The most talked about position in all of sports: the Quarterback. You could say it’s the most important position on the field, heck you could even say it’s the most important position in all of sports. They are the guys that get all of the attention, the guys that get the pizza commercials, and the guys that sell the most jersey’s.
Fans and the media judge a team by who they have playing Quarterback, regardless of how good or bad the rest of the team is. A great example of that is the Quarterback of the rival Dallas Cowboys, Tony Romo. The Cowboys have been one of the worst teams in football this season, especially on the defensive side of the ball. The team has been all around down right crap. But then Romo comes back from his injury and the media and fans allow the notion to slip into their mind that he can single handedly win every game left on the schedule. Take a moment to think how absurd that is! Of course, we know how that one turned out.
You could also take a look at Tom Brady, the greatest QB to ever play this game. Many people believed that this team could go undefeated this season. But not even Brady can do it all himself. The Patriots lost to the Broncos in overtime, in a game in which Brady did not have his top two WR’s and Rob Gronkowski got injured.
As good as a Quarterback might be, no matter who he is, he can’t do it alone. Every single great Quarterback to ever play this game, did not win a Super Bowl alone. He was surrounded by a team that could get the job done. Yes, he could be a huge part in that team’s success but I guarantee you he didn’t do it alone. Some of the greatest Quarterbacks to ever play this game couldn’t win a Super Bowl…take a look at Jim Kelly and Dan Marino.
Now let’s look at the flip side of that. Rex Grossman was close to winning a Super Bowl, let that sink in. Trent Dilfer won a Super Bowl. These are two examples of Quarterbacks who got to a Super Bowl because of the team built around them. Regardless of how you feel about the Quarterback position, the fact is there that you don’t need a “franchise” Quarterback to win you a ring. The Redskins won 2 of their 3 Super Bowl’s without a “franchise” Quarterback.
This week the idea and debate was getting kicked around if Kirk Cousins is a franchise Quarterback, and how much the Redskins should pay him in the future. As we all know, the Quarterback position has been a subject of debate for months now for the fans. Fans are arguing that Cousins isn’t the long term guy and that this team needs a real “franchise” Quarterback, etc etc. But what is lost in all of that is the fact that Cousins is progressing and is the Quarterback of a team that is in the driver’s seat towards the playoffs. Be honest with yourself here, did you really expect this team to be playing for the playoffs in December? If you said yes, you’re probably lying. Nobody realistically thinks that Cousins is an elite QB or even a franchise QB, and you know what? That’s okay! We get so caught up in thinking years down the road, that we forget about what is right in front of us. Cousins is the best QB on this team, and nobody knows what will happens years from now. The bottom line is the Washington Redskins have a Quarterback on their team who has helped turned this team around, regardless of what your opinion is of him.
We see so many teams overpay a QB that the rest of the team falls by the waist side. Teams overcommit to a QB and are forced to stick with him for years to come due to all of the money they gave him. All for the idea of having a “franchise” Quarterback. Why is that idea so important to the fans? The proof is there that you can win without having a guy you need to pay ridiculous amounts of money too, as long as you build around him.
My advice: stop expecting perfection! So many times we get caught up in the idea that maybe the next big superstar is in the draft. The truth is, those gems of QB’s are rare. Guys like Aaron Rodgers, pop up in the draft once every decade…if you’re lucky. We get caught up in the idea that the grass is always greener on the other side. The Redskins fans only know change, so they expect it. 16 QB’s in 16 seasons. That’s embarrassing! The team seems to be on this endless quest to find that guy, even when they invested years of draft picks into a guy it failed.
Scot McCloughan is bringing a new mentality and way of doing things for this team. No more overpaying Free Agents or targeting a guy because he’s flashy. McCloughan understands that you don’t need a “franchise” QB to win. Russell Wilson won a Super Bowl thanks to his running game and an amazing defense. He didn’t do it all on his own. I believe that McCloughan will build around the QB, without paying him a ridiculous salary in the process.
So often we forget that football is a team game that requires every single person on that team to do their job at the highest level to win. Football isn’t just about the QB, sometimes we forget that. Cousins might not be the most flashy player or doing TV commercials, and that’s okay. As fans of this team, we want to win. All of that other stuff is for the birds. Right now we should all be proud of how far this team has come in a year. Don’t worry about next year or years to come, let the guys who get paid to make those decisions worry about that stuff. Enjoy THIS moment.
Super Bowl’s are the goal, not a franchise Quarterback.
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