"Romocoaster"

The quarterback, it’s one of the most difficult positions to play in sports. Quarterbacks and leaders go hand and hand, you can’t be a successful quarterback without being a successful leader. It’s the guy everyone in the huddle looks to and relies on. The greatest quarterbacks to ever play the game, with the exception of Dan Marino, have championships to back their high level of play up. Granted there have been teams that have won the big game without a hall of fame quarterback. Like John Gruden’s Buccaneers in 2002 with Brad Johnson or even the Giants; granted Eli Manning has made some immaculate plays, but it’s hard to believe they would have won their last super bowls without that pass rush, having held New England to a total of 31 points in the two super bowls combined.

When building a super bowl contending team, like every NFL team is trying to do, it’s important to start with a quarterback you can rely on, to not just manage the game but win the game. The Cowboys are in a tough situation. Quarterback Tony Romo seems to have all the intangibles to be a great quarterback, the ability to make all the throws, move in the pocket and of course lead the team. What Romo is struggling with is finishing games; this year (2012) when Romo has the ball with two minutes or less to go in the half he has a 58 percent completion rate, only 3 touchdowns, 2 interceptions and 2 sacks. That’s not a quarterback you want driving down the field to win the game for you. In a two minute drill sacks are almost equivalent to interceptions, the clock stays running and more often than not you just put your team in second or third and long. So Romo usually won’t be the guy to drive down the field and win a game for you, but what about throughout the game. Is he a quarterback that keeps the offense on the field on third down? Unfortunately, for the Cowboys it’s not just at the end of halves. This year and throughout Romo’s entire career he struggles on third down. This year on third down, Romo has a gut wrenching 69.1 quarterback rating, a measly two touchdowns and five interceptions. That’s just not a winning formula.

The question remains, how long do you put up with this type of performance? This is Romo’s eleventh year in the league and still can’t win the games that count. Jerry Jones and the Cowboys have been very patient, not benching him yet. They continue to stand behind their quarterback and say he is the man for the job. Romo is making a monster 9 million dollars this year and scheduled to make 11.5 million next year. Whether the Cowboys just don’t see a better option than Romo now or if they are just going to hope for the best remains to be seen. I will tell you this though, if Romo doesn’t start making boss man Jerry Jones happy then he might just find himself in the unemployment line with about 7.9 percent of the U.S.

How 'bout Dem Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys finished 8-8 last year under Jason Garrett in his first full year as the head coach. On paper the Cowboys look like a super bowl contending team with a promising future, in reality it’s a team struggling to stay above .500 at 5 and 6. The Cowboy fans have dealt with a lot of let downs in the last decade or so; having only had one playoff birth in the last five years and only one playoff win since 1996. Even after spending 1.15 billion dollars on a new stadium in 2009 the Cowboys have gone 30-29. So what’s the problem in Dallas?

Jerry Jones and the Cowboys knew that they had to make some moves on defense to become a legitimate super bowl contender, after last year’s defensive struggles. So that’s exactly what Jones set out to do, signing cornerback Brandon Carr to a 5 year 50.1 million dollar contract, linebacker Dan Connor for 2 years and safety Brodney Pool for a year. Jones being the headstrong man he is didn’t stop there, he also traded his first and second round picks to move up in the draft and grab the highly regarded cornerback Morris Claiborne from Louisiana State. Coming into this year the four acquisitions were sure to turn this Rob Ryan defense into a powerhouse. With all that money spent and 12 weeks into the 2012 season, reality has set in.

The Cowboys defense has not been stellar, actually just about average all the way through. Giving up 3617 yards already this season which is just under the NFL average (3858) and allowing 24 total touchdowns to be scored on them which is also just under the average (25). Granted those may not be so game changing, but the Cowboys currently stand at minus eleven in their turnover ratio which can single handedly take down any team. Knowing Jones; this average to poor performance is not going to sit well and someone will have to answer and in the NFL that person is either the coach or the quarterback.

Granted no team can win without a defense, but a good offense can hide a bad defense. In this case the Cowboys offense has had a hard enough time making themselves look good. When an offense struggles it usually falls on one player, the quarterback. Tony Romo is in the middle of his eighth season as a starter and has only three playoff appearances, the last being in 2009. Romo has not been his best when his team has needed him most, including bobbling a snap on a routine field goal as time ran out in the 2006-2007 playoff game. Since then it hasn’t gotten any better. Romo has fallen short of playing consistent and complete football.

Granted the Cowboys are just a couple games out from a playoff berth and do have the fire power to make a strong run into the playoffs, all signs are pointing in the other direction. How far Romo will take his team is up to him, and how much longer Romo will be in Dallas, well that’s a topic for another day.

