why I always found it funny that people termed Eli some sort of "bust" even ignoring last years heroics. A bust is David Carr, Akili Smith etc. Eli Manning even if you think last year was a fluke is a 10 year starting qb in the NFL. Go look at the last 10 years of QB's who started for 8-10 years and you won't find many "crappy" Qb's.
your right...the year Mcnabb was drafted 99 i think 5 Qbs drafted in the 1st round and Mcnabb the only one still in the league after last week culpepper retirement....poor tim couch akili smith culpepper and mcnown...we are definately lucky
I think what's happening is that teams at the top of the draft are feeling a lot of pressure to take QBs that don't deserve to be taken in those spots. It has to do with the explosively high rookie contracts (why would I pay a FS or WR top pick money when I can get a QB?), and the desire to sell tickets. It also provides a golden parachute if the franchise falters (i.e. we have to go through this while the young QB learns).
Far too often we see a position selected...not a player.
He had nothing going in his favor. 4 offensive coordinators in four years. When Norv Turner was there, he played decently. Last year's coordinator (Hostler) made Hufnagel look like a genius. Their receivers have been beyond atrocious. He also came from a gimmicky offense in college. All that being said, he has never really looked like an NFL quarterback. Even early on when Eli was struggling, he had his moments. Smith has never had those.
Alex Smith was a very questionable 1st overall pick in '05, but he graded out way ahead of Rodgers and Campbell, so it's hard to fault them for the pick...Braylon Edwards is the only top 10 pick from that draft that has been spectacular
still like Smith more then someone like Carr. I think Smith still could rebound (assuming his arm holds up) and become a good enough qb to start. I'd certainly take him as Eli's backup next year if his arm is 100%
wasn't always high on Rodgers but I think he will be a pretty damn solid QB, maybe not a star but I think hes going to throw 20-25 tds and have a very nice year.
as a whole cant be pleased with there recent drafts pick besides patrick willis...alex smith and vernon davis have been a dissapointment....i rememeber vernon davis said he was the best tight end in the league before he stepped on the field...joe staley is decent too...
Eric - it used to take a QB 2-3 seasons before he'd be given a start but $$$ changed that and guys are thrown into the fire much sooner.
49ers, Titans, Texans and Lions all put highly drafted QB's into starting roles too soon. They didn't have very good supporting talent injury, shell-shock or they played musical coaching staffs.
I honestly believe that guys like David Carr, Jason Campbell and Joey Harrington would have become much better pros had teams taken the time to bring in and/or develop more talent and keep the coaching staffs intact. Unless your name is Manning you really shouldn't be starting at QB for a weak team as a rookie.
I never thought he was worth taking with the #1 pick, let alone what he got paid. Oh well, picks like that set franchises back some time. We are lucky Ernie had a man crush on Eli, looks like the draft class Eli came out from was the best QB draft since the Kelly/Marino draft.
He looked good in the second half of 2006. He was poised to break out last season but a poor start and injuries took care of that. And now this. I hope he gets another shot. I don't think he's a bad QB. As someone said: 4 coordinators in 4 years. That's rough, especially for a kid who wasn't the most refined QB coming out of school.
in the NFL is harder than it's ever been due to the increasingling sophisticated coverages and blitzes that have been cooked up in the past several years. It makes it harder to know when to put a kid QB in and when to hold him out and let him learn. And there are invariably financial pressures on organizations to play the kids, too often, before they are ready.
Scouting QB's has become more difficult because they have to look past the physical tools and colleger performance and try to figure out who is going to be able to read what Spags and others are coming up with.
So now it's hard to let a kid go in and be bad without risking longterm damage.
I disagree - Eli was the consensus #1 pick for about 18 months before he was actually selected at that spot. Vick was traded away by SD relatively cheaply. The Bengals were hesitating to draft Carson Palmer until close to the draft.
I'd say that David Carr was another #1 selection with a very positive consensus on his quality prior to the draft. So we have two of them!
There's a difference between "consensus #1" and "can't miss."
I interpreted it as "this guy is going to be the next great one." People weren't really saying that about Eli. If anything, they were questioning whether he could ever live up to his brother's (or even his father's) standard.
Vick, on the other hand, was supposed to further revolutionize the position.
what the real consensus of the NFL experts is. But I don't think there was ever any doubt that Eli was going to be the #1 player selected in a strong draft class. I remember the Bengals were rumored to be taking Terrance Newman up until close to draft day and the Chargers just traded away the rights to Vick.
