http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slu...yhoo&type=lgns
Frank assessments of the top-three quarterback prospects have been scarce. All three – Texas' Vince Young, USC's Matt Leinart and Vanderbilt's Jay Cutler – have drawn praise and criticism at various points in the last two months, particularly Young and Cutler, but it's been rare to hear any on-the-record concerns about the trio from head coaches. Until Tuesday, that is.
Baltimore Ravens head coach Brian Billick had interesting things to say about all three – a surprising development considering the Ravens have scheduled a personal workout with Young and could end up having Cutler still on the board at the 13th overall pick. At one point, Billick likened Cutler's evaluation to that of Kyle Boller – the big-armed Cal product who saw his stock jump during predraft evaluations, but has since struggled to take command of Baltimore's offense. Interestingly, the Boller comparison is one you hear often from Cutler's critics.
Billick's overall thoughts on the trio:
"You knew Leinart is a given in terms of the evaluation," he said. "Is he going to be a great NFL quarterback? He'll be a roll of the dice. It's a pretty good roll. You like what you see. I can't imagine why he wouldn't do well.
"Cutler is kind of like Kyle. There is some apprehension in some of the things around him. You admire him for doing things with less than a stellar cast around him. But are you giving him too much dispensation for things that didn't go well? You dismiss some of those losses (in college) by saying, 'It's just Vanderbilt. What a great kid – he overcame all of these things.'
"With Young, you knew we were going to beat him up (in evaluations). He was just too good to be true. The problem that I see personally is I don't know who you compare him to. I think that makes people uncomfortable. Leinart looks like a lot of good pocket quarterbacks. … Young is a different breed. He really doesn't fit into that (Michael) Vick category. He has the size, the accuracy and the throwing action. He's a spectacular talent but he doesn't look like anybody. So that tends to make us all nervous. He gets downgraded for that.
"What Leinart and Young have experienced (in college) is totally different than Cutler. That's why I would be concerned with Cutler. He's a good, young man who is intelligent, but he's not really been under the spotlight on a consistent basis. He might not know how this all works."
Billick's assessment of the top three QB's
Billick's assessment of the top three QB's
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