Kenny Pickett > Malik Willis (at least for us)

[ImaginaryKev]

On 3/19/2022 at 1:40 AM, Mr. Scot said:

Watched it. Nice video.

One of my complaints about college highlight reels is way too many of them feature only throws to wide open receivers. This one had some where he was throwing to a guy who was closely covered. Appreciated that.

On the vast majority of his throws, he set his feet nicely and showed good mechanics. There were a few long ones where his back foot came off the ground (they'll wanna coach that out of him) but for the most part he was solid.

I'll have to check out a full game tape of him sometime.

I also think that WR for Boston College, number 4, is an NFL guy, he's consistently getting deep in all these highlights and seen him mentioned on draft Twitter 

CJ Stroud is accurate as hell but not as big or the runner than Fields was.

 

Edited March 20, 2022 by ImaginaryKev

[Panthers Rhule]

3 hours ago, ForJimmy said:

Last year we were idiots and though Sam was our guy. (I was begging for us to draft Fields).  He is not. Last years QBs were not that impressive year 1. Hopefully they will be better year 2, but that class may be overrated. 

They weren't overrated by most except the 49ers and Bears. They were overhyped and it influenced opinions and decisions. I still don't believe the 49ers intended to draft Lance when they traded up but Jones.  

1 hour ago, bobcat91 said:

I dont care who disagrees, I want Pickett. I didn't like any of the QBs last year, but Jones had a nice season. Didn't want Fields and he did zero last year. The year before I wanted Herbert when everyone on here said he sucks. He doesn't and is a top 10 NFL qb and only getting better. I'm not saying he is Joe Burrow, but Burrow was frankly a one hit wonder at LSU as well. I want Pickett. 

[ImaginaryKev]

7 hours ago, frankw said:

I don't have high expectations for this years class but I have accepted our mgmt will likely take a swing anyway. If Rhule fails he will be gone and we'll reset and draft one next year again. But as far as ceilings and comparisons everyone has their own opinion on what traits define an elite QB. I personally do not feel we are in position to dunk on Carr or Ryan. For the time being going from the worst QB to one that could help us compete for playoffs is a fine first step. And I absolutely hate that you guys make me defend Matt Ryan but he is not the only former MVP to choke away a Super Bowl. We did against an inferior QB who was throwing ducks all game. It sucks beyond words when it's your team on the receiving end but it does happen.

I've accepted it too and I'm personally prepared to rationalize the poo out of either Willis or Pickett bc they do have things to like about their games, it's just my preference to wait til next year bc I'm patient and I think the prospects have higher upsides. That's really all. I also wouldn't hate it if Fitterer traded down twice in the first to recoup the Darnold picks and the BPA is still Howell. I'd be alright taking him at that point bc we'd be in position to support him like Dak Prescott (which is my main nfl comp for Howell to be honest). 

I just see the holes in the roster still, the youth that isn't actualized into elite play yet (Brian Burns) and think we'd be better off waiting til next year but I get the desire to see the positives in this year's class. Pickett is a gritty dude who's good at football and probably will stick as a backup no matter what and Willis has a fantastic skill set. 

Edited March 20, 2022 by ImaginaryKev

[ImaginaryKev]

I absolutely think the Panthers could be competitive with Pickett/Howell if we can actually support them with talent and a good ecosystem of skill guys, but I really get the feeling that in order to win an actual Super Bowl we need to bet in a talented guy like Mahomes or Stafford or Herbert or Burrow, and the QBs next year seem closer to that type of guy than this year. 

[45catfan]

43 minutes ago, MillionDollarCam said:

Lance produced for one year and it was against guys who now sell cars and dabble in penny stocks. Not to mention he accomplished it all on the best team in FCS football.

And for those in the know, Willis transferred because Bo Nix is a legacy child at Auburn. His dad was a starting QB at Auburn and his family is very influential in that school. Willis was steered to Liberty because Malzahn and Freeze are really good friends. Malzahn wouldn’t have sent Freeze a dud, he knew Willis had talent.

And you can’t bring up the competition level when Lance it there playing Butler and North Dakota and Willis is playing teams like Virginia Tech, N.C. State, Syracuse, Coastal Carolina, Army, Louisiana, and Ole Miss.. all while having an inferior team.

I’ll take what he did against Syracuse, Tech, and Coastal ten times out of ten over anything that Lance did against Butler.

So he couldn't get the start over a mediocre legacy kid so he transfers to a no-name school?  Most people didn't even know Liberty even had a football program before Willis started to get talked about.  Who cares if it is FBS?  It might as well be FCS. Heck, even Fields transferred to Ohio State.  Sounds like a strawman argument.  If you want to prove your chops, you don't go to some wasteland school so you don't have to compete for the starting gig. 

[Jaxel]

3 minutes ago, 45catfan said:

So he couldn't get the start over a mediocre legacy kid so he transfers to a no-name school?  Most people didn't even know Liberty even had a football program before Willis started to get talked about.  Who cares if it is FBS?  It might as well be FCS. Heck, even Fields transferred to Ohio State.  Sounds like a strawman argument.  If you want to prove your chops, you don't go to some wasteland school so you don't have to compete for the starting gig. 

To be fair, in 2020 he beat Va Tech and Coastal, and lost to NC State by a point. Personally I want Pickett, but I won't be angry with Willis. As long as we get that LT to go with this transformed line, I'm all in swinging for the fence.

