And the quarterback to build around is ...

by Ed Valentine on Jun 12, 2007 7:16 AM EDT in News Comment 17 comments

A couple of weeks ago I asked you to vote on which NFC East quarterback you would be most willing to build a franchise around.

Of the 24 votes cast so far, I am mildly surprised that 16 of them (67%) have gone to the Giants Eli Manning.

Maybe I shouldn't be surprised. This is, after all, a Giants blog visited mostly by Giants fans (I hope). Talking about Manning always seems to lead to an argument, though. Is he a superstar? A bum? An average quarterback? Overrated? A guy who still has time to get better?

Everybody seems to have a different opinion, so I wasn't expecting the show of support for Eli. I'll leave the poll up for a few more days, so feel free to add your vote if you haven't done so already.

I'll get to my choice later on, but let's quickly break down the division's four starting quarterbacks.

Donovan McNabb, Philadelphia Eagles -- Entering his 9th season, McNabb is one of the premier quarterbacks in the league when healthy. His health is a major question, though. McNabb has had injury problems the past two seasons, and is coming off a knee injury now. Even the Eagles have ehdged their bets, drafting quarterback Kevin Kolb in the second round.

Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys -- After 3½ seasons of learning on the bench, Bill Parcells finally gave Romo an opportunity midway through last season. Romo was often brilliant in 10 games (9 starts), completing 65% of his passes and throwing for 19 touchdowns. He ended up going to the Pro Bowl. Entering this season you have to wonder if he really is that good, or if the half season just wasn't enough to expose weaknesses in his game.

Jason Campbell, Washington Redskins -- Campbell, who is entering his third year, got 7 starts at the end of last season for Washington. He was often impressive, and those who have watched him progress throughout the offseason think he could have a good year. Starting Campbell is the right move for the Redskins, but there are sure to be growing pains.

Eli Manning, New York Giants -- Ah, what to make of Eli? In his 2½ years as a starter Manning has taken Giants fans on a rollercoaster ride. Sometimes he's been spectacular, other times he's been downright awful. We know he has a great arm, a great pedigree and is very bright. We also know he's scatter-armed, shies away from the pass rush and is not a take-charge type of player. Will he develop into a star, or is what we see now what we will get for the rest of his career? That is the question upon which the future of the Giants franchise rests.

So, now, back to the original question. Which quarterback would you build a franchise around?

If we were talking about which quarterback you would trust to lead you to a Super Bowl today, I'd take McNabb. But, there is a lot of mileage on Donovan's tires and I wouldn't want to build a franchise around him right now.

As for Campbell, he might very well be a quality NFL quarterback. Yet, the sample size with him is so far very small and you can't really draw any conclusions from off-season workouts.

So, for me, this is a choice between Romo and Manning.

The sample size with Romo is also small -- just 9 starts. He was phenomenal for the Cowboys, though, playing well in pressure situations and leading them to the playoffs.

Can he repeat that kind of success, though? I am not sure. He's running around judging beauty pageants and dating superstar singer Carrie Underwood, and I wonder just how much time he has spent working on becoming a better quarterback.

That leaves me with Eli. Progress with Manning has been painfully slow, yet each season his completion percentage has gotten better. He will never equal the accomplishments of his brother, Peyton, but I believe he will continue to get better.

One thing Manning has shown throughout his career is that he may fear oncoming rushers, but he does not fear the fourth quarter of a close game. Even as a rookie, he led comebacks.

Will he ever gain the full respect of all of his teammates and full control of the locker room? I don't know. Will he ever lead the Giants to a championship? I think he will.

Of all the NFC East quarterbacks I think Manning is the one most likely to be a star 5 years from now. Thus, if I'm taking an NFC East quarterback to build a team around, I'm taking Eli.

Your thoughts?

0 recs | Comment 17 comments

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Comments

Good analysis

I probably would have came to the same conclusion, but as you say we are Giants fans. I think most people would pick Romo based on their recent on-field performance. I've been an Eli backer from day 1, mostly because you have to be or you have no hope for the franchise for the next few years, but I do believe that he will be a good NFL QB (just not a great one).

by potroast on Jun 12, 2007 10:32 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Jason Campbell, of course:)

Hogs Haven

by Skin Patrol on Jun 12, 2007 11:33 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Oh

I know you have more to say on this subject than that. C'mon, now ... spill the rest of it!

by Ed Valentine on Jun 12, 2007 12:23 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Biggest upside

I'll get mauled for this.

