For those that are pro Cutler...Ryan Fitzpatrick just had a much better season than Cutler. In fact, Fitz had a better season than at least 10-12 QBs this year, so it's pointless to bring in any QB that isnt a rookie or already on the roster. I honestly dont know where the Texans should go from here. Im not big on Mallett. I think his game against Cleveland was very much over hyped. He played well, ran the offense well, but the defense and running game made his life a piece of cake. I think any NFL QB in that situation would have brought home the W for Houston. Then, we saw his accuracy issues the following week. And no, his pectoral muscle shouldnt be a major excuse (just a minor excuse), since he was still rifling the ball with insane velocity. A QB needs to make quick reads and make accurate throws. Those two things, imo, are absolutely the most critical components to having a QB you can consistently win with. Mallett is not accurate enough for my liking. I could very well be wrong, but I just dont see him as someone we can count on for years. I know the offense stumbled out the gates with Savage, but the guy was clearly ****ting his pants. Once he settled down a bit, I liked what I saw. I think if you give him some reps and let him gain a little more experience, he has the potential to be a QB for this team for many years. Im not sure if Cook is going to enter the NFL draft, but if he's there, the Texans should trade up and take him...the cost to trade up to get him will not be that much given his projected draft slot and where the Texans are going to end up. He'll have a better NFL career than Mariota.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Connor Cook expects to return for senior season to take care of 'unfinished business' <a href="http://t.co/W7uhvBQABl">http://t.co/W7uhvBQABl</a></p>— Spartan Sports Page (@SpartanSports) <a href="https://twitter.com/SpartanSports/status/545023227861270528">December 17, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
I think that's the point. What if O'Brien could do for Cutler what he did for Fitz? Imagine if Cutler had a rating of 95 with the Texans next year. How good would they be?
Cutler has greater upside; he can physically make every throw a QB needs to make to suceed in the NFL. Can his mental lapses be fixed through better coaching? That's the $64,000 question. (And the answer, btw, is probably, "no") But if given a choice, I'd take Cutler 10 times over Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick is closer to David Carr '06 than Matt Schaub '09. Yes, he's been efficient; at times really good (Tennessee). But he simply can't push a defense; not a good one. And you have to be able to push a defense in today's NFL. And he's 100% dependent on the team around him playing to their potential. If the defense is struggling, if Foster is struggling, he can't elevate and make plays. IOW, he's almost certainly bumping up against his ceiling, which is 7-8 wins.
I'm not too worried. Despite his impressive physical gifts, I don't have a lot of confidence that he will transition into a pro style QB.
If the Titans get much better at QB and have a last place schedule, they might contend for 2nd place in the division. Plus Bortles should be better next year and the Jags have a high draft pick.
I think all of this plays into the Texans favor, tbh. Bortles, even though he's making less mistakes, is making even less plays. Instead of gaining confidence with playing time, it seems like he's losing confidence. Ive never seen him as a franchise QB and never understood the hype...up until draft time, I thought he was 3rd round material or worse. I think the Jags are going to suck for a long time until they find a real QB. I'd welcome Mariota to the Titans too. He is an incredible athlete, but we all know that incredible athletic QBs will still need to rely on their arm and brain for success. He has a powerful arm, but the issue is that he hasnt had to read defenses in college and his receivers are generally the fastest guys on the field, so he's rarely had to thread the needle or make accurate throws. It's easy to complete passes when you throw to guys that dont have a defender within 5 yards. He has the physical make up to be successful in the NFL, but he has a LONG way to go to transition into an NFL QB. Winston is the far more polished QB, but offers the risk of his off field actions. I'd be more concerned with the Titans picking Winston than Mariota, but just my two cents.
Hmm... Cook was the one second tier prospect I was hoping they would have a shot at in Round 2 (Marriota and Winston will be gone for sure... and I am not sold on Hundley in Rnd 1). Now who.. perhaps Shane Carden of East Carolina in Rnd 4? Garrett Grayson in Rnd 5? Talk about your crapshoots...
anybody have any thoughts on Cody Kessler? He has been kind of under the radar but he has been pretty damn good. Maybe a 2nd or 3rd rounder with high upside IMO
