Cleveland Browns have Terry Talkin' about the search for a quarterback in the … – cleveland.com
CLEVELAND, Ohio — Most NFL teams not named the Philadelphia Eagles want a quarterback who can take snaps under center — not just shotgun snaps.
They want a quarterback who can run his own huddle, not just set up quickly in a spread offense and receive play calls from the sidelines. They’d prefer a quarterback who has actually played in something resembling an NFL-style game.
Here’s the problem: There aren’t too many of those in this draft.
Projected to be the top pick, Florida State’s Jameis Winston has taken standard snaps under center. His offense was more pro-style, at least compared to those used by Oregon’s Marcus Mariota and many other highly-rated QBs in this draft.
Browns fans saw how Johnny Manziel struggled to grasp a pro-style offense after playing in a freelance shotgun offense at Texas A&M. With most college teams using the spread offense, NFL teams are facing a more demanding task of sorting through the prospects.
Consider what most rookie NFL quarterbacks will face:
1. Many will go to bad teams. Losing teams are always looking for quarterbacks. Nearly every quarterback in the draft comes from a good or great college team. So they are not used to losing or taking the field week after week when their team has less talent than the opponent.
2. Bad teams are desperate for quick fixes, and often rookies are forced to play before they are ready. That’s another challenge.
3. Now, most are learning an entirely new offense, and often a new way (under center) of throwing the ball.
4. Logically, this lack of patience and talent from many teams combined with colleges not preparing the quarterbacks for the pros leads to a high failure rate.
5. So the NFL is at the point where more patience than ever is needed, yet rookies are often forced to play because teams are desperate to solve their quarterback problems.
CBSsports.com draft specialist Dane Brugler (a Warren native and Mount Union graduate) told me how Baylor’s Bryce Petty doesn’t even have a real playbook. The system is much like what Manziel had at Texas A&M, where different plays were picked each week.
UCLA’s Brett Hundley is rated as the No. 3 quarterback in the draft by some experts, but he also has had very little exposure to pro concepts.
“Hundley has the athleticism and arm strength, but it could take a year or two until he’s ready to take the field,” said Brugler. “Physically, he’s off the charts, but he’ll have so much to learn.”
THE SEARCH FOR A QUARTERBACK
That’s part of the reason that I was looking at the list of quarterback prospects to see if any besides Winston have experience in something like a pro offense.
The best candidate is Colorado State’s Garrett Grayson. The Browns have worked him out. Most scouts have him projected as a backup. He’s 6-2, 217 pounds. He threw 32 touchdowns against seven interceptions, completing 64 percent of his passes.
Colorado State was Grayson’s only significant Division I offer. Washington State wanted him as a safety.
ESPN’s Jon Gruden recently rated Grayson as the No. 3 quarterback in the draft, behind Winston and Mariota. He is an interesting prospect. Because the Browns like to run the ball, they prefer a quarterback who takes snaps under center. Grayson does that. He also has had some success throwing long — despite only average arm strength.
Grayson doesn’t run the ball very well. He had nine fumbles. Some scouts say he takes too many chances throwing into coverage. Opinions are mixed, but at least he’s taken snaps under center.
“Grayson broke his collarbone as a sophomore, and had to fix his throwing mechanics almost from the bottom up,” said Brugler. “I admire him for that. At the Senior Bowl, you could see how comfortable he was taking snaps under center compared to (Baylor’s) Bryce Petty.
But Brugler projects Grayson as a backup, perhaps a “Kirk Cousins type” of player.
ANOTHER PRO STYLE QUARTERBACK
At nearly 6-6 and 230 pounds, Sean Mannion looks the part. He actually had a more productive junior season at Oregon State (37 TD passes, 15 interceptions, 66 percent) than his senior season (15 TD passes, 8 interceptions, 62 percent).
He played for Mike Riley, who runs a classic pro-style offense. Mannion is a pocket passer. He doesn’t move very well.
“Mannion moves like he has ankle weights,” said Brugler. “As a junior, he had (future first-round pick) Brandin Cooks as his receiver. Cooks was gone last season, and you can see the difference. Mannion will really have to speed up how he gets rid of the ball.”
Some scouts have compared Mannion to Derek Anderson. Brugler has Mannion as a fourth- or fifth-round pick.
With Grayson and Mannion, a couple of themes emerge:
1. They are smart and solid leaders.
2. They are comfortable in pocket, but have trouble on the move.
3. Scouts think they are backups.
4. If they were more athletic, coaches would probably use them in some type of spread.
WHAT ABOUT MARIOTA?
Last week, I wrote about how I was intrigued by Mariota, and nothing has changed. I also believe the same is true for the Browns, and they will try to deal for him at some point before the draft.
But the team that takes Mariota will need to be patient. Yes, he has pro size at 6-4, 222 pounds. He’s pretty mobile and very bright. But the offense will be all new to him.
With Josh McCown, the Browns have the option of playing a veteran early in the season — or even for most of the season. That is an asset even if they don’t draft a quarterback, because it allows Johnny Manziel to take his time as he deals with all the issues from a year ago.
THE QUARTERBACK CLASS
Brugler call this a “terrible quarterback class,” with only Winston and Mariota as projected starters.
Here’s how he rates the top five quarterbacks:
- Winston
- Mariota
- Hundley
- Petty
- Grayson
Here’s how Brugler rated the quarterbacks in 2014:
- Teddy Bridgewater, his No. 1 overall player.
- Blake Bortles
- Derek Carr
- Johnny Manziel, as his No. 27 player in his top 100.
- Jimmy Garoppolo
What about Justin Gilbert, who was picked at No. 8 by the Browns?
Brugler had him at No. 47 overall, and wrote: “Gilbert has the size, speed and length that NFL teams covet at the cornerback position, which is probably why he ends up in the draft’s top 15 picks. I still have strong questions about his footwork, technique and instincts to be reliable on an island.”
This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service – if this is your content and you’re reading it on someone else’s site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers.