[MillionDollarCam]

11 minutes ago, 45catfan said:

So he couldn't get the start over a mediocre legacy kid so he transfers to a no-name school?  Most people didn't even know Liberty even had a football program before Willis started to get talked about.  Who cares if it is FBS?  It might as well be FCS. Heck, even Fields transferred to Ohio State.  Sounds like a strawman argument.  If you want to prove your chops, you don't go to some wasteland school so you don't have to compete for the starting gig. 

A lot of people who have an ounce of knowledge knew Liberty had a football team… before Matt Rhule was coach of the Panthers he was the coach of Baylor and who did they lose to in his first game? Liberty… In fact, for G5 teams, Liberty probably plays one of the strongest schedules year in and year out. Next year they play Wake Forest, Arkansas, BYU, and Virginia Tech.

Not to mention, Willis and Lance trained with the same QB coach (Sean McEvoy). McEvoy has said multiple times that Willis even has the better arm.

As for why he transferred to. Liberty. Willis is a devout Christian and really liked the atmosphere that Liberty provided him with along with learning under a former SEC coach.

Do a little research before spewing your nonsense.

[CPcavedweller]

On 3/18/2022 at 5:48 PM, UNCrules2187 said:

No thanks - I'd rather sign a vet bridge QB (Cam, Mariota) and draft Willis.

I'd rather have Grayson McCall in 2023.

 

Both Willis and McCall play G5 ball but one is significantly better than the other. Run with Darnold for 2022, go hard after McCall in 2023. If you can't draft McCall in 2023 it's because Darnold actually turned out to be who many thought he could be.

[MillionDollarCam]

15 minutes ago, Jaxel said:

To be fair, in 2020 he beat Va Tech and Coastal, and lost to NC State by a point. Personally I want Pickett, but I won't be angry with Willis. As long as we get that LT to go with this transformed line, I'm all in swinging for the fence.

He also beat Syracuse.

And he was doing this with a bunch of two and three star recruits who won’t be in the NFL. He is the only offensive player on Liberty that’s an NFL player.

[MillionDollarCam]

2 minutes ago, CPcavedweller said:

I'd rather have Grayson McCall in 2023.

 

Both Willis and McCall play G5 ball but one is significantly better than the other. Run with Darnold for 2022, go hard after McCall in 2023. If you can't draft McCall in 2023 it's because Darnold actually turned out to be who many thought he could be.

I mean Willis beat McCall…

[CPcavedweller]

1 minute ago, MillionDollarCam said:

A lot of people who have an ounce of knowledge knew Liberty had a football team… before Matt Rhule was coach of the Panthers he was the coach of Baylor and who did they lose to in his first game? Liberty… In fact, for G5 teams, Liberty probably plays one of the strongest schedules year in and year out. Next year they play Wake Forest, Arkansas, BYU, and Virginia Tech.

Not to mention, Willis and Lance trained with the same QB coach (Sean McEvoy). McEvoy has said multiple times that Willis even has the better arm.

As for why he transferred to. Liberty. Willis is a devout Christian and really liked the atmosphere that Liberty provided him with along with learning under a former SEC coach.

Do a little research before spewing your nonsense.

Willis buckles under pressure. I did not see him perform well against a quality defense in his two years at Liberty. Go watch his games against Louisiana, ULM, and Ole Miss. He was absolutely clueless.

Give me Grayson McCall in 2023. Through two full seasons at Coastal Carolina he has 55 touchdowns to 6 interceptions and they've only lost 3 games. He set the NCAA Record for Passer Efficiency rating, absolutely obliterating Tua's by like 20 points. Has like 13 yards per ATTEMPT and just insanely accurate touch and intermediate throws. He can also run. 

Do not, I repeat, do not reach for Willis. 

 

[MillionDollarCam]

Just now, CPcavedweller said:

Willis buckles under pressure. I did not see him perform well against a quality defense in his two years at Liberty. Go watch his games against Louisiana, ULM, and Ole Miss. He was absolutely clueless.

Give me Grayson McCall in 2023. Through two full seasons at Coastal Carolina he has 55 touchdowns to 6 interceptions and they've only lost 3 games. He set the NCAA Record for Passer Efficiency rating, absolutely obliterating Tua's by like 20 points. Has like 13 yards per ATTEMPT and just insanely accurate touch and intermediate throws. He can also run. 

Do not, I repeat, do not reach for Willis. 

 

I’ve watched every single game he’s played, most of them live.

Louisiana and Ole Miss are just flat out better than Liberty… the ULM game was an outlier but definitely a bad loss.

[Krovvy]

If you guys want a real look at the quarterbacks you can often just search YouTube for sasy "Malik Willis vs" and find cuts of every snap by the quarterback each game. I've watched a lot of Willis the last week, and it's kind of been disappointing.

Don't get me wrong he's an amazing scrambler, runner, and has a really strong arm. However, he doesn't seem to have the field vision you need to be an NFL quarterback. He misses open options, and sometimes just doesn't see the defenders. Sometimes his accuracy reminds me of PJ Walker's bullets, but he has much better long ball accuracy which makes him intriguing.

Out of the two quarterbacks I think I would take Pickett and hope he develops into a classic pocket passer. He'll have to learn to navigate the pocket much better instead of scrambling out like he does far too often (probably the biggest knock that I've seen).

Sam Howell is also interesting, and I feel after watching so many of his games he's being underrated. 

[mrcompletely11]

36 minutes ago, CPcavedweller said:

I'd rather have Grayson McCall in 2023.

 

Both Willis and McCall play G5 ball but one is significantly better than the other. Run with Darnold for 2022, go hard after McCall in 2023. If you can't draft McCall in 2023 it's because Darnold actually turned out to be who many thought he could be.

McCalls highlight throws look eerily similar to mahomes.   His throws from different arm angles is impressive