Bortles going pro early

[Danm1983]

This WR class is super stacked though, so a guy not sure to be a 1st rounder might wanna just wait til 2015.

 

Storm Johnson should end up like Lamar Miller or the guy who played for the Bucs this year out of Miami - a serviceable #2 back with some play breaking speed and some durability. He'd be a good mid round steal. Only issue is his hands, he coughs it up more than I like, but he had a great Fiesta Bowl so might as well jump while the iron is hot. I'm sure some around him may point out that Bortles was saving grace this year, but pending on how the guys are next year, the possibility exists for a crap ton of carries, and with that comes stock drop and injury scares. Chase the money, I can't blame the kids for going after it when they have the chance.

Edited January 6, 2014 by Danm1983

[Ghost of the past]

Eh, the worst USF team ever took the best UCF team ever to the wire, even with him at quarterback. Who cares. Overhyped and overrated, he is not an NFL quarterback. He's making the right choice though, coming back for another year would only hurt his stock, which will never be higher than it is right now.

 

I don't think any of the top quarterbacks in this draft - Bortles, Bridgewater and Manziel - are likely to be franchise guys as pros. The best quarterbacks for value in this draft will come in the second or third round, strictly because guys drafted there carry lower expectations and are likely to land on better teams.

Well NFL GM's seem to think differently, my bet is they know more than you.

[gobulls83]

 

Eh, the worst USF team ever took the best UCF team ever to the wire, even with him at quarterback. Who cares. Overhyped and overrated, he is not an NFL quarterback. He's making the right choice though, coming back for another year would only hurt his stock, which will never be higher than it is right now.

 

I don't think any of the top quarterbacks in this draft - Bortles, Bridgewater and Manziel - are likely to be franchise guys as pros. The best quarterbacks for value in this draft will come in the second or third round, strictly because guys drafted there carry lower expectations and are likely to land on better teams.

Well NFL GM's seem to think differently, my bet is they know more than you.

 

 

Yeah because no NFL GM has ever drafted a quarterback in the first round that has been a bust. Of course.

 

Oh wait, it happens every year, often multiple times. What a dumb comment. Consider this list:

 

2013: EJ Manuel

2012: Weeden

2011: Locker, Gabbert

2010: Tebow

2009: Sanchez, Freeman

2008: Russell, Quinn

2007: Vince Young, Leinhart

2004: J.P Losman

 

All of them must be franchise guys. After all, an NFL GM decided to draft them in the first round. Right?

 

Though, to be fair, it's too early to say for sure on the 2012 and 2013 guys, but neither of them look like superstars to me.

Edited January 7, 2014 by gobulls83

[GaUSFBull]

gobulls83, you left out Geno Smith on the 2013 list.    Unless you think he's the next Joe Montana. 

[gobulls83]

Smith was a second round pick.

 

And my list doesn't even mention guys like Cutler and Alex Smith and Jason Campbell and Philip Rivers, guys who had nice, serviceable careers as starters, but never won anything (so far) or became elite quarterbacks. Like I said, I see this category as the absolute best case scenario for any of the top three quarterbacks in this year's draft (assuming Manziel does in fact come out, no way he stays in school).

 

I could go further back from than 2004, for fun: Remember Patrick Ramsey? Kyle Boller? Rex Grossman? Joey Harrington?

 

There have been guys who were way more "can't miss" than Bortles who have, in fact, been misses.

Edited January 7, 2014 by gobulls83

[GaUSFBull]

Ahh, you're right, projected first rounder but dropped into the 2nd.  I remember now, he looked so embarrassed on draft day. 

[gobulls83]

Also, let's wait and see what actually happens before we declare what "NFL GMs seem to think." Going into the 2008, Brady Quinn was "projected" to be a top-10 or top-15 pick, and slipped to late in the round because, in fact, nobody knows what the GMs think until draft day. Leinhart slipped to lower than expected. So did Geno Smith last year.

 

But even if he is a top-five pick, that's still no guarantee of success. Rivers, Russell, Young, Alex Smith, Harrington and Sanchez were all top-five picks of those that I mentioned. Only Rivers and Smith had any meaningful success as quarterbacks (and Sanchez played on a team that went to back-to-back AFC title games, though no thanks to him). Both Rivers and Smith have had good careers, but I think most would agree that, in hindsight, they weren't worth the spots they were drafted in.

Edited January 7, 2014 by gobulls83

[UCFSports1]

We have some good qbs in the wings as well as solid oline. Qb position will regress, but oline dropoff will be marginal. Losing storm hurts. All other positions will improve.

[Danm1983]

We have some good qbs in the wings as well as solid oline. Qb position will regress, but oline dropoff will be marginal. Losing storm hurts. All other positions will improve.

 

I know your coaching staff has been better than ours in the last few years, but be careful with that, we thought the same thing recently, had a bunch of guys who had seen lots of time as starters because of injuries the prior season, and then became the starters due to draft or graduation...and it didn't pan out. I used to think guys who got a good amount of playing time during a previous season wouldn't be so green, but it seems that the starters do see many snaps (as opposed to defensive guys who shuffle in and out more often due to being winded) are still beyond the #2s. hopefully there isn't much of a dropoff, but if there's even one guy who is a weak link, a half decent defensive staff will attack that.

[ambienknights]

gobulls83 your logic on why he isn't an NFL QB makes no sense. The jump Bortles made from the 2012 season to this past one was a huge one, he worked his tail off in the film room and took command of a pro set offense this season, made pre snap reads(something Manziel has never done in his life) , and was CLUTCH. His ability to have an even keel and be relaxed is going to impress NFL GMs. He's kind of a gunslinger who makes a mistake but is not scared to let it rip later in the game. Physically he has all the measurables, the 2 negatives some may point out are footwork at times and mechanics which both can be fixed while he's training with a QB Coach.