By Brandon Simmons
Is there a QB Development Problem?
In the wake of Indianapolis Colts benching Anthony Richardson, ESPN personality Mike Block tweeted that the NFL has a QB development problem. It instantly became a hot topic pointing to the examples listed in the tweet.
If there is a problem of some sorts, it can only be found in the structure of the organizations that selected these QBs. Before draft night, teams have pondered and planned on who they should take as a franchise QB by going through coaching fits, personnel fits, etc. These quarterbacks listed all come from big time schools and are immensely talented but have different skillsets and strengths that must be brought up. Some of those skills take longer than others. That is part of the adjustment going from the college game to the NFL. The skills and habits these QBs had in college might not work in the pros, especially when these guys have to do pre snap activities. Jowever, that must be relayed to them through a coach or offensive coordinator, who understands the type of player they are dealing with.
The reality is that this list only says these QBs have been benched but fails to mention the current success stories such as Houston Texans C.J. Stroud, Washington Commanders Jayden Daniels, and to an extent, Chicago Bears Caleb Williams. The issue with the tweet is that it can mislead into believing that QB’s taken in the first rounds, are autonaticallly going to be successful at some point but that’s not the case. Lots of quarterbacks get drafted in the first round, given a chance to start and don’t make the most of their opportunity. Look at the QB’s taken before Lamar Jackson; only one of them have stayed with their original team but another one is already out of the league. Sometimes that does fall on the player based off their mentality or where their talent fails to meet expectations; however some of that could be deciphered when researching these prospects. The group of QB’s on that list are super talented but have all had some questionable resumes that range from experience to style of play. Franchises have to look at that and determine if they have the tools in place to create a fitting environment for thise prospects. If not, and you take them on anyway, then you create problem that you never should have had in the first place.
Dennis Allen Fired
The New Orleans Saints have let go of head coach Dennis Allen 8n the wake of the team’s 7th straight loss. Allen was fired Monday, a day after the Saints lost to the Carolina Panthers, dropping to 2-7. After the game, New Orleans defensive linemen Cameron Jordan and Khalen Saunders tweeted out apologies to fans for their performance on Sunday and throughout the year.
Dennis Allen was probably destined for losing his job coming into the year. He was 16-18 before this season and has failed to reach the postseason in each one of his seasons. This has happened in spite of drafting Chris Olave in the first round and bringing in Derek Carr as a quarterback. They seemed to lack an offensive prowess, which is expected since losing Sean Payton, but Allen could have still found an offensive coordinator willing to work with a dynamic piece such as Saints running back Alvin Kamara. Judging by a few of these teams, a lot of coaching vacancies could be open at the end of the year, so New Orleans probably wanted to get this out the way and make it a major priority for this offseason.They seemed to lack an offensive prowess that was missing
Dak Tells Us about the Cowboys
Before his unfortunate hamstring diagnosis, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott had an unfortunate review of his team’s performance this season. “We fucking suck” is the exact words he used in a postgame message to reporters. While many people on social media hilariously agreed with Dak for finally seeing the light, you can’t help but feel this is a testament to how things have really gotten for the Cowboys. Over the last few weeks, Dallas has been blown out, seen their players go to war with media which included former hall-of fame Cowboys, one of their key veterans – running back Ezikiel Elliot – being suspended for a game after being late for meetings and practices. These problems don’t even include losing multiple stars to injury, including Prescott and Dallas defensive end Micah Parsons.
There is not a hot take to counter Dak’s comment because things are atrocious for the Dallas Cowboys. Anything you can name that goes wrong for a team, it has happened to the Cowboys. This time, instead of social media just ribbing them for content, their performance just looks pathetic, even for them. It’s even magnified since these comments come from the franchise QB that just signed for $240 million. You can look at it as your leader calling out the team, but it doesn’t negate the fact that things have gotten to a boiling point that he would even utter such a statement. And with his injury, things are not going to be any better. At 3-5, sitting behind the Washington Commanders and Philadelphia Eagles with a backup QB, those postseason hopes are finished. It doesn’t matter if they insert Trey Lance or Cooper Rush in at QB, there is just too much for them to overcome to turn their season around.
Trade Deadline
The trade deadline came on Tuesday at 3pm central time and quite a few teams got to it:
- The Carolina Panthers traded wide receiver Johnathan Mingo to the Dallas Cowboys in exchange for a 7th round pick.
- The New Orleans Saints traded away cornerback Marcus Lattimore for a 3rd round, 4th round and 6th round pick, while giving up a 5th.
- The Cincinatti Bengals acquired running back Khalil Herbert from the Chicago Bears in exchange for a 7th round pick.
- The New York Jets traded wide receiver Mike Williams to the Pittsburgh Steelers for a 5th round pick.
- The Cleveland Browns traded defensive end Za’Darius Smith and a 2026 7th round pick to the Detroit Lions for a 2025 5th round pick and a 2026 6th round pick.
The obvious winner at the deadline right now is the Detroit Lions. They got a pass rusher to replace the services of defensive end Aiden Hutchinson, who is out for the season. With Smith being added, it removes some doubt about the Lions making a deep playoff run this year, possibly reaching the Super Bowl.
Shoutouts/Shutouts
Shout out to New York Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson and his one handed touchdown catch at Metlife Stadium. Thursday, against the Houston Texans, Wilson went up for pass and grabbed it by one hand, but was able to land inbounds to secure the touchdown. If it sounds a little familiar, it’s because just about 10 years ago, a wide receiver for a New York team made a one handed catch against a Texas team. Odell Beckham, Jr. made a catch for the New York Giants against the Dallas cowboys on Sunday Night Football which became an instant viral hit. Wilson finished the game with 9 catches for 90 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Bonus shout out to Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley and his reverse leap. Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Barkley was running through defenders then made a hurdle, but not before he spun around and ended jumping in reverse.
Shut out to the New Orleans Saints for making their own history. The Saints became te first team to out gain a team by 150 yards passing and rushing, winning the turnover battle but lose the game.
Week 10 is here to kick off the 2nd half of the season and start these playoff races. The Pittsburgh Steelers will visit the Washington Commanders in a game featuring Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt getting after Commanders rookie QB Jayden Daniels. Daniels has been a strong candidate to become offensive rookie of the year while Watt will be a menacing part of that Pittsburgh defense with his pass rushing. The game of the week is Sunday night, when the Houston Texans host the Detroit Lions. The Texans are coming off a shocking loss to the New York Jets on Thursday Night Football and look to bounce back against a tough Lions team. Both offenses have weapons on the air and ground, so this could potentially be a shootout. But until then…I’ll holla.
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