Make-or-break young quarterbacks
t’s amazing how fast careers can change in the NFL.
Take a look at some of this year’s starting quarterbacks entering training camp and where they were this time last year.
Vince Young’s career was all but left for dead, sitting behind Kerry Collins of all people. Twelve months and one regrettable strip club incident later, he is again the talk of the Titans.
Alex Smith had it worse. The former No. 1 pick had to watch Shaun Hill start the 49ers’ season. A year later, Smith is the again captain of San Francisco’s spread attack.
While neither team made the playoffs, the Titans and 49ers put some points up with Young and Smith, respectively, and created buzz along the way. As a result, they enter 2010 with higher expectations.
But there are so many other signal callers out there with as much pressure — if not more — this summer. Many are young. Many are inexperienced. And many, like Young and Smith, may never have a better chance to show the league just who they are.
So as training camps open throughout the nation this week, let’s take a look at five young, hungry quarterbacks who can make or break their teams’ seasons:
Mark Sanchez, New York Jets
ATS record as starter: 10-8 (including three playoff games)
Why Sanchez will succeed: He has weapons aplenty. LaDainian Tomlinson and Shonn Greene can shoulder the load behind him and Braylon Edwards and Santonio Holmes (after his suspension is served) can break free in front of him. More than anything though, coach Rex Ryan rarely puts him in a position to fail.
Why Sanchez won’t: The "H" word. Is there more hype surrounding any one team than the Jets? The pressure of expectation has been the downfall of many quarterbacks in this league, especially in New York.
Matt Leinart, Arizona Cardinals
ATS record as starter: 12-5
Why Leinart will succeed: His frame. Say what you will about his career, his attitude or his toughness. The fact of the matter is that at 6-foot-5 and 232 pounds, with a quality arm to boot, he still has the makeup to be the quintessential NFL quarterback.
Why Leinart won’t: He no longer has a Super-Bowl offense around him in the desert. No Edgerrin James in his prime. No Anquan Boldin in his. Larry Fitzgerald is amazing, but can he do it all when defenses know the ball’s going his way?
Matt Moore, Carolina Panthers
ATS record as starter: 4-4
Why Moore will succeed: His boss. Expect the under-the-gun John Fox, a proud coach with a Super Bowl appearance to his name, to live every day this season as if it was his last. That should allow Moore a break from the conservative Carolina lifestyle and a chance to become a star against a mediocre schedule.
Why Moore won’t: Jimmy Clausen. The Panthers didn’t draft this stud to sit him for very long. A misstep or two from the unheralded Moore and the former Notre Dame Fighting Irish signal caller could take the reins.
Kevin Kolb, Philadelphia Eagles
ATS record as starter: 1-1
Why Kolb will succeed: His defense. That unit is strong, stingy, fast and, with Asante Samuel and Ellis Hobbs in the secondary, has the ability to score on its own. Add that up and perhaps Kolb won’t have to be the superhero that Donovan McNabb had to be in the City of Brotherly Love.
Why Kolb won’t: The spotlight. Kolb’s first season under center features nine nationally-television games, including five at night. That’s a lot of eyes on a quarterback with just two career starts. The former Houston Cougar is not in Conference USA anymore.
Chad Henne, Miami Dolphins
ATS record as starter: 8-5
Why Henne will succeed: Brandon Marshall. While the Dolphins aren’t loaded with offensive skill, they do have enough to take some pressure off Marshall, which should allow him to get deep. As long as Henne can get the ball there, that combination could be lethal.
Why Henne won’t: The division. With all due respect to the job Tony Sparano has done, the Dolphins are clearly third fiddle in the AFC East behind the Jets and Patriots. What’s more, half of the Dolphins’ games this season are versus playoff teams from last year.
