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New Jersey – There was a tweet from a prominent media personality today that caught my attention, and I feel a need to comment on it . . .
The voice of the Jets, Bob Wischusen, tweeted today, “And for Vick lunatic fringe: you don’t draft a QB, invest 18 starts & entire offseason of prep in him to bench him for a backup w/ no future.”
I’ve known Bob a long time, and we have a good relationship.
But I disagree with him on this one.
People who feel give Vick gives the Jets a better chance to win are far from a “lunatic fringe.”
I agree with Bart Scott.
“If you’re trying to win now, it’s Michael Vick,” Bart Scott of CBS said before the season. “How could it not be?
“I think he’s the best man for the job. Right now, he’s far and away the better quarterback. He’s been in this system before and he’s flourished in it. He’s Michael Vick. He’s played at a very high level.”
That makes sense, and like-minded people are far from a “lunatic fringe.”
“It’s a question of, are you trying to build for the future or are you trying to win now? Scott asked. “If you’re trying to win now, you go with Mike Vick. If you’re trying to build for the future, you go with Geno Smith.”
If the Jets are building for the future, why would they sign players like Jason Babin and Chris Johnson?
Does that sound like a plan to build for the future?
The Jets have missed the playoffs three years in a row. From a business standpoint, how on earth could they view this as a developmental season? Four years out of playoffs is really bad for business.
“You don’t draft a QB, invest 18 starts & entire off-season of prep in him to bench him for a backup w/ no future,” as Wischusen tweeted.
Bob isn’t alone in this theory, but there are holes in this philosophy.
There are no guarantees that time heals all wounds when it comes to quarterback development. This idea that if you just leave the young quarterback in there, and he gets game experience, he will eventually turn the corner, is a flawed concept.
The NFL wayside is loaded with high draft pick quarterbacks who were given plenty of time, and the light bulb never came on.
Hey, there is no question Smith has improved to a certain degree from Year One to Year Two, but he’s got a long way to go, and who knows if he will ever reach the brass ring.
The Jets are a team with enough talent to make a wildcard run.
The Bears were low hanging fruit, ready to be picked, with a ravaged secondary, and Smith couldn’t lead the Jets to victory.
Could Vick have led them to win this game? Perhaps. I think it would be presumptuous for me to say that. I don’t have a crystal ball, but my gut tells me he would have given them a better chance to win.
Does that make me part of a lunatic fringe?
I think not.
September 23, 2014
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