Post by TheShadow on Sept 27, 2006 3:35:50 GMT -5
www.argusleader.com
by Todd Norden
Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing." - Football coach Red Sanders (1953)
This is true in the NFL. But Mr. Sanders never had Kerry Collins as his quarterback, either.
It's easy to play coach-on-the-couch when a starting quarterback struggles and his seemingly promising backup is shown on the sidelines carrying a clipboard.
Fans get restless, and it's easy to understand why. Win now. It's the mantra of a professional football team, from Jerry Jones down to Joe Horn.
But the question isn't - or shouldn't - be when to win. It's how.
To win now takes action - either by letting a young gun fly immediately or by keeping an unproven but potential star on the sidelines to study and learn.
Teams that should - or will - take action on the quarterback front this season:
# Tennessee: Curiously, Billy Volek is traded to San Diego and passed over for veteran Kerry Collins, who throws up (literally and figuratively) a 1.3 passer rating during Week 2. A 1.3 rating doesn't even get you a free hamburger coupon in a Punt, Pass & Kick contest. Vince Young. Now.
# Green Bay: Brett Favre's farewell tour will end around Week 13 either because of injury or because the Packers' record stinks. Get ahead of the game for next season and start Aaron Rodgers sooner rather than later.
# Oakland: The name Andrew Walter doesn't exactly send waves rolling in the Bay, but the Raiders need to start fresh. Might as well be now. He's only in his second year out of Arizona State, and tough times could produce a better quarterback in the long run.
Teams that should stick with their QBs:
# Dallas: Tony Romo? No. Drew Bledsoe is a capable quarterback, and when the Cowboys season spirals out of control, the last thing the unblemished Romo needs is to share a huddle with head-cases-in-waiting such as Terry Glenn and Terrell Owens.
# Arizona: The Cardinals finally have talent. Now if the same only could be said about the O-line. Let Kurt Warner suffer the bumps and bruises this season, upgrade the line during the offseason, and watch Matt Leinart fly in 2007.
# Denver: Jake Plummer's critics populate every sports bar from Phoenix to Pueblo, Colo. How quickly it's forgotten that "The Snake" led the Broncos to last year's AFC title game. Have Jay Cutler sit back and take notes on Plummer for a year on what to do - and, especially with Plummer, what not to do.
Winning now takes talent, and more often than not talent is shaped by patience and veteran leadership - not catering to the whims of fans and hype.
Just ask Ryan Leaf.