Cousins Is The Man

[Warhead36]

"Team friendly" what does that even mean? League minimum? LOL. QBs get paid. You wanna keep Kirk, you don't screw around. Pay him what QBs make and be happy with it.

[mistertim]

i felt his best case scenario was tom brady. i mean, they are very similar except cousins is a little bit more mobile. 

 

i thought, and still think, that there is a very low chance of him getting there though.

 

he has been playing brady-esque for weeks now though.

To be fair, pretty much every fan of every team hopes their QB ends up being Tom Brady.

[sportjunkie07]

Foles also switched systems. Kirk will be playing in this system for a long time. Barring some kind of a disaster.

foles played really well for a short period of time. he was a flash in the pan who was elevated by a qb friendly scheme. he also had one really big game (7tds i think) that elevated his statistics.

 

i never believed in foles but i think cousins is different.

 

cousins has always showed the ability to limit sacks, was accurate, and was mentally quick at reading the field. he made the wrong decision (ints) often early on, but is now limiting those decisions, which one would hope for with more game experience and more trust from the head coach.

 

i believe foles benefited from the scheme and didnt consistently show the traits that cousins did.

[petedaddy]

Foles also switched systems. Kirk will be playing in this system for a long time. Barring some kind of a disaster.

 

foles did play another year under chip, but was regressing considerably then too, and now he doesn't even look like a backup in the new system

[sportjunkie07]

the cousins kneel at the end of the half doesnt bother me at all.

 

it looked like a mental goof. even the best make silly mistakes sometimes. there was a lot of confusion going on at the end of that series. it'll be a learning experience for him if anything. 

[mexaskin]

you can point to a combine throwing test or put up a youtube video if you'd like but it wont change my opinion that ive formed from watching him in college and in the ....

That's impressive your eyes are more accurate than the equipment the professional scouts use at the combine.

[Tsailand]

Is that their first 16 starts?

 

Yes.

[Kindred]

And what about those who reserve judgement based off not enough evidence to date?   Are you saying it's better to rush to judge somebody and underrate them, than to reserve judgement until progress and time reveals the truth?

 

 

Um, that's actually exactly what we want to see:  People with mutable views based on facts instead of outdated data.  I want someone whose opinion of a player changes with how they perform; those are the ones who want the team to win as opposed to want to prove themselves "right" about a certain player.

 

It's those whose views are held onto with teeth and nails that can go take a walk.

 

I was dead wrong about Cousins at this point, and not only am I not too proud to admit it, I'm actually VERY proud to admit it.  I've said it a million times:  Being wrong about an aspect of this team being bad is the best thing you can be.

[Tsailand]

The amount of money he has waiting for him is ridiculous. Like, a share of the team when he retires, ridiculous.

 

Yeah, it's clear to me that Brady and Kraft have some kind of handshake deal where he will get his real compensation when he retires, and until then they will just cheat the salary cap.  Whatever.  We probably won't have to play them again until 2019.

[sportjunkie07]

That's impressive your eyes are more accurate than the equipment the professional scouts use at the combine.

His arm strength isn't a problem at all. It doesn't have to be top 5. Just NFL caliber which it certainly is. Who cares if you can heave it 70yds flat footed if you can't hit your target. He does too many things well to just kick up dirt and say " well he can't throw it as far as JaMarcus Russel".

because a throwing test for velocity in the combine is the only measurement of arm strength? my eyes certainly give me a better assessment of arm strength. yours should too.

 

also, i would agree with you on your second assessment, which i have already posted. keep up donnie. 

[BatteredFanSyndrome]

That's impressive your eyes are more accurate than the equipment the professional scouts use at the combine.

His arm strength isn't a problem at all. It doesn't have to be top 5. Just NFL caliber which it certainly is. Who cares if you can heave it 70yds flat footed if you can't hit your target. He does too many things well to just kick up dirt and say " well he can't throw it as far as JaMarcus Russel".

 

At the combine, guys are set.  What I believe he was referring to is having the arm strength necessary to make all the throws when he doesn't have the opportunity to get his feet set, plant and throw.  I don't see anyone kicking up dirt on him, just pointing out what makes Kirk different from that of your typical dreamy prototype modern NFL QB.  As also stated, the ability to rip it isn't required to be successful, but its nice to have.

[sportjunkie07]

And what about those who reserve judgement based off not enough evidence to date?   Are you saying it's better to rush to judge somebody and underrate them, than to reserve judgement until progress and time reveals the truth?

i dont have an issue with those who seek to reserve judgement. just consider that we dont have a ton of time to do so. 

 

i know a lot of people are torn over what happened with rg3 and all the resources we wasted on him.

 

the bottom line is we will have to make a gamble on kirk at some point, but it wont be as risky a gamble as the rg3 trade was.

