He's not "afraid" to get hit. That does not hold up with any evaluation of him before coming here and is pretty much directly opposed to the book on him. You are right though in that playing with a live pass rush vs practice is a big problem for him. He does not in any shape or way resemble the quarterback he was in Cleveland. I suspect, in an attempt to eliminate the turnovers, he was coached to become basically the guy who is replacing him.
Broaddus recently wrote negatively about Weeden's problems but I find it more interesting to read his take on Weeden's Cleveland tape right after we acquired him:
"To Weeden’s credit, he was more than willing to stand in middle of that pocket and deliver the ball with everything breaking down around him. But he also made some throws where you have to cover your eyes -- again, it’s the clock in his head. The longer than ball is in his hand, the more likely he is going to panic and try to horse the ball into a crowd of defenders instead of taking the check down and fighting another day."
Now he panics in the pocket, doesn't hold the ball long enough for routes to develop, and checks down every single time. Nice job by the coaching staff, I guess. The good news is that Cassel already comes pre-packaged to do all of that stuff. No need to coach.
