I had hoped to put up a column about this, but alas, Finheaven remains offline. But you know what they say: "you can't stop Finheaven, you can only hope to hold down its posts from the day before." Anyway, we make do with what we have. In the last two games, I've paid attention to Beck's every throw, pretty much to the exclusion of most other game analysis. Maybe after Sunday, I'll do a play-by-play breakdown of every throw. For now though, after two games, here's my grading of him in each category that I consider to be critical to grading the play and development of a QB. These are, admittedly, pretty vague and all-encompassing categories, because frankly, I don't feel like breaking down and grading 30 different things, nor do we have enough of a sample size to make more than general observations at this point. Arm strength - B. He's shown some impressive zip on 15-20 yard routes, like the absolute laser he threw to Ginn in the Eagles game on third down. Or the one he threw to Booker about 20 yards downfield in that one. The deep ball to Booker in the Pittsburgh game hung up a bit, but the conditions were obviously a serious mitigating factor. However, most of his throws have been short, so it's hard to get a great idea about his arm strength, so the B grade is tentative. Pocket presence - B. He had a case of happy feet in the first half of the Philly game, but settled down more quickly than pretty much any rookie I've seen in recent years. It takes most rookies a few games, at minimum, to cure themselves of happy feet. (In the case of Vince Young, it will take either a full decade or an ACL tear, whichever happens first.) Beck seemed to cure himself of that in one half of football, which was amazing to me. He had a great idea about when the rush was coming in that game. In the Pittsburgh game, he wasn't quite as good. There were a couple times when I felt he should have run with the football. On the third and long in the Miami end when he threw the short route to Halterman, I thought he should have held it a touch longer and waited for something else to open up; it seemed like he had time. Yeah, I know, mitigating factors and all, but when you've got a sample size of 45 NFL passes, you use what you have. Decision making - A-. The hardest thing, by far, for a rookie to master, and Beck has damn near aced this. In his 45 throws, I've seen him make one questionable pass (the bomb to Booker in the monsoon). And even that wasn't all that bad, it just seemed to me like a case of a young QB getting frustrated and wanting to make something happen. Other than that, he's been spot on and every pass has been the right one to make. He's thrown the ball away quite well, rather than force a pass under pressure. There's been no throws into triple coverage (AJ), no heave-hos off the back foot (Joey), no lazy square outs that sit in the air for a lifetime, just begging for Nate Clements to turn them into a pick-six (Jay). Beck has already shown better decision making than any Phin QB since Marino, which to me is impressive as hell. Now, admittedly, without having an aerial view of the field and being able to see if he's missed an open receiver, I'm a bit limited in this evaluation, but from what I have seen, he's been impeccable. Accuracy - C+. This was his stock in trade coming out of college, but it wasn't great in his debut. I would have given him a C- or D in the Philly game, but it improved a lot against the Steelers. You can probably chalk his first game missed passes up to early jitters and the difficulty of adjusting to the speed of the NFL game right away. I can live with that. I'm not, of course, holding Derek "Roberto Duran" Hagan's inability to catch a football against him. Mobility - Inc. Looked pretty nimble against the Eagles, but I can't even give him a grade based on the Monday Nighter. Have to see more to get a better idea. Put a gun to my head, and I suppose he gets a B. Comprehension - B+. Beck seems to read defenses quite well. He doesn't seemed shocked or scared by blitzes. I don't think Cameron is asking him to read the whole field yet, though I could be wrong. Either way, he seems to know what's going to happen, where, and what he should do. Leadership - C. The team seems to have rallied around him, but I can't do more than a C until he actually puts some points on the board. Outlook: I'm drinking the kool-aid. I absolutely believe this kid will be an excellent QB. Franchise QB? We'll see. However, I think he's at least shown enough that the Phins should pass on Brohm, Brennan, Woodson, etc. in round 1. However, he already makes decisions at a much higher level than any rookie has a right to, and his physical tools are plenty good enough. Offhand, he seems to me like he could project to be similar to Marc Bulger, though hopefully less injury prone.
Great post Brother! As far as him running with the ball when he didn't have anything, I think Beck is trying to get teh whole offense in the game. As his experience grows, he will be better to decide when to tuck in and make the dash. His lack of mistakes, his poise, and willing to take a hit to complete the pass have shown me quite a bit. I just wish Cam would of put him 5 games ago. I think Beck will earn the respect of his offense and team as he leads by example.
I prefer orange, thank you! He has shown enough in the two starts that I am quite pissed he didn't get in against Buffalo. Even if he isn't the franchise QB we have all been waiting for since you know who got run out of town by pornstache, he certainly has plenty of upside.
My list of nicknames for other reviled Dolphin whipping boys... Donald "Holding, #85" Lee, Reggie "Pass interference, #25 Defense" Howard, James "Plop" McKnight, Randy McDrop, and of course, the immortal Eddie F***in' Moore. I like Manos de Piedra. It has a nice ring to it. Let's go with that.
The one thing I have noticed in the very limited reps is that it seems that Beck has a fairly slow delivery. He seems to really have to wind up before throwing. Not a large enough sample to be worried yet.
So the question that I have is... is it time to take a page out of the Patriots book and go to the short passing game (with our lack of RBs)? Can Beck handle this - sending 4 receivers out on quick hitting patterns to dink and dunk down the field? I hate to put that much pressure on Beck but I'm afraid that the 'Fins are down to this option.
i agree with mixing in teh dink and dunk into include our Rb's and Te's bro, but Beck has the tools to stretch the field. We must do this to keep the defense honest so they are not in our Rb's, and Qb's face all game long. I have faith in Beck.
Good post. I like Beck so far and I believe in the Washington game he did a little moving outside the pocket (at least 1 roll left and pass). I think the no sacks in the Eagles game speaks volumes for him and the O-line. Washington was a little different, but when there's nobody in the backfield to help out (8 on the line) when in a shotgun like that and you cold see that dude from Washington just zip right on in there practically untouched, well, I'll say we were under duress. I am mixing the Kool-Aid, but I want to let it sit a bit to make sure all the little granules dissolve first.
Really? The one thing that jumps out at me from watching the Beck highlights is how fast his release is. Even if it does have a little bit of a low release point. And good stuff Phil, and it when it comes to the decision making/defensive reads that's pretty much what Cam said. Said that as a play-caller he can stand on the sideline, see the defense, and with the play called know where the ball is supposed to go.... And Beck has been going to that receiver, making the same read about the coverage as Cam is on the sideline. I found that awfully encouraging.
I believe Beck is the man for this team... From what I have seen, he has made some very "Veteran-Like" decisions on the field. His mobility is also very encouraging as if he uses it sparingly, the defense will not put a spy on him and that will be an advantage for the team. His pocket presence is very good and he seems to feel "The Pressure" when it comes. This alone is veryt valuable as all the great QBs have that clock in thier head that ticks away... His arm strength is impressive and accuarcy is impressive, however, until he gets into the rythym of the speed of the NFL, he will have his misses... Speaking of misses, how many balls did MARTIN and BOOKER drop in the game against the Steelers? There was plenty of zip on the ball, but the drops were all on the receivers...
Phunwin's post was a very good one. I'm ignoring the "scoreboard" results and looking at many of the same variables Phunwin is. I'm cautiously optimistic on what I've seen. He's been thrown into 2 games with bad weather conditions and on the road against tough defenses. I think he's done well by just not making that one big mistake at this point. He's shown ability to read the field and make good decisions. So far so good.
one thingi have notcied with him is how when he completes apass or two and we keep passing he seems to get that fire taht marino favre and such get. the constant on fire hot hand. I rem he had it against Pitts where it was 3 completions in a row and then we ran it and it killed the drive once we got into their side fo the field and i yelled to my friend hes on fire why would u kill it! I rem that marino feeling it seemed he has.
