fitz vs. alex smith- the saga of a rookie qb

***general counsel*** · -12-26-2005

In watching alex smith, the #1 overall pick in the draft yesterday, it was scary how much he looked like fitz. In short, rookie qb's really face an uphill battle.

Lets assume for a second you didnt know which one was the #1 pick and which one was the 7th rounder. did you see any difference? Both make the nice throw once in a while but both spend more time looking confused than anything else. In fairness to smith, unlike fitz, he wasnt missing wide open receivers all day like fitz, but at the same time, i dont think fitz had very many snaps at all before he was thrown into the fire whereas smith had chances both in camp and at least as the backup in practice.\

all the more credit to coach martz who has spotted and developed more qb talent than any other coach in the nfl.

ramming speed to all

general counsel

**RamsFanSam** · -12-26-2005

From what I have seen with the past few year's draft picks, getting an early pick does not translate to getting a good player. Sure, the potential is there, but just because someone does good in college doesn't mean that they will do good in the NFL.
Sometimes it is better to take a late round pick, pay a lower price, and groom them the way you want them to turn out.
Even if the draftee is an NFL natural, if he's not on a team he sees as a winner, he may not work to become the best he can be until he's on a team he likes.
I wonder what percentage of the HOF's members were taken in the first or second rounds. I bet percentage is a lot lower than what would be expected.
The draft is an imperfect system. Fitz looking about as good as Smith is proof of this.

***maineram*** · -12-26-2005

Soon to be ending in a few short days.
Having a good QB in the waiting was a godsend the past 4-5 years with Martz here. Remember the Tany Banks of the world camping out behind center ??? I'm afraid to look into the future only to see the past instead.
Martz made the offense go, period.

Maineram -

***jkramsfan*** · -12-26-2005

i agree the potential is there,but there is a reason why no qb from harvard(before fitz)ever started an nfl game,they dont play a big time college schedule and they have never seen anything like what the nfl offers.as for gc comment on martz developing qbs better than anyone else,i dont know if i agree with that totally,you have warner,bulger and fitz is still up in the air. trent green was already a top qb when he came here and i have seen qb's drafted that martz did nothing with such as joe germaine,kirk farmer and jeff smoker.so to say hes the best may be an overstatement,hes one of the best, maybe not the best.

***RAMarkable*** · -12-26-2005

Let's remember Jkramsfan that it was Martz who discovered and then developed Trent Green. Before Martzy got to Wash. Green was a 3rd string shlep that nobody cared about. He may have missed on a few, but he does show a knack for finding qb's.

WHAT SAY YE?

***jkramsfan*** · -12-26-2005

i think hes able to take a qb that has some tools and make him better but a far as spotting a potential star and developing him from the draft,and i could be wrong but i dont believe anyone he has drafted has turned into anything.i will use my examples again(germaine,farmer,smoker,fitzpatrick) ok fitz still deserves more time,so we will see on him.

***general counsel*** · -12-26-2005

john, whats the difference between taking a guy in the draft vs. taking him off waivers or signing him as a free agent like bulger and warner. green was developed by martz as a coach in washington. even if you take green out of it, two pro bowl qbs off the scrapheap proves the point.

ramming speed to all

general counsel

***jkramsfan*** · -12-26-2005

gc, point taken,but my point is he has yet to take a college draft pick and turn him into a good pro qb,my frustration with this comes from that fact we keep drafting qb's and we have the so called " best qb teacher in the business" yet they all seem to fail.martz is a brilliant offensive mind,i am not ready to put him on the same level as you,but i do respect your opinion, i just dont share it.thats what makes this forum fun.

***RAMarkable*** · -12-26-2005

Good points all; However, GC didn't T. Green make it to the pro-bowl a couple of years ago? If so, then its THREE pro-bowl qbs Martzie has found.

WHAT SAY YE?

***talkstoangels61*** · -12-26-2005

Some of the qb's taken have never had a shot to prove anything here with the Rams so we can't speculate whether the other kids could have played or not! I think that they were all given up on by other teams after MM cut them! I'd bet there are several qb's out there that have never been given the chance period! Look at what Warner and Bulger have done when installed into this offense!I think the NFL needs more TEAMS period! There are some players that never get the chance period! We support 32 teams and i see NO REASON why we couldn't add more Teams!...........i say give Smoker a chance to prove himself or even to be auditioning for someone else! It makes perfectly good sense to give someone the chance to further their career!
There are Teams that keep a QB way too long! Whether they are Pro Bowl caliber or not! We as paying fans do deserve to see what our money is buying or spent on! The NFL relies entirely on fans such as ourselves in order to survive! So IMPO we should be able to have some type of input!.........In my business i listen to what my customers have to say in order to be successful and do take it to heart when i cannot make them Happy! That's what you need in life to be successful! I know that there's no way possible to do this but, if you give it your best then it helps tremendously! If i don't have satisfied customers i won't stay in Business very long and will never be successful as a Company!
There players are at fault here also! If they want something bad enough then in the off season they should work even harder to get it! There are some coaches that still do not give a player the benefit of the doubt though!
With all this being said just bring me a Coach that will look at everyone period and not play someone for just their name but, play them on their work ethic! You would start seeing better Football if this was implied to the Pro sports! Perform and get paid is the way i see it! Competition is what fuels the fire and desire! If you have a guaranteed contract and think you don't have to give it your all then most players wont! Same goes for the owners also! They keep raking in the $$$$$ for not putting a respectable Team out there . Why do they care if we continue to pay for their mistakes! I say pay them for what they provide as a whole Players and Owners!