Gentlemen,
As you know, I don't own a tv, so I pretty much have to listen to you guys about these black players. But, this "RGIII" must have some ability. Where would you put him as far as the existing nfl qbs go? Do you think he's as good as vick, tavaras Jackson and the guy in Tampa, etc? Do you think he's at least as good as any of the White starting qbs arounds. What about Sanchez with the Jets? Is he as good or better than him do you think?
Tom Iron...
Thats the thing, its really hard to evaluate him in that offense that he was in.
He has the 2nd ranked receiver in this years draft and the number 2 guy is rated number 2 at wr in next year's draft. The other guys aren't too bad as well.
He really only ran on zone read plays, thats where his big run plays came from. He didn't get much yardage when the pocket collapsed on him. He didn't show much awareness when there was pressure but the offense was so wide open that didn't happen much
He never had to fit he ball into tight windows, his receivers were usually open by several yards, and he never really had to throw a guy open and anticipate a route like a pro qb will have to do.
Basically he has the tools to be a successful qb but there is no telling whether it will actually translate into being an NFL qb. There have been plenty of qbs with the tools to be qb that have failed. He has adequate height at 6'2, although a little thin, even though he is listed at 220 he looks skinny.
He has a very strong arm and everyone raves about his deep ball, but the ones I have seen have a little too much air time. He doesn't have much touch on shorter throws. A common theme among those "rocket arm black quarterbacks"
He is supposedly a genius (funny how that seems to be a negative for a White qb, if he is "too smart") since he is getting his masters.... I believe it is in communications. He did finish undergraduate school in 3 years or less, but having attended multiple universities I don't believe this is an indicator of superior intelligence. The stuff they teach you is not that hard.
However, it does indicate hard work, at least imo. I would like to see his wonderlic to see how fast he actually processes information. Students do get accommodations if they prove they have trouble in certain areas. I know a guy who is now working on his masters and had a 3.7 gpa, but spent hours getting help from tutors (which is free for athletes) and got extended time on all of his tests.
Football is complicated but its not rocket science. The main thing is processing information quickly. Running the zone read is basic. If the defender is coming at you then hand it off or pitch, if not then run. The passing stuff gets more complicated in the NFL, the stuff he was running in college wasn't.
The only thing is that last year we have seen a team change its offense to accomodate a player, Cam Newton, who never got any flak for it. Tebow runs the basic zone read with little variation and no creativity of making the passing game dangerous with it, and he got a ton of crap for it.
Since he didn't have to make hard throws in college, it would have been nice to see him actually throw at the combine, but he refused. Luck did as well but we have seen him throw in an NFL style offense. Throwing at his pro day will be more scripted and more to suit his strengths and not expose his flaws.
His speed is pretty much all straight line, he isn't as elusive as you would like, for instance Big Ben doesn't have elite speed in a straight line but great at being elusive in the pocket.
People will cite his high completion rate but if you saw the throws you will see that the stats don't mean much in terms of accuracy in the NFL. Even if they do suit the offense around him the windows will be smaller and the pocket will collapse much quicker and he will have to process things faster. He won't have two top tight ends, two 1k rushers and a pro bowl wide receiver to work with in Washington.
To sum up the very long post I have just made, the hype around him is basically around his upside/potential. I would put him more in the Vick range than Tavaris Jackson. Basically a wide receiver that has the ability to throw playing quarterback. I don't think he will be awful like Tavaris, but he will be a project and hard to tell if he will be a top qb. It will be very hard to live up to 3 first round picks and a 2nd but Im sure if he becomes just an average qb they won't list him as a bust. This is another desperate attempt to "Revolutionize the qb position". He'll probably make a few highlight reel plays with his feet and they will replay it constantly.