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With Barkley now out of picture, attention turns to Griffin - NFL.com
It's easy to see all that Robert Griffin III does right. He's got a Heisman Trophy as a result of that. He put together a 3,988-yard, 36-touchdown, six-interception season to prove it.
And the offense Baylor coach Art Briles deployed his star QB in is undeniably well-conceived for the college level, having a proven track record at Houston and now with the Bears.
But for Griffin -- who has yet to declare his intention for next year, on whether he'll be a fifth-year senior or NFL rookie -- the trouble arises not in what scouts can see on film. It's what they can't see.
"They don't call plays in the huddle. They walk to the line, the play comes from upstairs to the sideline, and it's signaled in," said one NFC executive. "The coordinator upstairs is reading the defense, (Griffin) is not doing that at all. And in the NFL, you're going to have to be the one reading the defense. You have to know what's going on at all times. And you have to get him under center, taking 3-, 5- and 7-step drops."
Another NFC exec said, "It's a very good system, and they've done a heck of a job recruiting for it. ... But it's simple, and he'll have to adjust. He's really smart, accepted to law school and all that, but it'll be an adjustment. You're not gonna come in and put him in a Peyton [Manning] offense."
Stanford's Andrew Luck, of course, has been running that kind of attack for three years, which is one big reason why he's considered one of the most pro-ready college quarterbacks in decades.
And with his recent admission of what everyone has long assumed, Luck brings a lot of certainty to the process for evaluators, in that his production in college came while performing a facsimile of NFL tasks.
USC's Matt Barkley falls into a similar category, though he lacks the physical tools Luck has. His decision Thursday to return to Los Angeles for his senior year only further shines the spotlight on the questions surrounding so many other college quarterbacks, with potential potholes lying ahead for those making the transition.
One college scout assigned to the Big 12 I spoke to was less enthusiastic about Griffin's prospects than the above execs, but conceded that he's one that some will more than likely fall for over his overwhelming physical gifts.
"That offense made things simple on him," said the scout. "Because he's such a running threat, he saw soft coverage, you didn't see defensive ends bending the corner to get him. They played him different to keep him in the pocket, and as a result, he got passing lanes he may not get in the pros. It's a problem, because he's got average-to-below-average size. The Vick comparison is there, because you figure he'll miss games (due to injury), but you can't tell him not to run, because that's what makes him special."
The scout continued that, "There's gonna be a significant development period. Him moreso than anyone. You can't fault him for what they didn't ask him to do. I think he's capable of it. But it's natural as a talent evaluator to want to see it."
The positives? Griffin is more athletic and has a better arm than Luck or Barkley. Also, Griffin did complete 72.4 percent of his passes this year. The college scout said part of that is that "roughly 75 percent" of his throws went no further than 7 or 8 yards past the line of scrimmage, but Griffin also exhibited deep accuracy uncommon for a spread quarterback in limited chances to show it.
Beyond Baylor's offensive structure, other negatives you get from these evaluators start with Griffin taking hits that aren't necessary. "He's not as big as Cam (Newton) and takes more hits than he should. You wonder if he's trying to be a tough guy ... because he doesn't always play smart," said the first exec.
On the flip side, he does run with the purpose of throwing, but his accuracy was rarely tested with tight-fitting throws. There were also third-down inconsistencies that raise red flags. "If it's third-and-6, Barkley will get it more than RG3 does," said the second exec. "When I look at RG3, I see a lot of big plays, but a lot of third downs he didn't get too."
Add it all up and you have a fascinating player. Where one of the execs said Luck's upside is that of a more athletic Peyton Manning, and Barkley's ideal is to wind up being a shorter, more compact Troy Aikman, all three of the aforementioned guys compared Griffin to Randall Cunningham. Not bad.
"He makes some throws that blow your mind," the first exec said. "With Luck, you're getting a safe pick. With Barkley, you're getting a safe pick. Maybe they won't win world championships, but they'll be plenty good no matter what, in my mind. There's more of a risk factor with Griffin. But if you hit on him, you've got a chance to have a world-championship-making player."
