Cousin's first year as a starter was 2015. 2016 MAY have been a better year. This year maybe? But let's not pretend the guy suddenly blossomed into some new improved player since his first years. He's pretty much exactly the same guy.
Same with Patrick Mahomes, by the way. Dude threw 50 TDs his first year as a starter. He MIGHT break that this year with an extra game, but otherwise he hasn't come close to matching that again. Russell Wilson, also had his highest QBR ever his rookie year. First year as a starter. Same with Garoppalo. Aaron Rodgers' first year as a starter was a pretty typical year for him. Same with Matt Ryan. Tom Brady hit the ground running. Lamar Jackson, Allen, Herbert, Burrow, Murray, Prescott, Hurts ... none of these guys were/are average looking and then years later developed into awesomeness. That's not as typical as you think. The Giants famously waited four years for Manning to stop being painfully average, and they are doing that with Jones now but .... they're weird. And that doesn't always work. And you don't do that with a 29 year-old. You're not going 'coach up' arm strength. That is what it is. Especially for a guy on the edge of 30.
The vast majority of QBs do not play their best their first year as a starter. Look at Troy Aikman's rookie stats. Look at Peyton Manning's rookie stats. There's no point even debating that.
It doesn't matter if Cousins became a "starter" in 2015. He started a lot of games in 2012, 2013, and 2014.
And I've got news for you, dude....Cousins in 2013 and 2014 was definitely not better than Heinicke last year. In fact, Cousins in 2015 and 2016 was NOT better than Heinicke last year. Cousins would not have won all 4 of those games against the Giants, Falcons, Bucs, and Panthers.
But hey, don't believe me. This season saw an abundance of QB openings. Teams were desperately scrambling to finds starters this year. In addition to Washington, you know the team that actually knows him best and had him under contract, Atlanta, Carolina, Cleveland, Indianapolis, Seattle, Denver, Pittsburgh ... am I missing anyone? They were all looking for a QB at one point or another. Did anyone offer a trade for Heinicke, a guy with a year's starting experience and a very cap-friendly re-workable contract?
Trades are actually fairly rare in the NFL, compared to other sports. If Heinicke was a free agent, multiple teams would have been interested. Definitely.
The same applies to Wentz...why didn't any of those teams go after him?? Except for the idiot Rivera, of course.
Why? Heinicke played well in some games, but he's never been perfect or so gosh darn awesome that No Player is Capable of Matching His Greatness. I mean, Seriously?
Yes...seriously. Cousins has never had a game like Heinicke had against Tampa Bay and Carolina. Heinicke is a better all-round QB.
Howell is a rookie. Of COURSE he could have an awesome three or four games. That's not a laughable opinion by any stretch of the imagination. LOTS of QBs have an Awesome Few Games. I remember Gus Frerotte's first game ever like it was yesterday. Dude put up 41 points with no offensive line on a terrible 3-13 Redskins team. It was amazing. I lived off the glow of that game for months. You know what, it didn't make the guy Super Special. It was just a good game. Patrick Ramsey had an AMAZING game against the Falcons, the second game of his first year as a starter. He passed for 356 yards and put up 33 points with a terrible 5-11 team who's coach didn't believe in pass protection, defense or running the ball. We loved that kid. It didn't matter. RG3, do I even need to go there again? The guy was amazing for ... hell, an entire season. Doesn't matter.
That's why you look at a bigger picture. Things like ... all the games, physical tools, developmental stage at the player's age ... you can't make personnel decisions because of a couple games. Well, you can, but then you'd suck.
So yes, Howell could absolutely put together a few awesome games too. And you know what? So could Wentz (though I doubt it at this point. But anything is possible).
What Heinicke did in those four games or whatever was wonderful, but it wasn't Career Defining. It was a backup playing well when pressed into service. That's what he's supposed to do and good for him. But, jeez man, you're putting him on a HUGE pedestal for a few good games.
Simply disagree. Most QBs in the NFL would have been 3 - 14 on this team last year. The Washington defense last year was possibly the worst since the 1960s. This team had no business winning 4 games last year, let alone 7 games.
If Cousins was the QB of this team last year, they would have been 4 - 13 at best. If Wentz was QB, they would have been 2 - 15 at best.
Heinicke is the best QB this team has had since Joe Theismann. I've watched them all, and he is special.
Do I think Washington's front office crapped the bed when they traded for Wentz? Absolutely. I said so when they did it. That's not the point.
The point is what does the team do to lock down the QB spot for the future. It's likely not Wentz. And, I hate to tell you, it's likely not Heinicke. The guy had an entire year to audition and didn't win the job. That leaves the rook. Let's see what he can do. If he can't be Super-Awesome for three games during the course of an entire season then we can look for someone else.
I'll say it again -- the jury is still out on Heinicke. It's simply foolish of you to already reach the conclusion that he can't be an effective QB for this team for the next 5 years.
Howell can play when the season is officially over. Not until then.
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