Bulger and Ferotte

[LaRamsFanLongTime]

Alright I like Marc Bulger alot he is great. I repeat great. I was thinking today about the back up though.If Ferotte comes in for the injured Bulger could he possibly threaten the starting Job? Or could he threaten during camp and preseason?

Bulger is not known for his arm strength and I must admit I do not know if Ferotte is. If Ferotte could throw the long ball we might see Curtis in a whole new light. Cutis tends to outrun everyone. He is fast as the dickens whatever that means. I watched Fitzpatrick put it on him in preseason vs the Bolts last year. If Ferotte could just huck that ball 50 plus yards down the field we might see a Moss Culpepper type of thing. I throw rock you run under it.


I dont know maybe Im just stirring up some poo poo but it was on my mind.

[rawkhrdr]

Ferotte is not a starting caliber quarterback. A few years ago the Redskins thought that he was, and well, they found out real quick that he was not. I do not think that Bulger would have anything to worry about if he was injured and Gus took his spot. Linehan would hold the starters position for him and it would be his when he got back. What Ferotte is, is a quality #2, a very capable back-up without the wits about him to handle the pressure on a weekly basis. If I was a Rams fan, I would be fairly confident in his ability if I had to rely on him for a short time. But any amount of playing time over 2 or 3 weeks and I would get worried.

[Nick]

Originally Posted by LaRamsFanLongTime

If Ferotte could just huck that ball 50 plus yards down the field we might see a Moss Culpepper type of thing. I throw rock you run under it.

While Randy Moss does have great speed, I think the reason Culpepper-to-Moss worked so well was more because, at 6'4" with a very impressive vertical leap, Randy could simply outjump defenders and come down with the ball. Culpepper didn't have to be deadly accurate because Randy would just dwarf defenders in the air when fighting for the ball. Curtis isn't going to do it nearly to that extent. His vertical game is much more dependent on beating a guy with his speed and being able to get the ball in stride to continue down the field.

As for arm strength, Chris Chandler also displayed a pretty good arm, hitting Torry Holt on a 75-yard bomb near the end of the first quarter of 2004's game against Carolina. Chandler went on to throw five interceptions in the remaining three quarters of that game. Not comparing Frerotte to Chandler, but here's another QB who looked like a qualified back-up whom some even felt could push for the starting job in part because of arm strength.

Arm strength is great, but consider that those deep bombs make up a very small percentage of the passes a quarterback is going to make. When the Rams were on top of their game in 2003, only 2% of Bulger's throws were more than 40 yards down field. That's gone up in recent years - I believe 6% in 2004 and as high as 13% last year with 38 attempts - but also consider how we've been playing catch-up with a bad defense quite a bit the last two seasons.

13% and 38 attempts at that distance is far from normal, and one needs only to look around the rest of the league to see. Out of 450+ pass attempts last year, Peyton Manning threw only five passes that were 40+ yards down field. Matt Hasselbeck made only two attempts. Tom Brady, who had the most passing yards in the league last year, threw only 11 which accounted for a mere 2% of his throws. Trent Green threw seven, and Carson Palmer I don't believe threw one ball deeper than 40 yards at all.

Me personally, I'll take a guy who may not have a cannon but knows where to go with the football and can deliver it accurately over a guy who can physically make all the throws but doesn't always know where to go and has problems getting the ball in the right spot. Frerotte can make the throws down field, but has some pretty apparent problems with reads and accuracy, and it shows in his history. And considering how little those deep passes are actually attempted by successful quarterbacks on competitive teams, I don't see how one could consider an advantage in arm strength enough of a reason to really threaten for the starting job.

[general counsel]

In the immortal words of mike martz, who at the minimum knows as much about quarterbacks as any man alive or dead, arm strength is overated in a big way. The keys to success for a qb are accuracy, brains and toughness.

I agree with nicks points, but also note that on many long td passes the ball isnt in the air as far as the stat sheet appears. Many of the long completions are catch and runs. This is what makes accuracy so critical. If you hit curtis or holt in the right spot with a step on the defender, it will often be a very very long gain without the need for a very deep throw.

Martz used to say that the key with the qb and arm strength was the ability to throw the deep out, which i think bulger can do just fine, rather than the bomb.

Ramming speed to all

general counsel

[OldRamsfan]

I agree with the above , accuracy is the most important
thing ... Its normally the run after the catch that makes the difference , Bulger has a good arm and have seen him air it out many times ...

[MauiRam]

Originally Posted by Nick

Me personally, I'll take a guy who may not have a cannon but knows where to go with the football and can deliver it accurately over a guy who can physically make all the throws but doesn't always know where to go and has problems getting the ball in the right spot. Frerotte can make the throws down field, but has some pretty apparent problems with reads and accuracy, and it shows in his history. And considering how little those deep passes are actually attempted by successful quarterbacks on competitive teams, I don't see how one could consider an advantage in arm strength enough of a reason to really threaten for the starting job.