It's easy to see all that Robert Griffin III does right. He's got a Heisman Trophy as a result of that. He put together a 3,988-yard, 36-touchdown, six-interception season to prove it.
And the offense Baylor coach Art Briles deployed his star QB in is undeniably well-conceived for the college level, having a proven track record at Houston and now with the Bears.
But for Griffin -- who has yet to declare his intention for next year, on whether he'll be a fifth-year senior or NFL rookie -- the trouble arises not in what scouts can see on film. It's what they can't see.
"They don't call plays in the huddle. They walk to the line, the play comes from upstairs to the sideline, and it's signaled in," said one NFC executive. "The coordinator upstairs is reading the defense, (Griffin) is not doing that at all. And in the NFL, you're going to have to be the one reading the defense. You have to know what's going on at all times. And you have to get him under center, taking 3-, 5- and 7-step drops."
Another NFC exec said, "It's a very good system, and they've done a heck of a job recruiting for it. ... But it's simple, and he'll have to adjust. He's really smart, accepted to law school and all that, but it'll be an adjustment. You're not gonna come in and put him in a Peyton [Manning] offense."
Stanford's Andrew Luck, of course, has been running that kind of attack for three years, which is one big reason why he's considered one of the most pro-ready college quarterbacks in decades.
And with his recent admission of what everyone has long assumed, Luck brings a lot of certainty to the process for evaluators, in that his production in college came while performing a facsimile of NFL tasks.
USC's Matt Barkley falls into a similar category, though he lacks the physical tools Luck has. His decision Thursday to return to Los Angeles for his senior year only further shines the spotlight on the questions surrounding so many other college quarterbacks, with potential potholes lying ahead for those making the transition.
One college scout assigned to the Big 12 I spoke to was less enthusiastic about Griffin's prospects than the above execs, but conceded that he's one that some will more than likely fall for over his overwhelming physical gifts.
"That offense made things simple on him," said the scout. "Because he's such a running threat, he saw soft coverage, you didn't see defensive ends bending the corner to get him. They played him different to keep him in the pocket, and as a result, he got passing lanes he may not get in the pros. It's a problem, because he's got average-to-below-average size. The Vick comparison is there, because you figure he'll miss games (due to injury), but you can't tell him not to run, because that's what makes him special."
The scout continued that, "There's gonna be a significant development period. Him moreso than anyone. You can't fault him for what they didn't ask him to do. I think he's capable of it. But it's natural as a talent evaluator to want to see it."
The positives? Griffin is more athletic and has a better arm than Luck or Barkley. Also, Griffin did complete 72.4 percent of his passes this year. The college scout said part of that is that "roughly 75 percent" of his throws went no further than 7 or 8 yards past the line of scrimmage, but Griffin also exhibited deep accuracy uncommon for a spread quarterback in limited chances to show it.
Beyond Baylor's offensive structure, other negatives you get from these evaluators start with Griffin taking hits that aren't necessary. "He's not as big as Cam (Newton) and takes more hits than he should. You wonder if he's trying to be a tough guy ... because he doesn't always play smart," said the first exec.
On the flip side, he does run with the purpose of throwing, but his accuracy was rarely tested with tight-fitting throws. There were also third-down inconsistencies that raise red flags. "If it's third-and-6, Barkley will get it more than RG3 does," said the second exec. "When I look at RG3, I see a lot of big plays, but a lot of third downs he didn't get too."
Add it all up and you have a fascinating player. Where one of the execs said Luck's upside is that of a more athletic Peyton Manning, and Barkley's ideal is to wind up being a shorter, more compact Troy Aikman, all three of the aforementioned guys compared Griffin to Randall Cunningham. Not bad.
"He makes some throws that blow your mind," the first exec said. "With Luck, you're getting a safe pick. With Barkley, you're getting a safe pick. Maybe they won't win world championships, but they'll be plenty good no matter what, in my mind. There's more of a risk factor with Griffin. But if you hit on him, you've got a chance to have a world-championship-making player."
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