Direckshun
07-31-2007, 09:21 AM
Pretty good article about the hope in NFL training camps.
Went on a lengthy exposition about Green's situation.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writers/peter_king/07/31/game.on0806/index.html
Anytime a quarterback is directing a new offense for a new team that has a new coach, the smallest achievements in his first training-camp practice have meaning. And last Saturday morning in Davie, Fla., the summer home of the Dolphins, Trent Green was pleased -- no, thrilled -- that in the 36 snaps he took in offense-versus-defense drills, no player on his side of the ball made a mental error. "People are going to hear that and say, 'You mean he's excited just because his guys lined up right and ran the right plays?'?" Green said afterward. "But it's the first thing you've got to do on the road to being successful."
It has been eight years since Dan Marino retired and left a gaping hole at quarterback in Miami. The successors -- Fiedler Feeley, Culpepper -- have proved inadequate. And Green, 37, acquired from the Chiefs in June for a 2008 fifth-round pick, is hardly a sure thing. After suffering a severe concussion in Week 1 last season, he missed eight games because of headaches and wasn't very efficient after he returned. Last weekend he pronounced himself "as ready to play as I've ever been in my career." What's more, the Dolphins have a top five defense that will help minimize the need for Marino-style heroics. What Miami wants is a quarterback who moves the chains, completes 65% of his throws and doesn't make mistakes.
Green was that caliber from 2002 through '05, when he connected on 63.4% of his throws and averaged less than one interception per game. The Dolphins need him to put together another season or two like that while first-year coach Cam Cameron schools rookie quarterback John Beck, a second-round pick out of Brigham Young. At the same time Miami wants to take advantage of having end Jason Taylor and linebackers Zach Thomas and Joey Porter at its defensive core for the one or two quality years they will play together.
"From what I've seen," Cameron said, "[Green's] footwork is as good as it's been, he still gets the ball out quickly, and his accuracy's there." But Green hasn't been hit yet. The big test could come in Week 2, when the Dolphins' inexperienced offensive line goes against the Cowboys -- in particular, pass-rusher DeMarcus Ware, who could wreak havoc on Green and Miami's season.
"People forget that prior to that concussion I started more than 80 games in a row and took some pretty good punishment," says Green. "I get hit one time, and all of a sudden I'm fragile? I'm not buying it. I like this situation because I get a chance to prove myself all over again in a new place."
Went on a lengthy exposition about Green's situation.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writers/peter_king/07/31/game.on0806/index.html
Anytime a quarterback is directing a new offense for a new team that has a new coach, the smallest achievements in his first training-camp practice have meaning. And last Saturday morning in Davie, Fla., the summer home of the Dolphins, Trent Green was pleased -- no, thrilled -- that in the 36 snaps he took in offense-versus-defense drills, no player on his side of the ball made a mental error. "People are going to hear that and say, 'You mean he's excited just because his guys lined up right and ran the right plays?'?" Green said afterward. "But it's the first thing you've got to do on the road to being successful."
It has been eight years since Dan Marino retired and left a gaping hole at quarterback in Miami. The successors -- Fiedler Feeley, Culpepper -- have proved inadequate. And Green, 37, acquired from the Chiefs in June for a 2008 fifth-round pick, is hardly a sure thing. After suffering a severe concussion in Week 1 last season, he missed eight games because of headaches and wasn't very efficient after he returned. Last weekend he pronounced himself "as ready to play as I've ever been in my career." What's more, the Dolphins have a top five defense that will help minimize the need for Marino-style heroics. What Miami wants is a quarterback who moves the chains, completes 65% of his throws and doesn't make mistakes.
Green was that caliber from 2002 through '05, when he connected on 63.4% of his throws and averaged less than one interception per game. The Dolphins need him to put together another season or two like that while first-year coach Cam Cameron schools rookie quarterback John Beck, a second-round pick out of Brigham Young. At the same time Miami wants to take advantage of having end Jason Taylor and linebackers Zach Thomas and Joey Porter at its defensive core for the one or two quality years they will play together.
"From what I've seen," Cameron said, "[Green's] footwork is as good as it's been, he still gets the ball out quickly, and his accuracy's there." But Green hasn't been hit yet. The big test could come in Week 2, when the Dolphins' inexperienced offensive line goes against the Cowboys -- in particular, pass-rusher DeMarcus Ware, who could wreak havoc on Green and Miami's season.
"People forget that prior to that concussion I started more than 80 games in a row and took some pretty good punishment," says Green. "I get hit one time, and all of a sudden I'm fragile? I'm not buying it. I like this situation because I get a chance to prove myself all over again in a new place."