Breer's latest: Two QB tiers

[Mr. Scot]

From the latest MMQB (Link)

The Panthers’ traveling party does have one more stop on its quarterbacking tour, and that’ll happen with owners David and Nicole Tepper leading a group from Phoenix to Gainesvlle on Wednesday. I’d expect, like they did for the other three pro days, for the Teppers, GM Scott Fitterer, coach Frank Reich, and the rest of them to have dinner with Richardson on Wednesday night ahead of his throwing session Friday at UF.

And, honestly, I think this is part of the benefit you get in doing the deal to move up early if you’re the Panthers. There’s no hiding your intentions. You just send everyone and get everyone’s opinion on each of the quarterbacks—with the Teppers bringing a different perspective to the conversation than, say, Fitterer or Reich would.

This is a massive decision for the franchise, the kind where a GM and coach get their job security tethered to the fortunes of a single player. So this, in my mind, is how it should look. All hands on deck.

While we’re here, I would say the consensus I’ve gotten from teams, and guys who were on the ground at the pro days, is it looks like Young and Stroud are, for now, on one tier, with Levis and Richardson, who don’t have the tape that the other two do and need more work mechanically, on another.

“In my opinion, it’s a real tough choice between Bryce and C.J.,” says one coach who was at all three pro days. “They’re both outstanding. If you’re concerned about size, C.J.’s probably a safer pick? And Will looked fine, [but] I think he’s a notch or two below the others. … The other two are more natural throwers and have put better stuff on tape.”

“Stroud’s personality came out more interacting with his teammates, and his natural arm strength was tremendous,” says another coach. “Young’s performance was as good as it gets, and he’s such a natural in front of everyone. His accuracy, anticipation, along with throwing catchable balls, as good as it gets.”

[Jesse]

At this point we're just doing our due diligence on what to expect from him whenever we face him on Sundays.

[t96]

yeah this has been fairly obvious for a while now, despite all the pre-draft chatter. AR has Josh Allen upside but probably a better chance he busts like The Golden Calf of Bristol rather than meets that potential plus even if he does live up to the hype it'll almost certainly be a few years. And Levis has Zach Wilson or Josh Rosen written all over him. Upside is maybe Herbert who is solid but not a top tier franchise guy.

 

Stroud's upside is Burrow who is top tier (well not counting Mahomes who is on another planet). Young's upside is prime Russell if he can stay healthy, maybe even better. And both their floors are much higher than the other 2 guys. Tough decision between those 2 but Levis/AR just aren't even in the conversation. Just due dilligence.

[LinvilleGorge]

Richardson's talent level is off the charts but drafting him ahead of Young or Stroud would take gigantic balls and there's a good chance it goes wrong. Then again, if he has what it takes and develops... oh wee mayne. You could be passing on a great one.

I'm honestly glad it's not my call. I can fully understand the arguments for and against all of these guys. I think Young is the best QB right now. I think Stroud is probably the safest pick. Richardson is the grand slam or embarrassing strikeout. I honestly can't see that one going any other way.

[Mr. Scot]

16 minutes ago, LinvilleGorge said:

Richardson's talent level is off the charts but drafting him ahead of Young or Stroud would take gigantic balls and there's a good chance it goes wrong. Then again, if he has what it takes and develops... oh wee mayne. You could be passing on a great one.

I'm honestly glad it's not my call. I can fully understand the arguments for and against all of these guys. I think Young is the best QB right now. I think Stroud is probably the safest pick. Richardson is the grand slam or embarrassing strikeout. I honestly can't see that one going any other way.

In the past, we've had a fairly vocal crowd supporting the idea of "take the superior athlete and teach him how to quarterback" (maybe because people were big fans of Cam Newton) but it feels like that crowd has either lost some members or simply grown silent.

I've always been in the "take the guy with the superior quarterbacking skills regardless of whether he's the best athlete" camp myself. Most signs seem to point to the Panthers going that route with their QB pick, so I'm certainly not complaining.

There are definitely some sports fans who'd rather lose an exciting game than win a slow and steady one. That's the bunch that continuously calls on the team to make big moves and swing for the fences every time. And yes, that might be a lot of fun to watch...

...but it's not always the smart play.

[LinvilleGorge]

Just now, Mr. Scot said:

In the past, we've had a fairly vocal crowd supporting the idea of "take the superior athlete and teach him how to quarterback" (maybe because people were big fans of Cam Newton) but it feels like that crowd has either lost some members or simply grown silent.

I've always been in the "take the guy with the superior quarterbacking skills regardless of whether he's the best athlete" camp myself. Most signs seem to point to the Panthers going that route with their QB pick, so I'm certainly not complaining.

There are definitely some sports fans who'd rather lose an exciting game than win a slow and steady one. That's the bunch that continuously calls on the team to make big moves and swing for the fences every time. And yes, that might be a lot of fun to watch...

...but it's not always the smart play.

I think it's just that there are two really good, much more polished QBs available. Stroud and Young aren't Gabbert and Locker.

[Mr. Scot]

5 minutes ago, LinvilleGorge said:

I think it's just that there are two really good, much more polished QBs available. Stroud and Young aren't Gabbert and Locker.

There is a certain physical element to that debate, but it's not about athleticism. It's about durability.

Young is as good a quarterback as I've seen in a long time. Stroud has the intelligence, accuracy and processing ability that I look for too, though.

The difference id I don't feel like I'd be holding my breath every time Stroud took a hit.

[Jackie Lee]

5 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

In the past, we've had a fairly vocal crowd supporting the idea of "take the superior athlete and teach him how to quarterback" (maybe because people were big fans of Cam Newton) but it feels like that crowd has either lost some members or simply grown silent.

I've always been in the "take the guy with the superior quarterbacking skills regardless of whether he's the best athlete" camp myself. Most signs seem to point to the Panthers going that route with their QB pick, so I'm certainly not complaining.

There are definitely some sports fans who'd rather lose an exciting game than win a slow and steady one. That's the bunch that continuously calls on the team to make big moves and swing for the fences every time. And yes, that might be a lot of fun to watch...

...but it's not always the smart play.

I think that was when we were picking at 9 and it was potentially AR vs Levis. I'm guessing most of the AR guys are Stroud guys now that we've moved up. 

[Mr. Scot]

Just now, Jackie Lee said:

I think that was when we were picking at 9 and it was potentially AR vs Levis. I'm guessing most of the AR guys are Stroud guys now that we've moved up. 

Is Stroud really that great an athlete though?

Based on what I've seen, I don't really think anybody is mistaking him for Michael Vick

[Khyber53]

Let's just get this thing over with... we need to be able to breathe again!

[Wolfcop]

“Young’s performance was as good as it gets"  

Not at the pro day it wasn't. I know that's not what you base your decision on, but he missed on deep balls several times. Stroud missed a few as well, but his pro day was more impressive. 

[Jackie Lee]

If you're picking between Bryce and Stroud, Stroud has more physical upside. I'm not trying a QB sneak with Bryce for instance

[Mr. Scot]

2 minutes ago, Jackie Lee said:

If you're picking between Bryce and Stroud, Stroud has more physical upside. I'm not trying a QB sneak with Bryce for instance

Young would have an easier time hiding behind a fullback though

[Carolina Disaster]

9 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

Is Stroud really that great an athlete though?

Based on what I've seen, I don't really think anybody is mistaking him for Michael Vick

He definitely is no Vick but he is a better athlete than he gets credit for.  He wasn't asked to run at OSU.  He didn't need to until the Georgia game.  He isn't going to blow the doors off like Vick, Lamar, etc but he is able to extend plays when needed.