FinSaint

Well, he did such a fine job with the spread offense in Minnesota with Webb and the "Flash" package! (<-sarcasm)

iceshack149

My brother-in-law is a big Vikes fan. He said that Webb is the next big thing a year ago. I doubt that he's the next big thing. He seems like the new Tavaris Jackson. What's your take, Fin?

FinSaint

Sorry for the late reply... I don't think Webb will be anyone's next big thing ever... at least on the football field.

I do understand why your friend might have thought that, because Webb had a really good ending to the 2011 season when he was forced to step in, but that was definitely not a true evaluation of his skill and potential.

Webb is really elusive and I can't tell you how many times I've seen him somehow escape a sure sack from the like of Clay Matthews & Co, but movement and speed have never been the issue, him having been drafted as a WR. The problem is that he just lacks the QB fundamentals when it comes to the throwing action and reading the field - his arm is terrible and he makes very poor decisions quite often. Most of the time he relies on his quick feet to "save a play," but that can only take you so far in this league.

While I'm not a Christian Ponder fan by any means either, it was clear how big of a drop off there was in the playoff game against the Packers this past season when Ponder got hurt and Webb had to step in to be the starter for the Vikes. That is why I'm very happy that they addressed the QB depth problem by signing Cassel. While Cassel might not be the Pro Bowl QB once thought after he took over for Brady in New England - he is certainly a lot better fit as a standard QB than Webb will ever be.

Actually, the guy they had as the PS squad depth QB last season seems like a much more intriguing project than Webb. McLeod Bethel-Thompson has a huge arm, but is definitely very raw based on last season's preseason games. Still, he might have potential to be at least a strong backup, but I guess only time will tell if that development will take place in Minnesota or somewhere else because I doubt they'll carry 4 QBs on their roster - it'll be either him or Webb for the final roster allocations, IMO.

"I'm not bashing people, I'm bashing their opinions because in my opinion their opinion is wrong" - Danno