Good points! Brings to mind Joe Montana as opposed to someone like Jeff George. Jeff had one of the most amazing arms I have ever seen (I have watched him play in person). The guy could zip the ball on a string literally 60 yds. and it got there in a hurry! Montana on the other hand had a knack for finding and hitting the open man. Joe did not have a cannon, but he did just fine with an average arm at best compared to other NFL Qb's ...

[RAM-BO]

Freotte is pretty much Jamie Martin with more starting experience.

[bigredman]

Ferotte's days of being a starter are over after 12 years in the NFL. OK guys....name a long bomb QB that's won more than one Super Bowl? Ferotte is a good back up. Bulger is a good, not great QB, however, you don't need a great QB to win the Super Bowl (i.e. Trent Dilfer). Your premium, multi-Super Bowl QB's are SMART QB's (except Bradshaw, who had a hell of supporting cast). If our special teams improve, and we are able to fool people with our new offensive and defensive schemes for the first 8 games, then maybe we can make a play at the playoffs and get lucky.

[r8rh8rmike]

Originally Posted by bigredman

Bulger is a good, not great QB

This is most definitely open to debate and interpretation. You say good and I respect your opinion, but I say great. His numbers are always off the chart, his character and toughness are unquestioned and he's already got one Pro-Bowl MVP on his mantel.

Either way you describe Marc Bulger, good or great, Gus Frerotte does not have the ability to supplant him as a starter.

[ramsbruce]

Originally Posted by r8rh8rmike

This is most definitely open to debate and interpretation. You say good and I respect your opinion, but I say great. His numbers are always off the chart, his character and toughness are unquestioned and he's already got one Pro-Bowl MVP on his mantel.

Either way you describe Marc Bulger, good or great, Gus Frerotte does not have the ability to supplant him as a starter.

I agree that Bulger is a great QB. But on the flipside the Pro Bowl and Pro Bowl MVP don't count as much of anything towards what makes Bulger great. The Pro Bowl is a glorified popularity contest, and the game itself (no blitzing etc) doesn't resemble a real game.

I'm not saying it's bad that he won the MVP, I'm saying that with what Bulger has shown, he is great with or without a Pro Bowl MVP in my mind. The MVP doesn't add anything that makes him great.

The only way we see Frerotte is if we are up by 30 late in the 3rd or in the 4th quarter, or if Bulger gets hurt.

[Fat Pang]

Greatness is the biggest intangible of them all.

It's only in a few cases where it's unquestioned and more than merely opinion. Payton, Dickerson, Montana, Elway, Red Grange, Bronko Nagurski, and Jerry Rice are just a few who have claim to such status.

Bulger?

Not yet, although he could become great. He has shown over the last couple of seasons that he is a good starting NFL QB. No question about that, he has a good track record. I agree with rb about the Pro-Bowl though, it's a little eye candy really.

No way Frerotte unseats him in my humble opinion and I think the organisation knows where they are going with the position.

[r8rh8rmike]

Originally Posted by ramsbruce

I'm not saying it's bad that he won the MVP, I'm saying that with what Bulger has shown, he is great with or without a Pro Bowl MVP in my mind. The MVP doesn't add anything that makes him great.

I agree. Even if Bulger didn't win a Pro-Bowl MVP, his accomplishments on the field prove to many of us, as well as the talent evaluators who pick players for the Pro-Bowl, his tremendous abilities.

I'm sure he'll keep his MVP though!LOL

[ramsbruce]

Originally Posted by Fat Pang

Greatness is the biggest intangible of them all.

It's only in a few cases where it's unquestioned and more than merely opinion. Payton, Dickerson, Montana, Elway, Red Grange, Bronko Nagurski, and Jerry Rice are just a few who have claim to such status.

Bulger?

Not yet, although he could become great. He has shown over the last couple of seasons that he is a good starting NFL QB. No question about that, he has a good track record. I agree with rb about the Pro-Bowl though, it's a little eye candy really.

No way Frerotte unseats him in my humble opinion and I think the organisation knows where they are going with the position.

Great is a subjective term like you said. So I will say Bulger is great, the players you named are Hall Of Famers which in my eyes is a step or two if not more above being great.

[RamsFan16]

Originally Posted by rawkhrdr

Ferotte is not a starting caliber quarterback. A few years ago the Redskins thought that he was, and well, they found out real quick that he was not. I do not think that Bulger would have anything to worry about if he was injured and Gus took his spot. Linehan would hold the starters position for him and it would be his when he got back. What Ferotte is, is a quality #2, a very capable back-up without the wits about him to handle the pressure on a weekly basis. If I was a Rams fan, I would be fairly confident in his ability if I had to rely on him for a short time. But any amount of playing time over 2 or 3 weeks and I would get worried.

RAT 71.9 | YDS 2,996 | TD 18

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Sounds good to me, and Frerotte didn't play for Washington

[Fortuninerhater]

I guess every ones opinion of greatness is different because I don't see Marc Bulger as anywhere near great. The fact that he's only had success in an offense where QBs have basically come out of nowhere (Trent Green and Kurt Warner) to propel their careers, makes me very causious about annointing him as great.

Should he have a great season this year, after having to learn a new offense and work with new coaches, I may be more inclined to call him great this time next year.