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Parcells was a Hall of Fame coach who was renowned for his ability to evaluate talent. In fact, when he was with the New England Patriots he famously stated: “They want you to cook the dinner; at least they ought to let you shop for some of the groceries.”
This comment derived from an incident during the 1996 NFL Draft when his preferred first-round selection was not approved by owner Robert Kraft. Kraft purchased the team after Parcells’ first year on the job and Parcells was effectively the Patriots’ general manager. Despite taking New England to the Super Bowl in 1996 it was his final game as head coach. His disagreements with Kraft led to Parcells’ decision to leave New England.
In 1997, Parcells became the head coach and general manager of the New York Jets, where he had full control over football operations. Needless to say, Parcells had convictions about his approach on how to build a football team and his resume speaks for itself.
In case you are not familiar with Parcells’ criteria for drafting a quarterback, the following seven boxes had to be checked in order for a passer to be an option: - Be a three-year starter
- Be a senior in college
- Graduate from college
- Start 30 games
- Win 23 games
- Post a 2-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio
- Complete at least 60% of passes thrown
While none of the criteria takes into account traits identifiable on film, the central theme behind Parcells’ rules is to narrow the field down to those who are accurate, make good decisions, are mentally tough, are part of a winning culture, and finish what they start.
Let’s see how the 2022 crop of quarterbacks fits into Parcells’ criteria.
KENNY PICKETT, PITTSBURGH - 3 years as a starter? Yes
- Is he a senior? Yes
- Did he graduate? Yes
- Did he start 30 games? Yes
- Did he win 23 games? Yes
- TD:INT ratio at least 2:1? Yes (81:32)
- Completion percentage over 60? Yes (62.4%)
- 7/7 criteria met
In so many ways, Pickett encapsulates everything Parcells is looking for in a quarterback prospect. The criteria exists to laser in on guys like Pickett. Now, what would Parcells think about his hand size?
MATT CORRAL, OLE MISS - 3 years as a starter? No
- Is he a senior? No
- Did he graduate? Yes
- Did he start 30 games? No
- Did he win 23 games? No
- TD:INT ratio at least 2:1? Yes (57:22)
- Completion percentage over 60? Yes (66.7%)
- 3/7 criteria met
Of the top quarterbacks in the 2022 class, Corral checks the fewest boxes of Parcells’ criteria. Considering he should be one of the first quarterbacks off the board, it’s a good reminder of how the criteria can be so wide-ranging and how every team is different.
DESMOND RIDDER, CINCINNATI - 3 years as a starter? Yes
- Is he a senior? Yes
- Did he graduate? Yes
- Did he start 30 games? Yes
- Did he win 23 games? Yes
- TD:INT ratio at least 2:1? Yes (87:28)
- Completion percentage over 60? Yes (61.8%)
- 7/7 criteria met
Like Pickett, the criteria's designed for quarterbacks like Ridder to be amplified and the reason for Parcells’ process is to make sure guys like Ridder and what he accomplished in college are the types of players he chooses. It’s all about narrowing down the options.
SAM HOWELL, NORTH CAROLINA - 3 years as a starter? Yes
- Is he a senior? No
- Did he graduate? Yes
- Did he start 30 games? Yes
- Did he win 23 games? No
- TD:INT ratio at least 2:1? Yes (92:23)
- Completion percentage over 60? Yes (63.3%)
- 5/7 criteria met
Howell came close but his instant success at North Carolina worked against him as it relates to falling into Parcells’ criteria. He became the Tar Heels’ starter as a true freshman and held the job for three seasons, never becoming a senior and needed that fourth season to win enough games.
CARSON STRONG, NEVADA - 3 years as a starter? Yes
- Is he a senior? Yes
- Did he graduate? Yes
- Did he start 30 games? Yes
- Did he win 23 games? No
- TD:INT ratio at least 2:1? Yes (74:19)
- Completion percentage over 60? Yes (67.9%)
- 6/7 criteria met
If Nevada won more football games in Strong’s three seasons as a starter, Strong would have checked all the boxes, but he ultimately fell just short. The shortened season in 2020 was also costly. Perhaps Parcells would have made an exception? He BARELY missed!
