Quote:
Originally Posted by 'Hamas' Jenkins
He has off the charts intangibles, he has a strong arm, solid build, he's accurate, he plays his best against the best competition, he's a good natural athlete, he's smart, confident but not cocky, and he was productive with an offense that lacked a lot of elite talent (USCs offensive talent is nowhere near Oklahoma's, for example).
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But here's what I dislike about that analysis: you are assuming that Sanchez has better intangibles because of what he did against college competition versus what Cassel has done against NFL competition. So in terms of ability to do more with less and the ability to play at his best against the best competition, you have to factor in that the competition he faced was significantly easier than what Cassel did. Playing your best against Penn State is different from playing your best against Pittsburgh.
But to the greater point, you are still leaving out a bunch of intangibles and assuming they're given. Sanchez is smart, but Cassel is an absolute film room fiend--will Sanchez have the dedication to put more time into that than Cassel? I'm going to guess probably not, given that Cassel puts a lot more time than most QBs in the NFL probably do. Furthermore, do you know how Sanchez will respond once he gets his big contract? He's young and is about to be surrounded with a bunch of cash he never had. How do we know he won't become distracted (and when I say "distracted" that means any even small distraction that might take him away from not just showing up to practice, but putting extra time after practice)? Given that he went after the big dollars of the NFL even though most of his advice told him he wasn't ready, who's to say that he's not heavily enamored by money? And given that he has had charges in the past of rape, breaking windows at parties, etc..., who's to say that he won't be distracted by an attractive social life?
Because here's the deal: almost every scout and expert believes that Sanchez is going to have to work hard to become better. I agree with that. How do we know he has the work ethic to not only become better, but to become the best? Cassel doesn't carry that risk. Sanchez does. Therefore, when we speak of upside, why doesn't the drive to get better and the work ethic to become smarter than the competition factor in?