It may not garner a lot of national attention, but Arizona State Junior Brock Osweiler is going to announce his intentions today to enter the 2012 NFL Draft.
And I say...... HELL YES!!!!!
Over the last couple of weeks it's been nothing but bad news when it comes to the Seahawks chances of landing that elusive "Next Franchise Quarterback." Matt Barkley is staying in school, Landry Jones first showed himself to not be worthy of a 1st round pick and then took his name out of the hat altogether, RGIII rocketed to the top of the draft board, and Matt Flynn stepped out of the shadows and vastly increased his potential contract value by blowing up the Lions in week #17.
We needed some good news, and it came in the form of Osweiler.
No long film breakdown here, just my quick thoughts:
If you don't know who Brock Osweiler is, look him up. The first thing you'll find is that he's tall. REALLY tall. 6' 8" tall. This is where, if you're a lifelong Seahawk fan, you'll stop reading and vow to never come back to my blog EVER again. We tried drafting a 6' 8" QB once right? And now we have to be reminded of that every time we see Dan McGwire in one of those Greatest Draft Busts Ever lists. Well, McGwire was a bad pick, pure and simple. I remember my first time covering Seahawks training camp and getting to see him throw up close. He threw like a girl. Seriously..... you know the way a girl curls her wrist up and then tries to spin a ball out to make it spiral? That's the way McGwire threw a football. It was gross. But just because he failed has absolutely no bearing on the future success of other tall quarterbacks.
And this is no normal tall quarterback.
This guy isn't just an athlete, but he was a good enough basketball player that he originally accepted a hoop scholarship to GONZAGA before changing his mind and heading to ASU to commit to football. Last fall, he even announced that he would be joining Herb Sendek's Sun Devil basketball team after football season was over, but I could find no written or visual evidence that he ever did.
Still, put on the tape and you'll see this guy is a great athlete. Usually taller QB's struggle with footwork, but Osweiler is outstanding at whipping his feet around and getting in position to throw after a play-action fake. As you would hope from a guy his size, he has a big arm, and his footwork is so good that he's consistently accurate in the short, intermediate and deep game. You'll hear about how he changed his delivery last year with the help of ASU O.C. Noel Mazzone, and now it's extremely compact and quick. He appears on tape to survey the entire field and go to his secondary reads quickly and decisively when his primary target is covered. And best of all, he hangs in the pocket and stands strong even when he knows he's about to get hit, a quality I look for and one that is crucial in a young QB (I'm talking to you Blaine Gabbert.)
In short, he is the whole package. I've seen one draft expert already refer to him as the "Most physically gifted QB in the draft not named Andrew Luck."
So, what's wrong with him and why is he being projected as a 2nd or 3rd round pick at this point? Call it the Mark Sanchez Factor. He only has 15 starts under his belt. He will show in inexperience at times by forcing a ball into coverage.
So what?
What the Seahawks need to acquire is a young QB with the elusive "upside" you hear so much about. A kid with a high ceiling. Want to throw a bunch of money at Matt Flynn? Fine, but what you see is what you get, and as much as I like Flynn, I'm not sure you're ever going to get anything close to an elite QB with him. Hitching your wagon to Brock Osweiler might be higher risk, but if you do it right you can have a true elite QB. And it has a lot more to do with how pretty a spiral you can spin. Spend some time on YouTube and check this kid out. Not just his highlights, but his interviews. He has a way about him. He's articulate, funny, a little cocky, and definitely carries himself with a dynamic quality that is sure to excite the fanbase and hopefully his teammates in the locker room.
He's only 22, he's just begun to tap his vast potential Let him sit behind Jackson and Portis for a year, and hand him the reigns in 2013. He could be a 10-year answer at the position.
Best of all, he looks a lot like the late Quiet Riot singer Kevin Dubrow, which is pretty damn cool.
So far I've taken a close look at Ryan Tannehill (writeup to come), Austin Davis (likely a middle to late round pick) Griffin and Osweiler. I still haven't watched the Packers vs. Lions replay from start to finish, nor have I seen enough of Nick Foles to make a judgement, but at this point I prefer Osweiler to all of them. As a junior, he won't play in the Senior Bowl, but with his skillset he could rocket up draft boards with a good combine and/or personal workouts.
So at this point I'm suggesting that this kid could be our FIRST round pick. Certainly a lot can change over the next few months, but whether you agree with my assessment of Osweiler or not, his mere presence in this draft adds another intriguing option to the mix, and bolsters the Seahawks draft position in regards.
This QB thing just got a whole lot more interesting.
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