 

kirk has shown enough in my eyes to warrant a big contract. 

[NewCliche21]

Yeah, it's clear to me that Brady and Kraft have some kind of handshake deal where he will get his real compensation when he retires, and until then they will just cheat the salary cap.  Whatever.  We probably won't have to play them again until 2019.

 

Or in about a month.

[Larry]

My view on Cousins has always been that I felt his best case scenario was a top 12-15 ish QB, in that third tier of QBs(a Joe Flacco or Eli Manning type).

 

The way he's played, that would actually be disappointing. I think he can be a firm tier 2 QB, and right now he's playing at a legit tier 1 level.

A year ago, my opinion was that IF THEY COULD FIX HIS MENTAL PROBLEMS, then he would at least an average starting QB.

(And I thought that, since we were in rebuilding mode, going with an average QB, and building up the rest of the team, was the way to go. If he turns out to be a better than average QB, then we're good. If average is his ceiling, then you plug in a better QB to the good team you've built.)

IMO, what's changed is, yes, they fixed his mental problems, and I think his "floor" is better than average, now. (And I'm not sure we've seen the ceiling, yet).

[ncr2h]

Kirk's 2015 season isn't likely to be a flash in the pan, and here's why - 

 

1. Attempts - Kirk has 3 victories with 40+ pass attempts (Philly 1, TB, Philly 2).  Historically, if you look at the number of victories for young QBs throwing a high number of attempts, it is a predictor of future ability.  There are very few bad QBs who managed more than 2 victories while throwing 40+ attempts in their first two years as a starter.  Similarly, there are very few elite QBs who did not manage to accomplish this, at least in the recent past (i.e. bringing in examples from the early 1990s is not relevant to how the game is played in 2015).  Foles won just 1 game while throwing 40+ attempts in his first two years as a starter, including his dominant 2013 season that we now consider a fluke.  Tannehill had just 1 last year, and it was the only one in his career.  Derek Anderson had only 1 in 2007, and has had only 2 in his career.  Bortles has just 1 in his career.  Carr has just 1 in his career.  Why is the number of pass attempts so important?  It tells you a few things - your offense has become one-dimensional (i.e. we are eliminating, to the extent possible, the support of the run game, defense, and special teams) and they are in high-pressure situations (i.e. your team is either losing, in a shootout, or has gameplanned for the QB to shoulder the load).  Ironically, it is much easier to win games when your QB doesn't throw very many passes.  We saw that this year against New Orleans, where Kirk basically threw a bunch of pitch-and-catch plays and our receivers turned them into monster gains.  It is very difficult to win when your run game gets shut down, you have to come from far behind, or you're in a shootout with a team that has figured out how to beat your defense.

 

2. In some ways, the 2015 season was a worst-case scenario for QB play.  Our run game is ranked #31 by footballoutsiders, so there is no run game to lean on.  This impacts the pass game by (1) consistently putting us behind the chains, (2) reducing the play-action threat, (3) hurting our ability to bootleg, and (4) turning up the degree of difficulty in the red zone by either making us one dimensional or effectively giving us only 2 downs to work with.  In addition to the run game being eliminated, we were ravaged by injuries (#4 in the league as of last week).  Reed, Jackson, and about half of our OL (including the crucial linchpin of the OL, the center) all missed various amounts of time.  You could make the argument that the run game and injury situation is likely to revert back towards the mean next year, which can only help our pass game next year.  Alternatively, you might argue that Reed and Jackson are injury prone and therefore 2015 is a normal year for us, injury-wise, but I find that hard to swallow.

 

3. This isn't just 1 year of good performance by Kirk.  Sure, this is the year where he put the whole league on notice.  But he flashed as a rookie (+6.4% DVOA, #15 in the league among QBs with 50+ attempts) and last year (+4.6% DVOA, #15 in the league) before blowing up this year (+11.3% DVOA, #7 in the league).  Redskins fans just missed it because they (1) downplayed the huge flashes of positive play (i.e. Before this year, Kirk already had the #1 and #2 games by DYAR by a Redskins QB since he was drafted - meaning, the highs with Kirk were higher than the highs with Robert), (2) failed to account for the strength of opposition (i.e. he played a ridiculously difficult schedule in his 4 starts last season), and (3) in general, assign way more value to TDs and INTs than they deserve.

 

If Kirk regresses, it will be a small regression towards average QB play rather than an epic bust regression like the QBs that people have compared him to.  We will have a more difficult schedule next year, and it's possible that Reed could miss a lot more time than he did this year.  But IMO, Kirk is here to stay as at least an average NFL QB, with about 50/50 odds of being a multiple Pro Bowler and 5-10% chance of being a HOFer (more dependent on the team we build around him).

