ESPN’s Trent Dilfer, speaking on radio station 102.5 The Game in Nashville, made some very candid remarks on Tennessee Titans QB Jake Locker, recently.
“It’s the little things, the craft of the position, the mechanics, the nuances, the eye placement, the rhythm, the tempo. It’s all these things that you can’t really show somebody that hasn’t held the ball in their hands and done it,” Dilfer said.
“The greats make it look so easy because they pay such close attention to the little things. I’m passionate about it because I stunk at it – because I was Jake Locker. I could make any throw. I could do the splash play, I had all the ability in the world, and yet I would miss a gimme.”
“Everybody knew he had a ton of talent. He’s a great kid, he’s tough, he’s a leader. He’s everything you want, but he hasn’t yet had enough of the craftsmanship work. He hasn’t gone to the lab and done the lonely work. Not that he hasn’t wanted to, but he’s always been thrown into the fire and asked to play because of his talent.
“That’s why I think the best thing the Titans could have done was to have built around Matthew (Hasselbeck). He was playing at a high level if he could stay healthy you would have won some games, and Jake could have been there getting the lonely work done, so that when he was asked to play, there was more craft to his game that he could embrace the nuances a little bit more.
“I love Jake. He’s one of my favorite people. I think he’s a great talent and a great kid. I get so frustrated watching him play, because he can make the very difficult look very easy, but he can make the very easy look next to impossible.”
(Hat tip to Terry McCormack of Titans Insider for supplying these quotes.)