That game vs FSU cemented his legacy in college lore. he almost singlehandedly beat a NFL talent laden defense by himself. He had ridiculous moves for a QB, hell for a RB. he was the fastest player on the field and could heave the ball a country mile. Now in hindsight he should have been converted to RB in the NFL, but he was without a doubt, the number 1 overall college talent.
he does not deserve another chance just because he was a #1 overall pick. The only reason he went that high was because SF panicked after Matt Leinart didn't neter the draft.
go back to the 04 draft articles. The guy had it all coming out of college. Talent, size, pedigree and production. He played in a big program...he had it all. Which is why he went #1 overall.
true, but it's been said that you put ben or eli there, and the same thing happens (failure).
Bottom line, SF didn't help the situation with numerous offensive coordinators with a qb who, according to his college coach, is worthless until he really understands the offense. The kid never had a chance.
the excuse that he never had a chance. San Francisco made a massive investment in him...HE is the one that is supposed to have elevated his teammates' play by now.
It's not as if the team is lacking in talent. The offensive line is ok, the RB is quite good, the TE is very good, and the defense is fairly stout with one of the best LBs in the game.
The biggest problem in SF has been the passing game, and from what I've seen from that team the QB position has been the problem.
Vernon Davis is not a very good TE. He is a very good athlete who to this point has been a barely adequate NFL player. He looks clueless out there most of the time. Smith has had no weapons outside of Gore. The best receiver they have had in his tenure has been Antonio Bryant. Now that's saying something. The offensive line has bordered on horrible. Again, as I said before, I still don't think Smith is an NFL quarterback, but with the 49ers, he had no shot to prove me wrong. The 49ers and Raiders have become two of the true jokes of the NFL. The ineptitude from ownership on down is mind-boggling.
The problem is he needs to unlearn a lot of what he dealt with in Houston and Carolina. Playing behind two awful OL, he became extremely skittish in the pocket. However, as he has shown in the NFL and, most recently, this preseason, if you give him the opportunities to make plays he does have nice accuracy and a quick release. It is all about confidence
can be blamed squarely on the hidious faggotty chin-chin hair thing you can see in his picture. This latest injury is most likely his own body rejecting him.
This is really terrible for the 49ers. We have to be thankful for what we have.
Hill was in last year, Vernon Davis was quite good. I also think some of the receivers they've had are better than they're given credit for.
The problem in San Francisco has been the quarterback. No doubt about it. Smith just lacks the ability to throw the ball like an NFL QB should, and he's far too indecisive.
Far too often we see a position selected...not a player.
49ers, Titans, Texans and Lions all put highly drafted QB's into starting roles too soon. They didn't have very good supporting talent injury, shell-shock or they played musical coaching staffs.
I honestly believe that guys like David Carr, Jason Campbell and Joey Harrington would have become much better pros had teams taken the time to bring in and/or develop more talent and keep the coaching staffs intact. Unless your name is Manning you really shouldn't be starting at QB for a weak team as a rookie.
Scouting QB's has become more difficult because they have to look past the physical tools and colleger performance and try to figure out who is going to be able to read what Spags and others are coming up with.
So now it's hard to let a kid go in and be bad without risking longterm damage.
We got very lucky.
I'd say that David Carr was another #1 selection with a very positive consensus on his quality prior to the draft. So we have two of them!
I interpreted it as "this guy is going to be the next great one." People weren't really saying that about Eli. If anything, they were questioning whether he could ever live up to his brother's (or even his father's) standard.
Vick, on the other hand, was supposed to further revolutionize the position.
I'll be interested how Flacco in Baltimore and Ryan in Atlanta will develop since they've been thrown right into the fray from the get go.
Too bad about Smith. The Niners are a mess.
Somewhere Dave Brown is laughing.
Bottom line, SF didn't help the situation with numerous offensive coordinators with a qb who, according to his college coach, is worthless until he really understands the offense. The kid never had a chance.
It's not as if the team is lacking in talent. The offensive line is ok, the RB is quite good, the TE is very good, and the defense is fairly stout with one of the best LBs in the game.
The biggest problem in SF has been the passing game, and from what I've seen from that team the QB position has been the problem.
This is really terrible for the 49ers. We have to be thankful for what we have.
The problem in San Francisco has been the quarterback. No doubt about it. Smith just lacks the ability to throw the ball like an NFL QB should, and he's far too indecisive.