Rookie QB Grades

[AZ54]

it is worthwhile now after the preseason to step back and evaluate how the rookie QBs have fared so far. At the top of the list with an A grade from Daniel Jeremiah is none other than Mitchell Trubisky. I felt all along we drafted the best of the 2017 group and I still feel that way after watching Kizer and Watson play. I haven't seen much from Mahomes but with his work ethic and raw talent I think he'll likely end up the other long-term starter from this draft.

 

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I'm not comparing Trubisky to any of these players but looking back at the two previous drafts under Pace (2015/16) the only other QB I felt we should have gone after heavily was Mariota. After what I saw from him last week I'd say I was wrong. He looked very unsettled in the pocket with too many errant throws. Will his career end up similar to Alex Smith's?

 

Jameis Winston has continued his college INT issues with a Cutler-esque 18 INTs last year along with 10 fumbles. He threw multiple INTs in four games last year. Which way will his career go from here?

 

In 2016 it was Goff and Wentz. I was always leary of Goff's backfoot toss-up throws when he's under pressure. We'll find out more this year. I feel Trubisky at this relative point in their careers (week 1 rookie year) is ahead of Goff. I think we'll find out for sure by week 9.

 

I'd have been ok with drafting Wentz but the Eagles made that a mute point. To be fair I wasn't jumping on the table for us to take him either. I think his NFL future looks bright.

 

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap300000083...ne-kizer-uneven

 

 

[ASHKUM BEAR]

For all the flak the Bears took after drafting Trubisky, it is looking like they had it right. I give credit to Pace for having the balls to do what he had to to get his guy. Could we have the same outcome with the other QBs like Kizer or Peterman...maybe, but Trubisky could be special in the mold of Brees. Too bad we still have some major pieces to invest in to give him his best shot (WR/LT) but with a QB we should be contending instead of pretending soon. We will get an opportunity to see if Kevin White and Charles Leno can be those major pieces when Trubisky is ready to step in, if not then I see the draft being used to bring competition in those areas.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[BearFan2000]

Of the top 4 (Trubisky, Watson, Keizer, and Mahomes. I do feel we got the most pro ready and possibly the best of the 2017 QB class. If that holds true it would sure be nice to finally solve that position long term especially having drafted him instead of trading for a potential franchise QB, because I feel that bodes well for Pace and our scouts. IMO any GM can recognize a player who's emerged at whatever position and try to trade for them. The good teams and good GM's build through the draft and argument with pieces in FA/trade.

 

Having observed these QB's myself and this and other articles it sure seems we got the cream of the crop. Too early to tell for sure but there are good signs to that end. We'll see how these 4 progress this year and beyond. Keizer is the only day one starter but it's the Browns. Not exactly a high bar achievement. Watson and Trubisky could get starts this season. If the Bears stick to their stated plan, he and Mahomes will be the 2 in the group that don't see the field this year much if at all. Watson most likely will get some starts at some point.

 

What's interesting is that my initial thought on these guys has mostly panned out through the preseason.

 

Mahomes is a young Jay Cutler type. Bad/inconsistent footwork. Reckless with the ball and struggles with pocket presence. But will wow you with amazing ad lib plays when things break down and it turns into street ball. When he's on he can be really good, when he's off he's off and it can be ugly. I see a very streaky player that needs to work on fundamentals and clean up his footwork if he's going to be consistently good. Sound familiar?

 

Keizer his write up nails him to a T. I watched a lot of Keizer as a ND fan and he can be a very frustrating QB to watch because you can see the talent, and tools are there to be a good to great QB. And he can display it for games at a time but he tends to have stretches where he makes poor decisions and appears overwhelmed and doesn't have a handle on a wide range of types of throws needed. When he first got onto the scene he looked like the real deal but as his career at ND went on his consistency suffered and he was an up/down kinda player. High ceiling but also a low basement. Reminds me a little of a Rex Grossman with the good Rex, bad Rex. In both cases the coaching didn't help matters.

 

Watson was touted by some as the best QB in the draft coming from a winning program at Clemson, but NFL's don't run Watson's type of offense. At Clemson his athletic ability to ad lib and make plays with his feet doesn't quite fit the existing Texan's offense. The solution is probably somewhere in the middle, reworking things in their offense to suit his skills/talent and Watson working on versatility to be able work from the pocket, make his reads, and be more careful with the ball. What you can get away with in college can make you a turnover machine in the pros.

