Norv Zimmer wrote:
I agree, there is no basis for all the faith people put in him. He has never been that great of a NFL QB and to think that he can just come back from the devastating injury and play at the level he was at (which is not that great) is pipe dreams.
I'm not a Teddy sycophant by any means. I actually like a healthy Bradford better as a quarterback.
But I have to disagree with this.
Teddy didn't light the world on fire statistically, but he is the last Viking to quarterback a division winner. He also was showing signs of progress last year during preseason. I'm not talking statistically. I'm talking about the WAY he was throwing the football. My criticism of Teddy was never about the intangibles of quarterback play. He's smart, he's prepared, and his teammates will run through fire for him. My criticisms were all mechanical in nature, that he didn't or couldn't drive the ball when he threw. He had a low, floppy elbow on his release and got under a lot of throws, causing them to float.
What I watched in last year's preseason was a quarterback who had obviously done some work with his coaches. He was throwing the ball with authority and driving it in to his receivers.
Does that mean he has an arm like Stafford or Rodgers or Bradford? No. But he was looking, at least to my eyes, like he had made huge strides with the mechanical aspects of his game.
Obviously, my opinion is really that of an armchair quarterback. But given the "noodle arm" comments, I'm assuming opinions here are based on the wobbly throws he often made. That's totally legitimate. I just happen to believe he had shown signs of moving past those bad habits. If he proves otherwise, I'm with you guys ... move on from Teddy. This IS the NFL, and you DO have to be able to throw the ball. But if he has improved his throwing, there's no way I'd discount his return.
The main thing, however, is that he suffered one of the worst knee injuries imaginable. There's no guarantee he'll ever be the same, and I would NEVER advocate rushing him back just because the coaches like him. But I don't think you kick him to the curb, either. The team has far too much invested in his recovery. So let him practice. See how things play out. If we're honest, we may make the playoffs with Case Keenum, but I doubt we make a deep run. Let's see what happens.