MALIK WILLIS, LIBERTY - 3 years as a starter? No
- Is he a senior? Yes
- Did he graduate? Yes
- Did he start 30 games? Yes
- Did he win 23 games? No
- TD:INT ratio at least 2:1? Yes (48:18)
- Completion percentage over 60? Yes (62.9%)
- 5/7 criteria met
Willis misses the mark because he was only a two-year starter and didn’t come close to winning enough games to be on Parcells’ radar.
FINAL TALLY - 7/7: Pickett, Ridder
- 6/7: Strong
- 5/7: Howell, Willis
- 3/7: Corral
After none of the top quarterback prospects in last year’s draft met Parcells’ criteria despite five being selected in the first round, Pickett and Ridder checked all the boxes in the year’s class. In 2020, both Justin Herbert and Jalen Hurts met all seven criteria.
Interesting to see how each class stacks up to Parcell's rule. But I think with each passing year, as QBs become more and more athletic, his criteria become less and less applicable.
Aaron Rodgers didn't fare well. Neither did Brady. Two of the best young QBs in the NFL right now, Joe Burrow and Patrick Mahomes, also did not fare well. Mahomes I think had 2 of the 7.
Quote: @StickyBun said:
He had 15 yards of freedom in front of him and still decided to FIRE it into that minuscule window.
Quote: @Skodin said:
@ StickyBun said:
He had 15 yards of freedom in front of him and still decided to FIRE it into that minuscule window.
I questioned that myself, but not knowing the game situation, or having never seen him make another throw in my life decided that I could over look it for now. The window was tight, but if that DB trailing the receiver isnt a ball hawk it was really a pretty safe throw as you could read his name plate the whole play.
Quote: @MaroonBells said:
Interesting to see how each class stacks up to Parcell's rule. But I think with each passing year, as QBs become more and more athletic, his criteria become less and less applicable.
Aaron Rodgers didn't fare well. Neither did Brady. Two of the best young QBs in the NFL right now, Joe Burrow and Patrick Mahomes, also did not fare well. Mahomes I think had 2 of the 7.
Yes. I was wondering how the Tuna lens would hold-up against todays wunderkids @ QB...
Carson Strong is 4th year junior who aligns at QB mostly from the gun. He is an average athlete with regard to mobility outside of the pocket. In the run game, he isn't much of a threat to the defense as a runner and clearly would rather to deliver the ball from the pocket. As a result, running many of the zone-read concepts or QB designed runs would be problematic with him. The passing game is where he thrives. He’s more of a traditional pocket passer with very good arm strength and generally throws with a good base. Has a lot of pre-snap responsibilities in terms of protection and appears to handle it well. When throwing from a clean pocket his accuracy is good, but he definitely has some throws where he could have better ball placement. He has the mental processing to make quick decisions. Because he lacks good escapability, if his primary is covered, he will force the ball in—often for an ill-advised throw. As a result, he doesn't always go through a full progression to hit his check down.
Nevada’s Air Raid-based offense provides many opportunities for him to display his downfield accuracy. However, the offense also can be attributed to his moments of lazy footwork and throwing with an inconsistent base. He has a good internal timer and he innately feels pressure on the backside. He keeps his eyes downfield and can throw receivers open on deep balls. He can look the safety off, throw the seams to the TE, and easily gets the ball out of his hands from the gun. One of his best assets is his ability to take care of the football. Nevada’s offense calls for big shots down the field, and he has been judicious in this regard. Some of his turnovers in the exposures I’ve graded were situations where his receivers let him down. Although the league seems to be trending away from this type of QB, this is someone who would thrive with an effective running game, good protection, and a sure-handed tight end.
Out of curiosity -
Kellen Mond - 3 years as a starter? Yes
- Is he a senior? Yes
- Did he graduate? Yes
- Did he start 30 games? Yes (44)
- Did he win 23 games? Yes (33)
- TD:INT ratio at least 2:1? Yes (71-27)
- Completion percentage over 60? No (59%)
- 6/7 criteria met
Pretty close to all 7 and he has the speed and athleticism that many of the successful QBs have. I didn't have a problem with what Zimmer said about him in the after the game presser considering that his team was just eliminated and he was telling the truth, but at this point cooler heads should prevail and considering that Cousins is not going to be here past next year most likely we need to to figure out the position, so it really makes sense to play him this week so we can see what he can do in a game situation, unless he is just that bad in practice and they do not think he has it mentally as well.
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