Nick Piccone
Doug Pederson’s biggest obstacle as the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles will be to find the next franchise quarterback of the team. That’s not to say he will, though. Chip Kelly couldn’t.
Hell, Chip thought he could just plug anybody into his offense and it wouldn’t skip a beat.
Andy Reid lucked out when he drafted Donovan McNabb.
Ray Rhodes did squat.
The list goes on.
We’ve covered the possible quarterbacks the Eagles might draft this April, and we’ve questioned whether it would be worth it for the team to re-sign Sam Bradford if there is no franchise quarterback out there. There’s only one person who can answer that question, and it’s Doug Pederson.
Whether he truly believes there is a franchise quarterback coming in the draft or not, he’s got a decision to make regarding the quarterback position.
And how will he make that decision? Well, with his heart. Suck it, Tin Man.
I spent a day with Russell Wilson [in 2012], and when I came back, I knew he was going to be something special,” Pederson said. “I just knew. I just felt it in my heart.”
Wilson was gone by the time the Eagles drafted in the third round, and they picked Nick Foles instead. Wilson wound up leading the Seahawks to two Super Bowls and one championship. Foles had a Pro Bowl year in 2014 but is now with the Rams.
But Pederson said instinct and gut feeling are actually very important components when evaluating quarterbacks.
That’s great. Fantastic. Except Pederson didn’t draft Russell Wilson, so that really doesn’t mean anything. And it’s easy to say Rusell Wilson is special now. But, I was impressed with what Pederson had to say after that.
But you’re going after that franchise guy. All the things you see on tape — the arm strength, the anticipation, the decision making, the accuracy, timing, things I look for in quarterbacks. How well does he move in the pocket and drop his eyes? These are all things you see on film. Then you just have to sit there and look at what type of offense does he run. … Is it spread, pro-style, throw-oriented, run-oriented, and how well will that fit into what we’re going to do with our offense?”
It sounds like pretty simple things to consider, but how many quarterbacks in the league excel at almost all of those characteristics in the list Pederson mentioned? Not many. If Pederson’s list translates to wins on the football field, I’m all in.