November 24, 2015, Troy, NY There is a dearth of overall NFL level talent at QB, for black signal callers it has reached a crisis point. College football has now become win at all costs, coaches are either unable or unwilling to develop pro-style passers. With the prevalence of the spread offense, QBs are arriving in the NFL without the knowledge of taking snaps from under center. The best athletes are now behind center for the top collegiate contenders. Robert Griffin, III and Colin Kaepernick are examples of players who were unable to adapt from the zone read to playing from the pocket. This leaves room for a savvy veteran journeyman to play later into his career (e.g., Matt Hasselbeck, Indianapolis Colts).
The most experienced Black QB is Mike Vick, and at this point, he is an afterthought. Inactivity and injuries have curtailed his once promising career, his time away from the game also did not help matters. Vick always had a great arm and elite speed but could not master the nuances of being a passer.
The situation is bleak, but a lot of young talent is in the pipeline. I will rank eight QBs with recent experience as starters in the NFL. I will list them in reverse order and provide a player who the current one resembles.
8. Robert Griffin, III, 4th season, 3rd string, Washington Redskins (Mike Vick)
Strengths: Arm, speed
Weaknesses: Size, frame, pocket presence
7. Geno Smith, 3rd season, backup, New York Jets (Tony Banks)
Strengths: Arm, size
Weaknesses: ball security, accuracy
6. Tyrod Taylor, 5th season, starter, Buffalo Bills (Shaun King)
Strengths: mobility
Weaknesses: size, arm, inexperience
5. Teddy Bridgewater, 2nd season, starter, Minnesota Vikings (Jeff Blake)
Strengths: decision making
Weaknesses: frame, arm
4. Jameis Winston, 1st season, starter, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Daunte Culpepper)
Strengths: size, arm,
Weaknesses: turnover prone, inexperience
3. Colin Kaepernick, 5th season, injured reserve, San Francisco 49ers (Randall Cunningham)
Strengths: size, arm, speed
Weaknesses: accuracy, fundamentals
2. Russell Wilson, 4th season, starter, Seattle Seahawks (Steve Young)
Strengths: arm, mobility, leadership
Weaknesses: height
1. Cam Newton, 5th season, starter, Carolina Panthers (John Elway)
Strengths: arm, size, speed
Weaknesses: accuracy
These are the rankings. RGIII has yet to play this season.
Smith was unremarkable in a cameo appearance.
Taylor, Bridgewater and Winston are inexperienced, but Winston has Tampa Bay pointed in the right direction.
Kaepernick was benched for performance before being ruled out for the season due to an injury to his non-throwing shoulder.
Russell has taken too many sacks this season. The Seahawks have attempted to upgrade his weapons but deemphasized their offensive line.
Newton has had a season for the ages. He has improved as a passer while remaining a running threat. Carolina is attempting to finish the regular season undefeated and currently has home field advantage in the NFC.
A change of scenery for RGIII and Kaepernick could lead to a revised listing for the 2016 season.