[mexaskin]

because a throwing test for velocity in the combine is the only measurement of arm strength? my eyes certainly give me a better assessment of arm strength. yours should too.

also, i would agree with you on your second assessment, which i have already posted. keep up donnie.

Qbs don't put 100% on every ball. I would guess a certain amount of touch is on most throws. But that's great you have Radar gun eyes. You should get a job as a scout.

[Larry]

Yeah, it's clear to me that Brady and Kraft have some kind of handshake deal where he will get his real compensation when he retires, and until then they will just cheat the salary cap. 

Would the Patriots do that?

[petedaddy]

Qbs don't put 100% on every ball. I would guess a certain amount of touch is on most throws. But that's great you have Radar gun eyes. You should get a job as a scout.

 

like that TD pass to garcon against the eagles, that was amazing, perfect touch in a tight window, unbelievable throw

[sportjunkie07]

At the combine, guys are set.  What I believe he was referring to is having the arm strength necessary to make all the throws when he doesn't have the opportunity to get his feet set, plant and throw.  I don't see anyone kicking up dirt on him, just pointing out what makes Kirk different from that of your typical dreamy prototype modern NFL QB.  As also stated, the ability to rip it isn't required to be successful, but its nice to have.

exactly. there are probably 1 to 2 throws a game where having elite arm strength would be helpful. it's nice to have, but not a necessity. it could be more helpful if there was a change of offensive scheme which required more difficult nfl throws, but i dont see that happening anytime soon. 

[kgor93]

If his production doesn't drop off, he can easily be our QB for the next 10+ years. Yes he's 27 but with the league limiting QB hits, QB's are staying healthy and playing longer. Tom Brady is 38 and as sharp as ever. Carson Palmer is 36 and is having the best year of his career. The list goes on.

[petedaddy]

exactly. there are probably 1 to 2 throws a game where having elite arm strength would be helpful. it's nice to have, but not a necessity. it could be more helpful if there was a change of offensive scheme which required more difficult nfl throws, but i dont see that happening anytime soon. 

 

so who are your guys with elite arm strength then?

[NewCliche21]

And what about those who reserve judgement based off not enough evidence to date?   Are you saying it's better to rush to judge somebody and underrate them, than to reserve judgement until progress and time reveals the truth?

 

I mean, if you want to make up what I'm saying, then yes, that's exactly what I'm saying.  

 

You literally said that opinions are changing.  How can an opinion not yet formed due to reservation of judgment possibly change?  That completely contradicts the premise of your post.

 

Also, if you can find me a person who genuinely reserves judgment, then I'll buy you the Redskins.  Judgments are made literally every instant of every interaction in your entire life, ever and always.  It's a survival mechanism, and a lack of pattern extrapolation, even if only in hypothesis, is literally impossible.

 

But to bite on your new premise, since I'm bored:  When and where, exactly, are the thresholds for appropriate time to reserve judgment?  After a season?  Two?  Ten?  A career?  X number of losses?  Y number of wins?  Compared to whose career at what point?  With what statistic?

 

Again, find me a person who "reserves judgment until progress (inherently biased, by the way) and time reveals the truth (undefined)", and I'll call you master.

[petedaddy]

exactly. there are probably 1 to 2 throws a game where having elite arm strength would be helpful. it's nice to have, but not a necessity. it could be more helpful if there was a change of offensive scheme which required more difficult nfl throws, but i dont see that happening anytime soon. 

 

so the ability to throw the ball better properly is not an indicator of arm strength, but the ability to throw off a back foot is?

[wit33]

I'm surprised Cousins hasn't taken opportunity to down play "you like that". He appears willing to add fuel to the saying and wanting it to continue. It pretty much rivals what Cam has done in his celebrations, from the standpoint, you will see opposing teams mocking it in future. Not a huge deal, but becoming kind of awkward, in my opinion. 

 

My favorite play in game, Cousins felt pressure stepped up in pocket and fired rocket to Reed on 3rd down. Last week, it was the "opportunity ball" thrown to Jackson. These are the throws a top tier pocket QB must make consistently throughout a game to be a necessary playmaker. Having full grasp of the offense is a big deal, but these kind of throws for me is most exciting. 

[ExoDus84]

so who are your guys with elite arm strength then?

 

INO, Rodgers, Flacco, Cutler, Newton, and Stafford have the biggest arms, but you don't need to have a huge arm to be a great passer. Of the above QB's, only Rodgers is a fantastic all around passing QB.

 

Brees, Cousins, Brady (2015 version), romoSUCKS, Big Ben, Wilson, Luck, etc., don't have howitzers, but have enough to make all the throws and go deep on occasion.

 

Kirk doesn't have a weak arm. He can make the throws a QB needs to make.