Donovan McNabb is the pick of the group, obviously, and has performed at a high level longer than any of the people listed. But, as you said, he's an injury concern and is getting long in tooth.

I think Tony Romo could very easily turn into the most dominant of the these four quarterbacks, but like you said there's a concern of sample size. Also, it's not as if he's new to the league. This is already his 5th season and last year was his fourth under the same management. The situation was fairly ideal for him to succeed and I felt he came up very short at times. Also he is a Cowboy, and I cannot vote for him.

I just flat out don't think Eli Manning is better than he's played, which means he's just not an elite quarterback in the NFL. His completion percentage is low, and even as it improves his YPA get lower, telling me that he's making shorter passes (which are easier to complete).

Most of those criticisms fly on Jason Campbell as well, but I feel there are mitigating circumstances. He hasn't played for the same offense consecutively since High School. He wasn't even getting 2nd string reps through much of last year given the team's insane strategy of using Todd Collins as the gameday backup. Of all the four, we've seen the least of JC and thus he has the biggest upside. I also think that means he's the biggest bust possibility, but I'm willing to live with that. We've seen enough of Manning and McNabb to know what we have in those two guys, in my opinion. McNabb is old and Manning has not wowed me (though he's a very serviceable QB). JC and Romo still could wow me.

Hogs Haven

by Skin Patrol on Jun 12, 2007 1:37 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

See

I knew you had more to say! In reference to McNabb, right now he is the best. The question, though, is would you start a franchise with him? I just can't do it at this point in his career.

by Ed Valentine on Jun 12, 2007 1:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I would not start a franchise

with McNabb.

Hogs Haven

by Skin Patrol on Jun 12, 2007 2:06 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

i agree

if i want to win next year or the year after that, im taking mcnabb and you cant argue that.

if im starting a franchise, im really not sold on any of the other three. romo could've been a flash in the pan, we've seen the really good from eli but also the really bad and campbell doesn't look like he has the tools to be a franchise player.

that said, romo has shown flashes of brilliance, eli has all the tools (its just about when/how he uses them) and campbell has superior athletic ability.

the think eli has the best chance of being a star because hes shown the most.

but in reality, i think eli will be just a good-very good QB. and i think romo and campbell will both be solid down the line.

by SBakerTheTouchdownMaker on Jun 12, 2007 3:36 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

best

You're right for now. I hope you're still right when the season's over. Campbell and Romo will have enough experience then to make a more valid comparison. I'm not down on Eli, but I do believe we gave up too much to get him and that as of now Rivers is a better QB. The whole deal reminded me of the Dave Brown fiasco. The scenario isn't the same, of course, but it could turn out to be close.

by george cronin on Jun 12, 2007 11:43 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Agreed

I want/need to see more of Romo and Campbell before I am able to make up my mind about them.

by Ed Valentine on Jun 12, 2007 12:24 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

If you are talking about building a franchise

Should Kevin Kolb enter the discussion?

Sure, we've never seen him take a snap and probably won't for 2 more years... but he's a high 2nd round pick and seen as a future starter with good projections.

When someone says "build a franchise" what do they mean? For the next 10 years? I'd take probably take Campbell. For the next 5? I'd still take McNabb(who is only 30).

Bleeding Green Nation Philadelphia Eagles Blog

by JasonB on Jun 12, 2007 4:16 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

That's a good point

because GM's and coaches only have a 5 year window in this era of impatience. You might have to take McNabb just to keep your job.

by potroast on Jun 12, 2007 4:31 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I considered

adding Kolb to the discussion, but we have nothing to go on with him. I figured we'd just keep it to the obvious starters.

by Ed Valentine on Jun 12, 2007 4:40 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Romo is the real deal

and you Giants fans will find that out all too well for years to come. Tony will become the league's most improved player this season, lighting up opposing secondaries on a weekly basis. He practically lived at Valley Ranch this offseason to improve his game, so don't believe all the press about who he's dating.

He's the one, true franchise qb in this division, no doubt about it.

by Terry on Jun 12, 2007 4:56 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs