Jason White

[Don Wassall]

What do you think of Jason White not being drafted? He won the '03 Heisman Trophy andfinished thirdlast year. He put up unbelievable numbers and led Oklahoma to back-to-back national championship games. If he was black under those circumstances it would be a big story if he went undrafted.


He just signed with Kansas City. Being a free agent rather than being drafted will make it extremely difficult for him to ever get a shot at a starting job. It wouldn't be surprising if he is cut by the Chiefs and never heard from again. The main knock I have read about himis lack of arm strength,which is anall-purpose pejorativeused almost exclusively against white quarterbacks. I would imagine if we went back a few years we could find articles extolling even Shawn King's "cannon arm" while white QB after white QB seems to lack arm strength. He's also had knee problems. But no interest in a QB that threw for 3,946 yards and 40 TDs in a season (2003)?


Four of the receivers White threw to at Oklahoma were drafted last weekend, but not Jason himself. I find it just a bit strange that a team will take a chance on a "project" like Adrian McPherson but no one is interested in one of the most productive college quarterbacks ever.

 

[bigunreal]

Don,



You're exactly right- it is hard to understand why no one would take at
least a late round flyer on such a big time producer at the college
level. This isn't the first time that high profile (if not Heisman
Trophy winning) QBs haven't been drafted. Remember Tom Clements? He was
the QB on one of Notre Dame's last NCAA champion teams, and he wasn't
drafted. In more recent years, I think both Ty Detmer and Gino Toretta
were very late picks (not sure-Toretta may not even have been drafted).
I'm not sure if it's racially motivated to any large degree (I don't
think Charlie Ward was drafted), but it does reflect the mass stupidity
we see, year after year, exhibited by the rocket scientists who run the
NFL.

 

[Don Wassall]

If I remember correctly, Charlie Ward announced his intention to play in the NBA, which was a major factor in his not being drafted. Toretta, in my opinion, never should have won the Heisman, that was one of the stranger selections.


Of course, there's always Eric Crouch, who had everything the NFL wants, at least in its black QBs, except for the "cannon arm."


There were a lot of very productive quarterbacks available this year besides Alex Smith and Aaron Rodgers-- David Greene, Andrew Walter, Kyle Orton, Stefan LeFors, Charlie Frye, Derek Anderson, Dan Orlovsky, and of course Jason White. It was almost an embarrassment of riches.

 

[Guest]

PREACHING TO THE CHOIR DON. REMEMBER ANDRE WARE? HE WON THE HIESMAN TROPHY TO LIKE JASON WHITE. HE WAS DRAFTED AND EVEN STAYED IN THE NFL FOR A WHILE EVEN THOUGH EVERYBODY KNEW HE SUCKED. HE GOT PAYED A LOT OF MONEY TO SUCK. AND YEAH GUESS WHAT. HE JUST HAPPENED TO BE BLACK. NOW I THINK HE EVEN HAS A JOB ON TV OR RADIO DOING BROADCASTS. WHAT THE HELL DOES HE KNOW? NOT MUCH FROM THE WAY HE SUCKED. JASON WHITE SHOULD CHANGE HIS NAME TO JASON BLACK AND HE MIGHT GET SOME RESPECT. SAD FOR OUR COUNTRY.





T13 IS OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Colonel_Reb]

Hey Travis13, please try to not use all caps as it makes your posts hard to read. With that said, Don that's a good point and I had almost forgotten about Jason myself. The saints take McPherson and White gets drowned in free agency. He's definitely the highest profile victim of this years Caste System NFL white-guy screw over.

 

[Guest]

ok then reb. i never claimed to be a computer genuis or anything either. thank you.


t13 is out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

 

[White Shogun]

Jason White was not offered a contract by the KC Chiefs. Dick Vermeil suggested that White pursue a career in Arena football.



White insists that he can play in the NFL and doesn't want to start his
career in the minor leagues of football. Obviously, if he isn't
given an opportunity to play somewhere his career will be over before
its begun.



Its a ridiculous notion that White cannot make an NFL roster somewhere,
IMO opinion. I'll say it, because everyone on the site is either
thinking it or knows I'm going to say it:



"if Jason White were black he'd be starting in the NFL today."



There is no way a college QB with his credentials and awards would go
undrafted, were he of the appropriate pigmentation. If he weren't, it
would be the black NAACP crowd and ESPN jock sniffers saying he wasn't
given a chance because he is BLACK, because of institutionalized
RACISM. But because Jason White, is, well, WHITE, nothing is
said outside of the stereotypical "lacks arm strength."



But they're still waiting with open arms for the glorious grid-iron return of that pothead Ricky Williams!

 

[Don Wassall]

Jason White's college stats were unbelievable, and his team almost unbeatable against some of the best programs in the country. He obviously has lots of "intangibles" like leadership, toughness, feel for the game, touch, ability in the clutch. If he were black that would be acknowledged with regularity. A black QB who won the Heisman and nearly repeated and put up some of the best passing numbers ever? First round pick. The perfect example is Byron Leftwich. Byron probably could best Jason in a who-can-throw-it-the-farthest schoolyard competition. But name one other advantage Leftwich had over White coming out of college. Leftwich is also a non-mobile pocket passerand heplayed in the MAC notthe Big 12. Oh, butthe "draft experts" sayWhite doesn't have a strong arm. See ya later Jason, make way for Adrian McPherson and his "rocket arm," a "rocket arm" that threw for all of 1,017 yards his lastseason at Florida State.


Check out whatWhite did the past two seasons. Over 7,000 passing yards, 75 passing TDsand only 19 interceptions. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/player/profile?playerId=20847

 

[Bart]

Don, if a quarterback can produce those kinds of numbers, he has to have decent arm strength. His yardageand touchdown to interception ratio are fabulous. I'd take him even if he threw the ball underhanded.

 

[surfsider]

All of this production came post knee problems. He seems to have held up quite well the last two years. White is a perfct example of the "potential vs. performance" standard that so many so-called talent evaluators fall back on. Not withstanding what he accomplished on the field as a football player, "at the next level" they think _________ (fill in the blank with your favorite black college QB whose career pales in comparison with Whites) has "all the tools" to blahblahblahblahblahblah......

 

[bigman]

I dont know guys.. I think Jason White is definitely NOT a pro quarterback:


Strong arm: NO


Accurate arm :NO


Mobile: NO


he offers nothing to a pro teamoverthat which20 other prospects down to even the 1AA level offer.. he would be a big mistake to draft.

 

[right winger]

When was the last time a top I-A running back was unanimously panned as "not having what it takes to succeed in the NFL" and then went undrafted? Other than Luke Staley of course, but he doesn't count because he's not a member of God's Chosen Athletic Race.

In fact, I'm trying to think of any player at any position who dominated at the highest level of competition as Jason White did, and then is simply dismissed as not having any potential whatsoever to be a pro. It happens to other white quarterbacks, but why not the occasional black running back? How can one utterly dominate, putting up better numbers than any of his peers, but not have even the slightest chance of success at the next level?

Over 7,000 yards with 75 TDs and just 19 picks in two seasons. Big Man how can you call that a lack of accuracy? And as Bart says, his arm is obviously strong enough, probably stronger than those of Tom Brady and Joe Montana were coming out of college. Mobile? No, but what has this era of contrived black quarterbacks shown but that mobility is not a major factor when it comes to playing quarterback. Feeling and evading pressure, as "immobile" Tom Brady and other "immobile" quarterbacks do, counts a lot more than panicking and running like a deer at the first moment of pressure.

 

[bigman]

Luke Staley was a great back .. unfortunately he suffered a serious ACL tear his last year at BYU, hobbled on crutches to pick up his Doak award.... He would have made a great NFL back had he not suffered that injury... remember Napoleon McCallum (SP?)... at any rate Staley is one case where Im sure there would have been supreme confidence in him had it not been for that tragic injury...


as for Jason White... I stand by my assessment of him.. I think he filled a role at OU under a very good offensive coordinator, ... had OU had an even fair defensive coordinator they would have stood a chance in that bowl game. Jasonstarted off fairly athletic.. after a few injuries over 4 years at OU he is damaged goods... too much other talent out there for NFL teams to consider...Edited by: bigman

 

[Don Wassall]

Staley overcame that injury and wasDetroit's best runner in the '02 preseason when he was cut and then no one even picked him up as a backup. That injury alone does not explain why he was drafted so late. As Mike Golic so typically said afterthe reigning Doak Walker winnerwas finally drafted, "He has a chance to help the Lions on special teams."


Re Jason White: Even assuming that your assessment of him is correct, Bigman do you think he would have been left undrafted anddismissed as he has beenif he was black?

 

[bigman]

I dont know what would have become of him had he been black.. how well was Ward treated?... Im not saying there isnt serious typing in the NFL that stiffels talent... but at some point it gets down to going after what it is that you want. And if athletes dont have the fire in their belly to pursue it that may say something about the culture that they come from. Coaches just want to win.


