The Quarterback Road

Man, the 15-16 football season just came and went! It seems like yesterday that the Broncos took home a 10-24 Super Bowl victory against the favored Panthers! Now, of course with the end of a season comes free agency, wavering, trading, and whatnot. Here are a few quarterbacks that will definitely experience a new team and a bonus player that may or may not experience a new team (hint: he was cut by his previous team at an odd time).

1.  Ryan Fitzpatrick

Ryan Fitzpatrick has certainly seen his share of free agency. He has now been on FIVE teams after the Jets. Frankly, “Pickzpatrick” has thrown too many interceptions (as the nickname suggests) for a team’s liking. The only team that has so far bothered to keep him the longest is the Bills. It looked like Ryan had found his new home when when this guy came along:

Yes, this guy
Yes, this guy

Erik Rodriguez “EJ” (Wherever he got the “J” from) Manual Junior (The “junior” part might be the source of the J) took over in Buffalo and forced Fitzpatrick onto the streets. He then proceeded to the Titans, Texans,  and then the Jets. However, Fitzpatrick seems to have gained control of the football and is now becoming an even better quarterback than he has been in the previous years. Recent reports have shown that the Broncos tried in vain to obtain the exorbitant quarterback, saying that he was “too expensive.” As it stands for the moment, Fitzpatrick is really a toss-up for the teams who can afford the outrageous price he is asking for. But it looks like the teams who aren’t willing to fork over a whopping $40m are just out of luck.

2.   Robert Griffin the Third

A long, long, time ago in a galaxy far, far away (I’m big into Star Wars) the “Master of Social Media” lead the Redskins out of Rex Grossman’s playoffs drought. The VERY NEXT SEASON this guy is not only losing games but doing stupid stuff on Instagram. Needless to say, the Redskins threw him under the benchwarmer bus. It looked like RG3 was going to resemble those papers on your desk (you’re always meaning to throw them away, but for whatever reason you don’t) when a window of opportunity opened that hadn’t opened for eighteen years: Peyton Manning retired. And what’s better is that the Broncos made a huge deal of saying that there was no chance that they would sign Fitzpatrick because he was too expensive. Is this where RG3 is going to take his career? As I see it, that would be the smartest bet for RG3, but not necessarily for the Broncos. While lots of mediocre QBs do better after a team switch, there’s no guarantee that will be the case. As I see it, all we can do now is wait.

3.   Johnny Manziel

Okay, okay. Before we hear any hubbub about him being a bad person and all, I will say one thing for Johnny Manziel: he is a decent quarterback. I’m not saying he’s the BEST, I’m saying he’s okay. Now to say some things against the kid: THAT DUDE HAS PROBLEMS! From drinking to gambling to rupturing his girlfriend’s eardrum, Manziel could very well be considered a walking (and throwing) menace. Now you might think that this doesn’t affect whether or not someone signs him. It actually is just as great a factor as how good of a player they are. If this is confusing to you, think of it this way. Joe Shmoe is a good quarterback. One day he does something that lands him a spot in jail. You are then forced to revert to your backup, and games are lost. No one has time for legal nonsense! If he can’t keep up with the law, he has no place on a football team! That being said, all Manziel can do is wait for a miracle.

BONUS: Anquan Boldin

Arguably one of the greatest receivers of all time, Boldin was key in defeating the 49ers in Super Bowl 48. He caught 104 yards as the Ravens edged out the Niners 34-31. After that, Boldin was cut due to salary issues. He made the mistake of believing that because of his performance in the Super Bowl, the Ravens would be willing to revisit his contract. Of course, he was wrong. Now, the 49ers have lost him and show no signs of attempting to resign him. He is an unrestricted free agent, so his future is unforeseeable.

There are so many better free agents than these four listed. But then again, these could be the best that there are. The truth is that it’s all opinionated. Sports enthusiasts, such as myself, point to statistics, such as total yards, attempts versus completions, and yards per attempt. Others may look solely at what their eyes tell them. Either way, it all comes down to how they play next year. Then, and only then, will we know for sure.

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3 thoughts on “The Quarterback Road”

  1. Love it, Billsman! I always learn so much from your posts and stay entertained the whole way through. You have a great voice in your writing. Excellent job!

  2. Hi Wade,

    Read your article. Keep it up. Maybe you could write something about Calvin Johnson’s retirement. Should he be in the hall of fame? Will he come back? Peyton, Woodson, Lynch and Calvin all go in at the same time? Maybe something about concussions and players retiring early? I’ll still can’t believe that linebacker for SF quit after one season last year. Are they doing the right thing? Barry Sanders vs. Calvin. Why can’t the Lions have anything nice? See you soon!

    Ben

    1. Thank you so much, this was so helpful! I definitely will write about this! Be sure to subscribe to Pitchers and Pigskin so that you can read your inspired article as soon as it comes out!

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