a special quarterback at the next level.
Through 12 games, Bradford has completed 68% of his passes for 4080 yards with 46 touchdowns against only 6 interceptions. He set the freshman record last year with 36 touchdowns and led the nation in passing efficiency with a 176.53 rating (ahead of Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow). This year he has a 190.97 rating and is a front runner to win the Heisman along with fellow Big 12 athlete Colt McCoy. Although McCoy has arguably done more for his team this year, won the head to head match-up, and was named to the Big 12's 1st team offense (Bradford was the 2nd team QB), Bradford is by and large favored to win the Heisman. Another one of college football's many strange quirks that I just don't understand.
In the "Year of the Quarterback" in the Big 12 with guys like McCoy, Daniel, Harrell, and Freeman, I think that Sam Bradford is going to end up being the best NFL Quarterback of the bunch. He was the only one of those guys that played in a Pro Style offense in college, albeit with a bunch of NFL caliber players that helped him look really good, like Gresham and Iglesias. If the "Arrowspread" continues to enjoy success we may actually be better off with a Spread QB like Harrell? But if I had to wager who would end up being a potential Peyton Manning or Tom Brady, I would bet on Bradford. He is accurate, smart, competitive, 6'4" ,220#s and has loads of potential. We have just 2 more games to judge this young QB's play and one of those just might be the BCS Championship Game.
Now I completely realize that the Chiefs have needs all over the field, and we could see more instant gratification by drafting some more beef on the O line or speed on the D line. Believe me, I could make excellent cases for drafting Andre Smith or Brian Orakpo in the first round too. But after sitting through a few seasons of average to no quarterback play, keep in mind at one point this last season there was some desperate talk of signing one Daunte Culpepper, how can we not put enough emphasis on the quarterback position?
There is plenty of time to debate and decide on the Kansas City Chiefs #1 overall pick in the '09 Draft. Cases will be made for linebackers, defensive ends, and offensive lineman, and many would actually be mad or sad that we passed on a "sure thing" lineman or the next great LB. There will be the inevitable argument about the 50/50 proposition that drafting a 1st round QB is. There is a long list of QBs that we could take a flyer on in later rounds with much less financial risk and much lower expectations.
The Thigpen Gamble is currently being hashed and processed in the minds of personnel people within the Chiefs organization. This will definitely play a part in what we do next April, and I by no means wish to belittle what Bones has been able to do since he has been given the chance. I think the thing that impresses me the most about Thigpen is how quickly he seems to learn on the job. If he continues on this pace, we truly may not need another QB? At the very least I think we have a solid #2. But if I were jumping out of an airplane, I wouldn't do it without a parachute, and it better be a damn good one! In my mind it is time to bite the bullett, roll the dice, do five more cliched things that don't have anything to do with football, and draft a quarterback. I would like to hear which quarterbacks (if any) everyone likes coming out in next year's draft and why?
This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Arrowhead Pride's writers or editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of Arrowhead Pride writers or editors.
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Everything we do in free agency
will dictate the draft needs. That being said, I agree we need to draft a QB at some point this coming Spring. However, who we get will depend on where we end up picking them up and who is available at that point.
We need a future defensive leader, his name is James Laurinaitis and he can be selected in round 1 of the upcoming Draft.
"But what do I know, I’m like an empty room with a large ECHO"
Totally agree, and I completely hope we go after some free agents this offseason
It is difficult to zero in on one position since we have so many needs, but I just feel like Bradford is good enough that I would hate to miss on him. But there are plenty of other QBs to be had throughout the draft as well. I just don’t want us to forget how important the QB position is to the long term success of the Chiefs.
It's Important
But so is drafting offensive linemen so that whoever the Chiefs put in that backfield doesn’t get their career cut short. If Bradford falls to us I think he’ll be a good pick. But this team also has serious issues with both its offensive and defensive lines and considering the historical drafting tendencies of Herm Edwards’ teams I’m not so sure we’ll see them draft a second offensive player with a first-day pick. And then it’s another year of watching the QB run for his life.
By the way, did Bradford say he’s going pro this year and I missed it?
The Chiefs should win 5 to 6 games this year and no less than 4 for this season to be considered progress in any way. If he can't win at least 9 games next season, Herm's a joke.
I am starting to question even our high round picks
especially on defense.And if we don’ take an offensive lineman early or find some in free agency it will be difficult to expect improvement next year. So I definitely see your point. Part of me hopes he stays for one more year, but the Chiefs should (?) be improved record wise next year and we would probably not pick high enough to take him in the ‘10 Draft. I think Thigpen plays the biggest role in this decision and how he plays out the season. If he continues to play well, I don’t think the Chiefs will feel pressure to take a top round QB, and then a Graham Harrell later in the draft would make perfect sense. I would just prefer to see us get Bradford because I think he has the highest ceiling and could end up being the Super Bowl QB that the Chiefs have longed for. Pure speculation that he would come out on my part.
Understood On The Speculation
And I agree that should Bradford come out early he’s probably rate as the best player in the NFL draft and given a competent management team I’d be happy if the Chiefs grabbed him with their top pick.
