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Nov. 16, 2004
By Clark Judge
SportsLine.com Senior Writer
Four weeks ago I was on a radio talk show where the host wanted to dissect Cincinnati quarterback Carson Palmer. It wasn't that he had anything against the guy, he just wanted to know why Palmer wasn't doing as well in his first year as a starting quarterback as, say, Pittsburgh's Ben Roethlisberger was doing in his.
Carson Palmer's learning curve is being scrutinzed more closely because of Ben Roethlisberger.(AP)
Uh-oh, we just experienced the Roethlisberger Effect.
It's not something you can reach out and touch. It's something you feel, and that talk-show host was feeling it when he wondered why Palmer wasn't Ben Roethlisberger. Well, gee, I don't know, but I believe we're about to hear that question posed about other rookie quarterbacks, with New York's Eli Manning next in line.
I don't know what to expect from Manning when he steps into the starting lineup Sunday, but I do know what not to expect -- and that's Ben Roethlisberger. Maybe Manning delivers immediately; maybe he doesn't. All I know is that rookie quarterbacks don't win their first seven starts, not unless they're named Ben Roethlisberger. Yet the more Roethlisberger succeeds the higher he pushes the bar for the next rookie quarterback to come along.
I'm not talking about what coaches expect. I'm talking about the public. Once, it was accepted that rookie quarterbacks take time to develop, and there was a raft of supporting evidence: Troy Aikman was 0-11 in his first season with Dallas; John Elway had twice as many interceptions as touchdowns in his first year with Denver; Peyton Manning was 3-13 while taking every snap his first season with Indianapolis; Philadelphia's Donovan McNabb lost four of his first five starts after stepping into the starting lineup midway through his rookie year.
But now along comes Ben Roethlisberger, and the Steelers can't lose. The guy's seven-and-oh and counting, and while they're cheering him on in Pittsburgh, in other NFL cities they wonder if their rookie quarterback's the next Ben. And if not, why not? Patience suddenly is as common as a Miami Dolphins victory.
"Roethlisberger set the standard," said Jim Fassel, who works as a quarterback consultant with the Baltimore Ravens. "Everyone wants to have the next Roethlisberger, but people just don't understand."
Fassel does, and he's in a perfect place to figure it out. That would be Baltimore, where second-year quarterback Kyle Boller is a target for weekly batting practice, with ESPN last weekend offering a round-table discussion on "Is Boller as Bad as he Looks?" Now there's a ringing endorsement for someone who's 11-7 as a starter.
But that doesn't matter. What matters is that he's not Ben Roethlisberger. He doesn't throw the fade like Ben. He doesn't scramble for first downs like Ben. He doesn't play with the poise of Ben. And, most important, he doesn't win every game like Ben.
So let's forget that Boller is doing precisely what he's supposed to do, which is to maximize his handoffs to Jamal Lewis, minimize his mistakes and win. Let's get on the guy because he keeps coming up short on style points.
"I don't think there's ever a chance of bringing a guy along slowly lately," said Cincinnati quarterbacks coach Ken Zampese. "There's so much pressure on the quarterback position that the expectation level is extreme.
"Now people see what's happening in Pittsburgh and say, 'Why can't our guy do that?' Well, maybe it's because you don't have the number-one ranked defense, one of the top five ranked running games and one of the game's top special teams. I think what Roethlisberger's done is great, but he's in different position than other quarterbacks because he doesn't have to throw 35-40 times a game."
As a matter of fact, Roethlisberger hasn't exceeded 25 attempts in any game this year and hasn't thrown more than 18 passes in either of his past two starts. The guy has uncanny presence, rarely makes rookie mistakes and knows how to win. And you can bet that someone, somewhere, will underscore all of that the first time Manning flounders, reminding us that he and San Diego's Philip Rivers were drafted ahead of Roethlisberger.
"Yeah, but the Pittsburgh Steelers are not the New York Giants," said an AFC pro personnel director who asked to remain anonymous. "They have a better defense, better backs, better wide receivers, better everything than the Giants. So the expectation for Eli to be Roethlisberger is unrealistic. The same goes for Rivers when he starts in San Diego.
"It goes beyond the individual performer and into what the surrounding cast is like. New York fans cannot expect Eli to step in and be Roethlisberger. They are two completely different situations."
Tell that to the season-ticket holder in Section 305 who thought this Giants team was headed to the playoffs. He wants his team to win and to win now. And if a rookie quarterback can do it in Pittsburgh then a rookie quarterback can do it in New York.