 

Who’s to blame for the Eagle’s struggle?

For the last decade the Philadelphia Eagles have had Andy Reid calling the shots, a coach with not only a tenor that demands respect, but supposedly proves success. In fourteen seasons with the Eagles Reid has won 129 games and only lost 88, he’s won the NFC East seven times and finished second three, but have only had a single super bowl appearance which they lost in 2004. Reid who has been known to put together some of the most explosive offenses has consistently been above average, in a city like Cleveland that might satisfactory, but not the city of brotherly love. Philadelphia is a city that demands championships and Reid has not been able to deliver. Now whether this is his fault or not remains to be seen.

If the blame doesn’t go to the coach the next viable option in the National Football League usually is the quarterback. Now, in Philadelphia since 2004 when Reid started coaching, there have been 26 different starting quarterbacks. The Eagles have dealt with everyone from Randall Cunningham and Donovan McNabb to Kevin Cobb and now Michael Vick, none of which have been known to be standout winners in the NFL. There is a case to be made here, granted it may be the Eagles front office and management, who haven’t been able to draft a starter that’s reliable nor groom a prospect into a successful option. You have to wonder if the system in place is the problem or if the right quarterback just hasn’t landed in Philadelphia yet.

Reid’s offenses sure can build hype and sell tickets with acquisitions like Michael Vick, LeSean McCoy and Desean Jackson, but have fell  short of expectations year in and year out. Reid continues to shuffle between quarterbacks; even after fourteen seasons, now having to make the decision between the rookie Nick Foles and the veteran Vick, who has been sacked a painful 27 times in only nine starts. Even Tom Brady and Peyton Manning need time to throw the ball. Concussions have held Vick out the last few weeks. In his defense not many quarterbacks take the shots he’s taken this year, at 32 years old those are sure to end the career of one of the most explosive and controversial quarterbacks to ever play the game.

At three and eight the Eagles just released their best past rusher, Jason Babin, for lack of production. That’s a sign of throwing in the towel on the 2012 season, now Reid will make a decision between Foles and Vick to start this week against the Dallas Cowboys. It’s likely they will see what they have in Foles. Either way this quarterback controversy is nothing like the win, win decision Jim Harbaugh has to make this week in San Francisco, and very well could be the last decision the great Andy Reid makes in Philadelphia.

Kaepernick or Smith?

The San Francisco 49ers sit atop the NFC West, have arguably the best defense in the league, and one of the most fierce running backs in the NFL with Frank Gore, yet there still seems to be one unanswered question; who is the 49ers starting quarterback?

Normally you would see a quarterback controversy on a team that is struggling or on a team that doesn’t seem to have a guy to rely on. The 49ers are in a different type of situation, a situation that any team in the NFL wouldn’t mind being in. It seems that Jim Harbaugh has a very difficult situation to make, one which there is no wrong answer.

The question is, Alex Smith or Colin Kaepernick? Lets talk Smith for a minute, he’s currently ranked number five in quarterback rating in the entire NFL at 104.1 only Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Robert Griffin III lead him, he’s completed seventy percent of his passes which leads the NFL, and has thrown thirteen touchdowns and only five interceptions. Not bad for a guy who has taken most of the blame for anything the 49ers have done wrong, or a guy who allegedly will lose his starting job to a second year quarterback.

With that said why is there even a question of who the starting quarterback will be? What ever happened to the saying “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it?” Well, let me introduce you to a young man who goes by the name Colin Kaepernick. Kaepernick might be the single most athletic player on the offensive side of the ball. Kaepernick who’s listed at 6’5, weighs in at 230 pounds, runs a 4.53 forty yard dash, and has excellent on the run accuracy. He has the ability to extend the play and make things happen on the offensive side of the ball, something Smith has been criticized for, he has that “it” factor, making the throws when he needs them most. In Kaepernick’s first start against the number one defense in the league (Chicago Bears), he shocked all throwing for 243 yards on sixteen for twenty three, two touchdowns, and the most impressive no interceptions. Kaepernick went on last week to win again in New Orleans throwing for another 231 yards, a passing touchdown, and rushed for another touchdown. So that’s 2-0 as a starter, not even Peyton Manning can say that.

It’s make it or break it time for Smith and Kaepernick, who Jim Harbaugh will go with next week will be an interesting decision, proven consistency or a risk that could lead to high reward. In my opinion there is no wrong decision, if you go with Kaepernick, Smith will still be there, and if you go with Smith Kaepernick will surely be there as well, but knowing the NFL like I do its almost a guarantee they both won’t be in San Francisco next year.