I think he's doing pretty good. He has defintely improved. Only thing I have noticed and maybe I am just being too picky but .... His height seems to be an issue.... Most of the time when he's surrounded by his linemen his passes are high (since he needs to throw them higher so they dont get swatted at the line) or they get swatted. Now, he hasn't had many swatted like he did in pre-season.... I'll say that. However, whenever his line parts like the red sea and they give him a somewhat clear view of the field, he gets on fire...OR...when he moves around and gets a clear view....the passes are right on and fast. Point is...I dont see him standing in the pocket ala Marino and firing away as accurately as when his boys up front arent in his line of sight. Other than that detail I think he's doing quite well.
The kid is sharp....I think with time he will become acclimated with the game and just start tearing dbs apart. I love the kids chances. I cant wait to surround him with some weapons!
i dont think its much of a problem with his line of site... players like drew brees, jeff garcia, brett favre, etc dont have a problem seeing over their line, and they are his height or shorter... the ONLY issue that might arise with John is that he has a lower release point, which then if he was 6'5" like Vince Young or Phillip Rivers, that wouldn't matter... but it might come into play being that hes 6'2"... but even that i dont foresee as much of a problem...
It would be tough to judge his release point just on the Monday Night game, the field was so sloppy he couldn't really use too much footwork so he had to rely on his arm strength alone to throw the ball. He looked at his best with the three step drop and throw the ball, he strung together some completions that way.
It's incredibly difficult to do an honest assessment of Beck at this point because our sample size is so low - he's only got what could be a complete game's worth of passes. Granted, those are stretched out over two games, which is a good thing - because it allows us to see improvement (if any). Trying to pin it down with a baseline "grade" is tough, but you get props for trying. Now, as the aforementioned improvement goes... He keeps the football safe, even though he's taking some shots downfield. Even when he does go a bit deeper it's been against single man coverage. He plays very smart with the football. Though he's been kinda limited in what he can do by design and field conditions, he makes excellent reads and reacts well. While Ginn had a bad day out there due to the conditions, Beck spread the ball around efficiently. Were it not for a slew of drops, he would be challenging Roethlisberger for completion % in that game. The bad news: he's still a rookie. He's gonna need that offseason and training camp to fully get into the groove. What we're seeing thus far is very promising, and I think his responsibilities and development are being handled expertly by Cameron, Green, and Shea. Lord I can't wait for next year
I'm extremely impressed thus far with Beck's play. His pocket poise is something you don't see from a rookie. He also has that mental clock in his head when it's time to get rid of the ball or time to scramble. You don't see this from rookies. You usually see them with happy feet or getting flustered and taking the sack. I'm very impressed. Not to mention his arm and accuracy. It's a little early to say this, but I'm going to anyway..... I think we found our QB.
He's looked solid for a rookie so far. What's becoming glaring though is that Hagan/Booker/Martin need to go and be replaced by a first day draft pick and a veteran signing. They have a major case of the slips and dropsies. I've counted 6 drops that should have been caught (8 if your a hard case). It's also good to see him get the ball to Ginn despite the fact he's the focus of the defenses right now as Chatman nor anyone else on offense scares anyone.
I agree that Beck looks good so far, I think Phil breaks it down perfectly. I am really looking forward to seeing him play at home, in the sunshine, against the jets. If Cam takes the governor off the offense, I think we'll all be blown away by what the "kid" can do. BTW, Hello everyone.....good to see you all again.
Even if he gets picked a couple of times, let him take some chances. You're not going to get any big plays if you never throw it long; it's like trying to win the lottery without buying a ticket. What's he going to do, ruin our playoff chances? He'd be helping our draft position even if he's picked, and learning something by throwing it long. C'mon, Cam. Let the kid fling it.