Or, at least, that's the way it should be now.
http://www.sportsline.com/nfl/story/7894656
---------
posted for perspective
By Clark Judge
SportsLine.com Senior Writer
Four weeks ago I was on a radio talk show where the host wanted to dissect Cincinnati quarterback Carson Palmer. It wasn't that he had anything against the guy, he just wanted to know why Palmer wasn't doing as well in his first year as a starting quarterback as, say, Pittsburgh's Ben Roethlisberger was doing in his.
Carson Palmer's learning curve is being scrutinzed more closely because of Ben Roethlisberger.(AP)
Uh-oh, we just experienced the Roethlisberger Effect.
It's not something you can reach out and touch. It's something you feel, and that talk-show host was feeling it when he wondered why Palmer wasn't Ben Roethlisberger. Well, gee, I don't know, but I believe we're about to hear that question posed about other rookie quarterbacks, with New York's Eli Manning next in line.
I don't know what to expect from Manning when he steps into the starting lineup Sunday, but I do know what not to expect -- and that's Ben Roethlisberger. Maybe Manning delivers immediately; maybe he doesn't. All I know is that rookie quarterbacks don't win their first seven starts, not unless they're named Ben Roethlisberger. Yet the more Roethlisberger succeeds the higher he pushes the bar for the next rookie quarterback to come along.
I'm not talking about what coaches expect. I'm talking about the public. Once, it was accepted that rookie quarterbacks take time to develop, and there was a raft of supporting evidence: Troy Aikman was 0-11 in his first season with Dallas; John Elway had twice as many interceptions as touchdowns in his first year with Denver; Peyton Manning was 3-13 while taking every snap his first season with Indianapolis; Philadelphia's Donovan McNabb lost four of his first five starts after stepping into the starting lineup midway through his rookie year.
But now along comes Ben Roethlisberger, and the Steelers can't lose. The guy's seven-and-oh and counting, and while they're cheering him on in Pittsburgh, in other NFL cities they wonder if their rookie quarterback's the next Ben. And if not, why not? Patience suddenly is as common as a Miami Dolphins victory.
"Roethlisberger set the standard," said Jim Fassel, who works as a quarterback consultant with the Baltimore Ravens. "Everyone wants to have the next Roethlisberger, but people just don't understand."
Fassel does, and he's in a perfect place to figure it out. That would be Baltimore, where second-year quarterback Kyle Boller is a target for weekly batting practice, with ESPN last weekend offering a round-table discussion on "Is Boller as Bad as he Looks?" Now there's a ringing endorsement for someone who's 11-7 as a starter.
But that doesn't matter. What matters is that he's not Ben Roethlisberger. He doesn't throw the fade like Ben. He doesn't scramble for first downs like Ben. He doesn't play with the poise of Ben. And, most important, he doesn't win every game like Ben.
So let's forget that Boller is doing precisely what he's supposed to do, which is to maximize his handoffs to Jamal Lewis, minimize his mistakes and win. Let's get on the guy because he keeps coming up short on style points.
"I don't think there's ever a chance of bringing a guy along slowly lately," said Cincinnati quarterbacks coach Ken Zampese. "There's so much pressure on the quarterback position that the expectation level is extreme.
"Now people see what's happening in Pittsburgh and say, 'Why can't our guy do that?' Well, maybe it's because you don't have the number-one ranked defense, one of the top five ranked running games and one of the game's top special teams. I think what Roethlisberger's done is great, but he's in different position than other quarterbacks because he doesn't have to throw 35-40 times a game."
As a matter of fact, Roethlisberger hasn't exceeded 25 attempts in any game this year and hasn't thrown more than 18 passes in either of his past two starts. The guy has uncanny presence, rarely makes rookie mistakes and knows how to win. And you can bet that someone, somewhere, will underscore all of that the first time Manning flounders, reminding us that he and San Diego's Philip Rivers were drafted ahead of Roethlisberger.
"Yeah, but the Pittsburgh Steelers are not the New York Giants," said an AFC pro personnel director who asked to remain anonymous. "They have a better defense, better backs, better wide receivers, better everything than the Giants. So the expectation for Eli to be Roethlisberger is unrealistic. The same goes for Rivers when he starts in San Diego.
"It goes beyond the individual performer and into what the surrounding cast is like. New York fans cannot expect Eli to step in and be Roethlisberger. They are two completely different situations."
Tell that to the season-ticket holder in Section 305 who thought this Giants team was headed to the playoffs. He wants his team to win and to win now. And if a rookie quarterback can do it in Pittsburgh then a rookie quarterback can do it in New York.
Or, at least, that's the way it should be now.
http://www.sportsline.com/nfl/story/7894656
---------
posted for perspective
