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Dispelling a Myth

By Trevor, Section NFL
Posted on Wed Nov 17 2004 at 6:05 PM EST
More on: (all tags)

Every year we hear from many NFL talking heads that rookie QBs are better off sitting their first year.  Off the heels of Byron Leftwich's success a season ago let's see if we cannot dispel this myth.

10-0.

Every season you hear the tired refrain out of NFL talking heads that rookie quarterbacks should not be starting their first NFL season.  That the speed of the NFL game is so great that rookie quarterbacks will get overwhelmed.  I have always felt that this was a big crock of sh*t and right above is a great stat to prove it.  10-0 is the combined record of Ben Roethlisberger and Craig Krenzel right now in games they have started this season.  Am I right and are many NFL analysts wrong?  I'm not sure, but what I will tell you is that it depends on the player and sitting someone for a season should not be a general rule of thumb.  It should be noted that I knew Big Ben would be a star when I watched him in college just like I am sold on USC QB Matt Leinart as an NFL player.  Let's take a look at these two rookie quarterbacks, their pedigree and why they are undefeated as starters.  

Now I will be the first to admit that Craig Krenzel has not looked like a future Hall of Famer this season.  However, when Krenzel played his college ball at The Ohio State University he never wowed anyone there either.  Let the record show that all Craig Krenzel has done his entire career is win ballgames.  In college Krenzel went 26-3 and won a national championship. While playing for the Buckeyes, he was always referred to be as college football's version of Trent Dilfer because of the excellent way he managed the game.  Being this type of quarterback and playing under the microscope like Krenzel did at The Ohio State University had him prepared for the NFL.  It may shock NFL analysts who watch one college game a year and rely on worn-out catch phrases along with Mel Kiper's tidbits, but it does not shock me one bit that Krenzel has quarterbacked the Chicago Bears to a 3-0 record (and has them back in the NFC playoff picture).

Ben Roethlisberger is an absolute freak of nature.  He really does not have a lot of peers athletically speaking.  Big Ben has a rocket for an arm and can move around as well as anybody.  The guy played point guard on his high school basketball team and graduated his school's all-time leading scorer and also played shortstop on the baseball team.  While in college Roethlisberger was a one-man team for the Miami (Ohio) Redhawks.  Big Ben made all the right throws, whether or not his guys caught them was another story.  This season, you can make the argument that Big Ben should be MVP.  Roethlisberger led the Steelers to back-to-back victories over the Patriots and Eagles and is undefeated as the starter.  Big Ben has a 101.3 passer rating and a 68.4% completion percentage.  How people could argue he needed to sit behind Tommy Maddox for a year was beyond me (and probably anyone else who watched Big Ben in college)?   That's like not driving your new Cadillac Escalade around because you like your 10-year-old Range Rover.  Hey, the old Range Rover is a nice car, but it's no Escalade.

In conclusion, I write this in preparation for the lunacy I am sure will be talked about next year if Matt Leinart declares for the draft.  I just want you the readers to have your material prepared at home when some NFL talking head says, "Well I think it'll be good for Matt Leinart if he sits behind (insert chump) for a year just to get used to the system".