The problem is that we don’t have a competent management team in place and drafting Bradford scares for two reasons. First, Carl Peterson’s judgment about young NFL quarterbacks can’t be trusted, and second Herm Edwards’ ability to develop and (most importantly) protect young NFL QBs can’t be trusted. I fear that if we drafted Bradford his career would follow the same progression as that of Tim Couch, who was actually a pretty good NFL QB prospect but whose career ended prematurely due to injuries because the Browns never put a priority on building a line and had only drafted two offensive linemen with first day picks (both centers) by the time Couch’s career ended five years later. Like the expansion Browns, Herm also doesn’t seem interested in “wasting” high picks on offensive linemen, so this would appear to be a horrible situation for Bradford or any other good QB prospect to find himself in.
The Chiefs should win 5 to 6 games this year and no less than 4 for this season to be considered progress in any way. If he can't win at least 9 games next season, Herm's a joke.
I think you hit the nail on the head
Can we put him in a position to succeed? We definitely didn’t put Croyle in a good position to succeed. Look at what Trent Green did with a great O line and a running game. I have always agreed with you that we need to see a regime change and then start from there (Carl down). As to Bradford, it is a calculated risk to draft him as it would be with any QB, but if he did come out early I would put him in a Aaron Rogers like position where he would sit and learn for a couple of years behind Thigpen. I don’t think the current team would be able to afford that kind of patience with a top pick, which is always the problem when you have such high “savior” expectations on a player.
Agreed
I think it’s foolish to throw any rookie QB right into the fire. Some can learn to cope with it quickly and succeed (Matt Ryan, Peyton Manning), some can’t and either struggle (Troy Aikman, John Elway) or get seriously hurt because they’re just not ready (Tim Couch, Alex Smith). But the preferred route is waiting…it worked out well for Carson Palmer, Daunte Culpepper, Joe Montana, Tony Romo, etc.
And I also don’t trust Herm when it comes to being patient with that QB. I think that the first time he feels a need to throw Thigpen under the bus for a loss (like he did after the Buffalo game even though the defense was to blame) he’ll yank Thigpen for the young QB. Herm doesn’t develop players, he just tosses them out there if he thinks they’re capable of not embarassing him and lets them sink.
The Chiefs should win 5 to 6 games this year and no less than 4 for this season to be considered progress in any way. If he can't win at least 9 games next season, Herm's a joke.
Basically
With a good coach and GM I like Bradford as the pick. With Herm and Carl in charge, I’d prefer that they build the line because that’s more likely to give the next GM and coach some return from that pick.
The Chiefs should win 5 to 6 games this year and no less than 4 for this season to be considered progress in any way. If he can't win at least 9 games next season, Herm's a joke.
Understood
Definitely a good argument for that. I don’t think that if we continue to use 6th round picks on lineman that we will ever get the O line to improve as much as we need them too.
Neither Do I
6th and 7th round picks usually don’t make it on good teams because it’s uncommon for an NFL talent to slip that far. Building your offensive line with guys like that is folly.
The Chiefs should win 5 to 6 games this year and no less than 4 for this season to be considered progress in any way. If he can't win at least 9 games next season, Herm's a joke.
I really appreciate when people get enthused about a player coming out of college
I have watched more college ball this year than in the past and I really like several of the QB’s including Bradford. Time will tell and we just have to wait to March (free agency) to see how things start shaking out.
We need a future defensive leader, his name is James Laurinaitis and he can be selected in round 1 of the upcoming Draft.
"But what do I know, I’m like an empty room with a large ECHO"
I'm down with Bradford
I think he’s the most pro ready QB (moreso than Stafford IMO) and has the highest ceiling. His numbers are insane, he’s got size. And having two good QBs (regardless of what you spent to get them) is never a bad thing.
Playing devils advocate
Could we possibly wait one more year for a QB? We’re still watching Thigpen’s development (in many ways he’s still a rookie) and dont know where his ceiling is. Gray isn’t bad, just not starter material but still is solid and throws the ball damn hard. Sign Brodie to a small 2 year contract and let him compete for backup QB with Quinn. If we want a good QB we’re likely gonna have to grab him early. Truthfully I think we can go much further as a team next year using our early picks on our offensive line and LB’s. But I realize in the long run Peyton Manning’s don’t come out often and you take em’ when you got the chance. So providing Bradford declares he’s the exception but otherwise I don’t see any other QB’s really worth going after on Day 1
by KansasCityShuffle on Dec 6, 2008 4:01 PM CST reply actions
Heard that before
Could we possibly wait one more year for a QB?
Don’t want to go through it again. While I’m not necessarily advocating picking a quarterback in the 1st round, I certainly wouldn’t be upset if it were Bradford. History says a Pro Bowl QB will take you to the playoffs on an annual basis.
I don't see any others worth taking in the first either
In fact, if by some reason they pick Stafford I am going to be upset! But if things don’t roll our way, I would still like to see us use a pick, possibly 4th or 5th rounder, on a QB. There are so many spread QBs now, we could upgrade our depth at this position. It would seem almost a foregone conclusion that Huard is gone and while I would not be too surprised to see Croyle give it one more shot, his injuries make him a huge question mark.
Is he coming out?
I’ve heard that there might be a record number of underclassmen coming out this year with the looming possibility of a capped rookie year in 2010 but we can’t be so certain he’s going to come out.
I haven't heard any word that he would come out
I think some of it may be determined if they manage to win the Championship? But if he were projected to go as high as I think he will, I am sure he will seriously have to consider coming out early. Too much money at stake. My worry would be that he comes out, and Detroit takes him #1. Perhaps a little high, but you never know what will actually happen on Draft Day.
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