I call myself bigman because it is more flattering than fatman

 

[Don Wassall]

Ward said he was going to play in the NBA. I don't think White lacks fire in the belly in the least. Dick Vermeil told him to try playing in the Arena League and Jason basically told him to stuff it. He's upset the Chiefs decided not to signhim to a free agent contract and who can blame him? Not only wasn't he drafted there isn't even any interest in him as a free agent. Apparently no one in the NFL thinks he can even be a competent backup. . .

 

[bigman]

I dont think he can be a competent back up either... there are more than 20 guys out there that can fill that role much more effectively.. coaches have seen what Jason can do for 3 years at OU.. unfortunately those bowl games simply highlighted the obvious..

 

[Colonel_Reb]

White was only the best QB in the country in 2003, and the second best in 2004. I don't understand your logic bigman.

 

[Black Guy]

I think he deserves a shot at the NFL. I think they should have gave Eric Crouch a chance at QB. I dont know why they didnt give him a shot. Cases like crouch give this site credibility because he never got a chance to be a QB in the NFL.

 

[surfsider]

I'm not so sure that bigman isn't right about White but my point was in accord with Black Guy's view that White & Crouch because of their success in college at least deserve a shot.

 

[bigman]

Thanks surfer... I would guess that there are few people that would rate Jason White as the best QB last year or the year before... he was rather the QB for the No. ranked team at the time of the Heisman award.... being the QB or RB on the No. ranked team in the nation in that critical 3 week period is worth everything... there are countless RBs and QBs that can be better but playing these roles on the no.1 ranked teal is worth everything...

 

[Colonel_Reb]

Valid point, but I still say he was screwed. If he'd been black with numbers like that, he'd of been hyped to no end. Black Guy is right on this one. He simply got no chance.

 

[Black Guy]

Valid point, but I still say he was screwed. If he'd been black with numbers like that, he'd of been hyped to no end. Black Guy is right on this one. He simply got no chance.

I dont care what color someone is if they have been playing QB their entire life up to the point of being a major college QB like Crouch they can play QB in the NFL. No one can tell me differently. Anyone playing QB in college like Crouch can play in the NFL if properly given the chance to develop. Only in cases like Matt Jones where he voluntarily moved to WR because of his throwing shoulder problems is when a QB shouldnt be given a shot. I say that because for years thats what kept black QB's out of the NFL. Sometimes NFL scouts just dont get it.

 

[Highwayman]

They had a skills test of some collegiates right around the time of the Pro Bowl. It was David Greene, Aaron Rodgers, Kyle Orton and Jason White. During the proceedings they had interviews and such and Jason White was the most impressive. He looked like a fine young man, a real leader, and had good mobility.

Then they did the throwing contest. Aaron Rodgers won easily, David Greene looked good too, just barely failed eclipsing Aaron on one throw. Kyle Orton did OK, he was not quite as good as Greene but had a throw or two that sparked promise.

Jason White didn't even belong on the field with these guys and even admitted it by saying "geez, no one thinks me a first rounder like some of these guys." He was that awful in comparison. Not even in the same catagory, I was embarassed for him as he seemed like such a nice fellow. Doug Flutie could throw the ball down the field, this guy would have bounced that pass against Miami--two or three times if he was lucky it ever got there at all.

Lemme just say that after seeing him throw I agree with the scouts of every NFL team: Jason White doesn't have a NFL arm.

If you don't believe me, find a tape of that competition, in this day and age it can't be that hard.

 

[Highwayman]

I dont care what color someone is if they have been playing QB their entire life up to the point of being a major college QB like Crouch they can play QB in the NFL. No one can tell me differently. Anyone playing QB in college like Crouch can play in the NFL if properly given the chance to develop. Only in cases like Matt Jones where he voluntarily moved to WR because of his throwing shoulder problems is when a QB shouldnt be given a shot. I say that because for years thats what kept black QB's out of the NFL. Sometimes NFL scouts just dont get it.

No they can't. You're just being nice. You have to be able to throw the ball down the field, most of these clowns from the Big 12 and Big 10 play an entirely different brand of football than what can win in the NFL.

Name me ONE, and I mean just one QB who ever won a superbowl as a QB who was more of a running threat than a passing one. Just one.

The caste system works both ways, making the running QB a 'black caste' is just as bad as dooming them to failure to eternity. Trust me on this, the next black QB who wins a superbowl will be like Byron Leftwich, not Michael Vick. Any idiot can put two running backs in his backfield--even a team with Dan Marino. Finding someone who can throw down the field effectively is the key to a championship except in the unlikely cases where someone builds a defense so extrodinary like the Bears in '85 or the Ravens in '00. That's where it doesn't matter much what the QB does as long as he can hand off to the top feature back and get them into field goal range occassionally.

These are called 'the exceptions that prove the rule.'