The evolution of the "Black" quarterback in the NFL

Cam Newton will be playing in his first Superbowl. For me, I feel very weird saying that out loud. I remember the first season Cam played in the NFL , the media was "writing him off". "This guy is going to be a bust." "His game can't translate to the big leagues"... and well... who is talking now???... I'll wait ...

The remarks Cam Newton made a few days ago shows how far he has came since his rookie season; he is the voice of the African American quarterback in the NFL.

"I've said this since day one," Newton said. "I'm an African-American quarterback that may scare a lot of people because they haven't seen nothing that they can compare me to."

 Cam Newton is 100% accurate with this quote. He is a 6'5 250 pound dual threat African American quarterback in which the NFL has never seen before. There is no one black, white, purple , or green you can compare him to. On one scale I can take his statement and dissect "they haven't seen nothing that they can compare me to." Regardless of his race, there hasn't been a quarterback of his size that can run the ball comparable to a NFL pro running back , let alone at the size of a NFL defensive end. Who would you compare him to? The only names that would stand out are Russell Wilson, Vince Young, and maybe RG3 or Colin Kaepernick, but that wouldn't be fare to them . Russell Wilson is to small and Colin Kaepernick and RG3 don't weigh enough which leaves Vince Young. Vince Young does have some relevance in the argument because he and Cam were around the same height (Cam is more athletically built) and could run the ball extremely effective for their size but one important thing about their stories differ.

Let me explain what I mean ... by that statement

Vince Young entered the NFL in 2006 and played for the Tennessee Titans. During his rookie season he broke the NFL rookie rushing record held by Bobby Douglass that would soon be broken by Cam Newton and Robert Griffin III. Seems pretty even to me, even both players made the pro bowl after their rookie season, but that is pretty much the only thing these two players have in common. Young would go on to play in one playoff game against the San Diego Chargers during his second season but would soon lose his QB job to Kerry Collins after a disparity between HC Fisher after a series of injuries. Earlier in their career, their were so many similarities... you would have thought Vince Young would've had his opportunity at the Superbowl 2 to 3 years before Cam ... but that leads me here...

Cam has had the opportunity may quarterbacks before him haven't. A strong foundation and support system in the Carolina Panthers and the physical gift, an athletic stature. Everyone knew he had the potential to pan out this way but may quarterbacks before him have had similar potential ... but unfortunately haven't had the foundation and support system by their organization. Both Vince Young and Robert Griffin had extremely successful college careers, but their opportunity at support and development wasn't their upon their arrival to the league. RG3 for example, was a dual threat quarterback in college similar to Cam Newton but upon entering the league had an absent Head Coach in his development process. Mike Shanahan made it clear from day one that he wasn't in it for the long run when it came to developing rookie quarterback, RG3; thus resulting in major injuries that have effected RG3's reputation in the league. While RG3 is fully capable of earning another starting quarterback job next season, Vince Young won't be that lucky. (Young hasn't play in a NFL regular season game in 4+ years). Young was benched after a few seasons in the league by his head coach  and their was nothing owner Bud Adams could do to save "his guy". While Adams was in full support from day one of quarterback Vince Young, Coach Fisher wasn't very fond of the dual threat quarterback which resulted in a rift that grew over Young's time with the Titans. Unfortunately, that rift might be the very reason Young isn't playing in the league today.  

I am Very excited to see what Cam Newton can do in this years Superbowl against one of the best defenses in the last 5 years. The Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers historically have had some of the best defenses we have seen in the past 10 plus years but this years Broncos defense could challenge them for that title. Brandon Marshall along with Von Miller have stated a strong case against the Ray Lewis's and James Harrison's of the world. It's great to see an African American quarterback get the proper "nutrition" to "grow like a beautiful flower" be such a success stories young girls and boys no matter their race can look up to.

(P.S. if you want more of this discussion I have a conversation in line with this topic on my PERISCOPE account: dearbeasports)

Who will take over as the NFL's next era of elite quarterbacks?

