Pluto nails the QB situation

[DawgSoldier]

http://www.cleveland.com/pluto/blog/index.ssf/2012/12/terry_pluto_talk

I'm tiredof the QB debates but this article almost sums up my thoughts


Talking to myself and trying to figure out Brandon Weeden.

Question: You wanted Brandon Weeden to start. So what do you think of him now?

Answer: He started 15 games, was 5-10 and his season is probably over with shoulder injury.

Q: That's no answer, try again.

A: That's my problem. I don't know what to say about Weeden. I don't think he's terrible.

Q: That's the best you can do?

A: I hate rookie quarterbacks because they are rookies.

Q: What does that mean?

A: I'm not going to drag out all the stats on even great quarterbacks such as Peyton Manning, Troy Aikman and others. OK, Terry Bradshaw had six touchdown passes and 24 interceptions as a rookie. In 10 games, John Elway had seven touchdowns and 14 interceptions. Bernie Kosar completed 50 percent of his passes, with eight touchdowns, seven interceptions and a 69.3 rating as a rookie.

Q: Are you actually comparing Weeden to those guys?

A: Of course not. I'm pointing out the problem with evaluating him on one year with a bad team that has been an awful franchise since it returned in 1999. Weeden was the 10th different opening day starter since 1999.

Q: Have any quarterbacks left here and gone on to be viable NFL starters?

A: The last was Vinnie Testaverde, and that was the old Browns.

Q: So what does that tell you?

A: Either the Browns always draft the wrong quarterback, or the quarterback in the orange helmet gets his career killed here. The only recent exception is Jeff Garcia. He was effective before the Browns, awful here in 2004, and then went on to have a couple of decent years later.

Q: Does Weeden have the worst quarterback rating among the five rookie starters?

A: Yes, he's at 72.6, which is No. 32 overall. But Andrew Luck is No. 29. Ryan Tannehill is No. 28.

Q: Tannehill is rated higher than Luck?

A: That's my problem with quarterback ratings. I don't fully understand them. I question what they reveal. Luck is penalized for his 18 interceptions and his 54.3 percent completions. But he's thrown 21 touchdown passes, and his team is a surprising 10-5. Tannehill has 12 touchdown passes, 12 interceptions. His completion rate is 58.4 for a 7-8 team. Not a single NFL coach or executive would take Tannehill over Luck, yet he's rated higher.

Q: What does that have to do with Weeden?

A: If you dig through the rookie quarterbacks, Robert Griffin III has stunning stats: 20 touchdowns, five interceptions, 66.4 completions and a 104.1 rating. But get this: Alex Smith (13 touchdowns, five interceptions) has the same 104.1 rating. Smith has lost his starting quarterback job to Colin Kaepernick.

Q: Why aren't you talking about Weeden?

A: Maybe the rookie quarterback having the best season is Russell Wilson. His Seattle team is 10-5. He has 25 touchdowns compared to 10 interceptions. His rating is 98.0. Tell me how he isn't rated higher than Alex Smith? Anyway, Wilson wasn't even supposed to start. Seattle signed Matt Flynn, but Wilson won the job, and he wins games.

Q: Do you ever plan to talk about Weeden?

A: OK, I still like his arm. He doesn't throw down field as much as he should. I'm still not sure how much of that is part of the West Coast Offense which accents short-to-medium, quick-release passes. Or some of it may be Weeden trying to avoid sacks and interceptions by settling for the short pass. But the fact is every defensive coordinator knows he can throw long.

Q: Does he really shy away from long throws?

A: That question made me do some research. Weeden is 11-of-51 on passes of at least 21 yards. I randomly picked some others and checked: Aaron Rodgers (19-of-4, Andy Dalton (11-of-44), Griffin (12-of-31), Tannehill (14-of-42), Wilson (18-of-53), Peyton Manning (23-of-5 and Luck (26-of-83). So Weeden is throwing deep more than most quarterbacks.

Q: When are you going to give an opinion?

A: You can say Weeden is 29 and should be more advanced than most rookies. But the NFL is a different game, and most rookies have rough years. One stat that bothers me is this: The Browns were 4-4 at home, but Weeden had five touchdown passes compared to 12 interceptions (58.5 rating) on the shores of Lake Erie. He has nine touchdowns, five interceptions and an 87.0 rating on the road. Of course, the Browns are 1-6 on the road. But you'd want Weeden to play better at home.

Q: Is there a bottom line?

A: If Weeden were simply terrible, it would be easy to say, "Next"; when it comes to quarterbacks. Despite his low rating (only Mark Sanchez is worse among starters), I don't see Weeden as a hopeless case. I still prefer him to Colt McCoy, who is a solid backup. It's possible Weeden would be more productive is a system where most of his passing comes from the shotgun. But I doubt that instantly makes him an impact player.

Q: So what should the Browns do?

A: The problem is this -- if not Weeden, then who in 2013? Alex Smith will probably be available as a free agent. In the draft, ESPN's Mel Kiper has Matt Barkley and No. 24, Geno Smith at No. 25. Todd McShay's top two quarterbacks are Smith (No. 23) and Barkley (No. 30). This is nothing like the Luck/Griffin quarterback draft of 2012.

Q: Does it seem like they probably should stick with Weeden?

A: There may not be any other real alternatives. He will probably have a new coaching staff, a new system. But at least he won't be a rookie. When it comes to Weeden, I'm lukewarm mostly because I don't have a better idea at the moment.
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The Dawgpounds new three headed monster!

Adopt a Brown: QB Brandon Weeden
247/433 57% 2820yds 6.5avg 13 TD 15 Int

[nugpimpen]

I agree with pretty much everything.

I want him to start next year, if only for a lack of better options and a desire to see what he does now that he has experience, probably a better coaching staff and the rookies on offense that now have experience.
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[NickZambo]

He is the best QB on our roster. There is no QB worth taking in the 1st round next year. There are no free agents QB out there that warrant a big contract. Baring a trade (and a white flag of defeat), we shouldn't throw the towel in on a guy with obvious talent.

Roll with Weeden...
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Skipping over bruceb's posts since 2012

[Entropy]

Pluto has been getting a lot of heat for his "Talking to myself" articles on cleveland.com for years, but I still enjoy reading him.

And yes, I do think he nailed it.
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[elfman55]

1 thing I will say about the BROWNS QB situation next year. No matter who we have it should be a true competition to win the starting job.

elfman

[Mastercheddaar]

[bruceb]

While I generally like these kinds of articles from Pluto, I thought this one sucked.

Too diffident, noncommittal for my liking.
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Everything happens exactly the way it is supposed to happen...otherwise, it would happen some other way

[nugpimpen]

[bruceb]

[KamTrus20]

[mistakebytehlak]

[bruceb]

[nugpimpen]

[DawgSoldier]

[sdrawkcab321]

I'm just glad to see I'm not the only person who interviews themself