 

Trubisky has impressed me with his pocket presence, ball placement, accuracy both from the pocket and on the run. He never really looks overwhelmed out there like the game is too big for him. He has things to work on of course. What I like about Trubisky is that he has a lot of the intangibles that are either difficult or impossible to teach. His work ethic I will serve him well as he learns to read NFL defenses that are much more complex and aggressive than college. He needs to work more with the 1's. Perhaps as the season goes he can get some 1st team reps in practice. I know the plan is to sit him all year but that may change if Glennon struggles. We have a week 9 bye if a change was going to be made that might be a good time to give him an extra week of practice before going out there.

[adam]

For me Trubisky is right where he needs to be, he was the #2 pick and has performed as advertised. Interestingly enough, Mahomes went as the #2 QB and has performed equally as good as Trubisky and their numbers are almost identical for the preseason (MT: 36-53, 67.9%, 364 yds, 3 TD, 0 INT to PM: 34-54, 63%, 390 yds, 4 TD, 0 INT). If Mahomes is compared to Cutler, I would see more bad passes or INT's and that has not been the case with Mahomes. I think there are some maturity concerns, but if he has no pressure on him to start day 1 in KC with Smith there, I think they may have found their next franchise QB.

 

For the others, I don't really want to bring Kizer into the discussion as a 2nd round pick, but if you had to compare, his 51% completion pct is awful and he looks like any other 2nd round QB. I just don't see him becoming a franchise QB at this point and was surprised that they are going with him this year as their starter.

 

Watson for me has been a disappointment, and I really thought he was the consensus #1 QB in this draft. However, he has looked bad. Outside of one or two highlight reel plays, he has been very inconsistent. If he ever makes it, it won't be for awhile. He seems like Manziel with no off the field issues.

[bowlingtwig]

I said from before the draft I just had a gut feeling that kiser wasn't going to be that franchise guy so many of the experts we thinking. He was so wildly inconsistent at ND and those guys just seen to get destroyed in the NFL

[ASHKUM BEAR]

I said from before the draft I just had a gut feeling that kiser wasn't going to be that franchise guy so many of the experts we thinking. He was so wildly inconsistent at ND and those guys just seen to get destroyed in the NFL

I thought Kiser would be the first to emerge and be a decent NFL QB. He is on track and if groomed right he can be a decent long term starter. I think he needed one more college season, but here he is and he is the starter. ND just didn't have the WRs to help him and sticking around was no guarantee to be better. I am pleased at how the Bears situation ended, I think Mitch can be a top tier franchise QB. A lot of his success will hinge on the the pieces Pace can bring in the next year or two.

[AZ54]

I thought Kiser would be the first to emerge and be a decent NFL QB. He is on track and if groomed right he can be a decent long term starter. I think he needed one more college season, but here he is and he is the starter. ND just didn't have the WRs to help him and sticking around was no guarantee to be better. I am pleased at how the Bears situation ended, I think Mitch can be a top tier franchise QB. A lot of his success will hinge on the the pieces Pace can bring in the next year or two.

 

When I watch Kizer play he clearly isn't ready for the NFL. I think Cleveland making him the starter is a mistake. Regardless of how bad the other two QBs are they should let him sit and work on his fundamentals while he learns the offense. Maybe later in the year give him some starts to see what he can do. Throwing him out there now will not help him improve his fundamentals because when people are under pressure they will revert to their habits, and his are bad.

 

Trubisky has gotten away with a couple bad reads that could have or should have been intercepted. Mahomes has had his share of those near misses too.

[bowlingtwig]

I thought Kiser would be the first to emerge and be a decent NFL QB. He is on track and if groomed right he can be a decent long term starter. I think he needed one more college season, but here he is and he is the starter. ND just didn't have the WRs to help him and sticking around was no guarantee to be better. I am pleased at how the Bears situation ended, I think Mitch can be a top tier franchise QB. A lot of his success will hinge on the the pieces Pace can bring in the next year or two.

 

I watched almost every game of his being a Notre Dame fan. Some here have even called me a homer. I certainly wouldn't lay his issues at the feet of the receivers. They didn't help but his issues we're so much deeper than that. Remember during his 2 yrs being the starter he was all over the place. A few exceptional starts that made us all believe he was a star in the making and then a few that really made you scratch your head and wonder WTF. It's not like he was throwing to complete bums either. 1 of his receivers was will Fuller who had a pretty good yr last yr down in Houston. Now with all that said you got the nail on the head by saying if he's properly groomed. Well can anyone tell me when the last time Cleveland has ever been accused of something like that. To say Cleveland has been nothing but a steaming pile of dog poop for a very long time I think would be considered a compliment at this point.