Who is considered an ELITE quarterback in the NFL? Better yet, who out of that group has been in the league less then six years?

Football has turned into a passing game over the past two decades which requires more skills at the quarterback position one of which is the fluidity and accuracy of throwing.

Six, seven, eight years ago people like my self immediately answered, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Eli Manning, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Ben Roethlisberger, etc. And well were still listing these players as the NFL's most elite quarterbacks... No where on that list is their a player that has been in the league less then 10 seasons.

After this era of quarterbacks says goodbye to the game... who will step into their shadows? There aren't 5 to 6 up and coming quarterbacks in the league that an argument can be made. (Maybe two or three names, Wilson, Kaepernick, and Newton)

(Give or take Russell Wilson could be on that list. An argument could be made on Cam Newton given the season he is having this year but in order to be elite ... you have to do it for consecutive seasons)

So, What happened?  The simple answer, defenses are more aware of the tendencies of the quarterback....and well quarterbacks in this day and age are clones of what their high school and colleges have programmed them to be. In other words quarterbacks can't adjust to what they are seeing defensively.

In 2002 Tom Brady won his first Superbowl within two seasons of being in the NFL defeating Kurt Warner's St.Louis Rams in Super bowl 36, which brought him into the conversation of the leagues best.

Just take a moment and let that sink in... a six round pick was able to lead his team to a Superbowl title after two seasons. That's insane...considering alot of quarterbacks in the NFL never get to see the Superbowl championship game during their entire career. Given Tom Brady's immediate success as a sixth round pick,  a lot of credit must go to Patriots head coach Bill Belichick for developing a system that highlighted his players strengths.

In a similar case, the quarterback in the Jet City has mirrored Brady's success from the draft to winning a Superbowl within his first two season in the league. Russell Wilson, similar to Tom Brady was not a highly scouted quarterback coming out of college... in fact he was drafted in the middle of the 3rd round. Seem familiar? In Wilson's case there was a little more to his back story. Upon being draft into the NFL ,Wilson was drafted by the Texas Rangers into the MLB. Wilson had the power and quick speed to compete competitively in both baseball and football but chose football because he was better at it. 

On to trying to help more quarterbacks have immediate success .....How do we fix the trend of " the Bust" at the quarterback position in the NFL? For starters, coaches need to do a better job of access the strengths of the "athlete". Before an athlete can be named a quarterback they have to show something distinctive that's gives the indication "this guy is a quarterback". Minus being an "athlete" the player has to possess excellent vision. While that might be easy to assess, having excellent vision with less then five seconds to throw the ball might be more challenging to observe. In addition to having excellent vision and ability to stay calm, you have to have athleticism. The current era of quarterbacks, Brady, Eli, Peyton have watered that skill down as much as possible because of their ability to keep calm in the pocket throwing the ball but sometimes a quarterback will have to make something out of nothing. In other words scramble plays and the ability to run to escape defenders will be imperative especially when your offensive line isn't as strong, just ask Aaron Rodgers...So we have vision, composure, athleticism, lastly the ability to read/ adapt to what you are seeing defensively. Some quarterbacks in the NFL can tell if a blitz or rush is coming but will continue to run the play as their coach had instructed them to in practice or on the sideline... resulting in their face in the turf. The best quarterbacks are the ones that can change the play on the fly or can pick apart the play to make it feasible against that specific defensive set. In other words, the reasons there aren't a lot of great young quarterbacks, is because they follow everything their coaches tell them to a "T"and don't know the plays in the play book backward to forward.

Looking at the accomplishments of current quarterbacks in the NFL through a wide range of lenses, Russell Wilson's Superbowl win ... in just his second season in the league after winning the Seattle starting quarterback position from Matt Flynn speaks to how hard work can pay off in the NFL.While their might not be 5 to 6 distinct quarterbacks that will represent the next era with Russell Wilson and Colin Kaepernick with a combined three Superbowl appearances in the last three seasons the next era will be in decent shape.