Sam Darnold-Traded to Panthers

Pros
-Still really young
-Big body, well built.
-Mobile, can take off and run at anytime
-Tons of talent, makes some great off-schedule plays
-Can attack way down the field with ease

Cons

-Some injury issues
-Odd throwing motion
-Saw ghosts
-Footwork is hit or miss and has gotten him into trouble
-Has struggled thus far in his NFL career

Unsure what to make of Darnold. Talent is there but he was put in a bad position with the Jets, not great coaching, not a lot of talent around him to support him, he's still young enough that he could develop into the star QB he was expected to be or he could continue down the Blaine Gabbert path and forever be a guy that failed to live up to his draft position. The talent, the leadership ability and the athleticism are all there but he hasn't been able to put it together thus far and you wonder just how much of a difference a change of scenery would make for him.

He scares me because his throwing motion reminds me of Shaun Hill who QB for us behind Akilex Smith

Pros - High character, young, big, strong, athletic, strong arm, fantastic off-script, amazing thrower on the run(tbh, one of the best I've ever seen coming out of college)

Cons - s**tty throwing mechanics, s**tty footwork, field vision, decision making, INT machine, shoddy poise and pocket presence

I remember someone saying this about him during the draft process, and it sums up Darnold perfectly:

Strengths: Possesses an amazing ability to keep his team in the game. Weaknesses: possesses an amazing ability to keep the opponent in the game.

Originally posted by Heroism:
Pros - High character, young, big, strong, athletic, strong arm, fantastic off-script, amazing thrower on the run(tbh, one of the best I've ever seen coming out of college)

Cons - s**tty throwing mechanics, s**tty footwork, field vision, decision making, INT machine, shoddy poise and pocket presence

I remember someone saying this about him during the draft process, and it sums up Darnold perfectly:

Strengths: Possesses an amazing ability to keep his team in the game. Weaknesses: possesses an amazing ability to keep the opponent in the game.

His ability to throw on the move is definitely outstanding, it just depends on how much of his weaknesses a coach like Shanahan believes can be improved upon drastically.

If you factor in his strengths, he's a great fit for a Shanahan offense with all the boot action and moving platform throws. Seems like Kyle liked him coming out:

"I've watched him a lot whether it was college or last week's game," Shanahan said. "I'm a big fan of Sam's. He's a very good player. He's going to have a very good career in this league. He makes a lot of plays. If you're not on your stuff, if you let him get comfortable back there, he'll pick you apart as good as any quarterback. He can throw it very well and he sees the field extremely well. We have to make sure not to let him get comfortable because when he does, he'll show everyone why he's that good."

Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:
His ability to throw on the move is definitely outstanding, it just depends on how much of his weaknesses a coach like Shanahan believes can be improved upon drastically.

It looks like he's cleaned up his throwing mechanics a bit since college. I need to watch some of his recent games because I haven't really seen him play too much in the NFL.

Originally posted by Heroism:
If you factor in his strengths, he's a great fit for a Shanahan offense with all the boot action and moving platform throws. Seems like Kyle liked him coming out:

"I've watched him a lot whether it was college or last week's game," Shanahan said. "I'm a big fan of Sam's. He's a very good player. He's going to have a very good career in this league. He makes a lot of plays. If you're not on your stuff, if you let him get comfortable back there, he'll pick you apart as good as any quarterback. He can throw it very well and he sees the field extremely well. We have to make sure not to let him get comfortable because when he does, he'll show everyone why he's that good."

That sounds too much like coach-speak prior to an upcoming game to be very meaningful.

The kid obviously has talent. The problem is somewhat similar to Alex Smith - he is on a bad team with bad coaches that don't have a clue how to coach him up.

My biggest question is whether or not he has the mental toughness to be a top-10 QB. IDK

Originally posted by Heroism:
Pros - High character, young, big, strong, athletic, strong arm, fantastic off-script, amazing thrower on the run(tbh, one of the best I've ever seen coming out of college)

Cons - s**tty throwing mechanics, s**tty footwork, field vision, decision making, INT machine, shoddy poise and pocket presence

I remember someone saying this about him during the draft process, and it sums up Darnold perfectly:

Strengths: Possesses an amazing ability to keep his team in the game. Weaknesses: possesses an amazing ability to keep the opponent in the game.

if hes got bad footwork and bad throwing mechanics, then how is that any better than Jimmy whos got the same s**t?

I'm of the opinion that they should draft someone who doesn't need to be taught how to play quarterback. We don't have the guys that can develop a quarterback and teach them footwork and other basic s**t

Originally posted by Ensatsu:
if hes got bad footwork and bad throwing mechanics, then how is that any better than Jimmy whos got the same s**t?

I'm of the opinion that they should draft someone who doesn't need to be taught how to play quarterback. We don't have the guys that can develop a quarterback and teach them footwork and other basic s**t

Most young QB's need to work on and develop their footwork, its extremely rare to find a prospect whose footwork is very well polished and pro-ready.

Originally posted by Ensatsu:
if hes got bad footwork and bad throwing mechanics, then how is that any better than Jimmy whos got the same s**t?

There are a bunch of QBs that play at a high level in spite of bad footwork and throwing mechanics. The most obvious one is Patrick Mahomes, who has improved his mechanics under Andy Reid. He's still far from perfect, tho. It's a process for all QBs.

It's the job of coaches to coach their players up, and the job of players to seek out help. That's why guys like Peyton Manning and Tom Brady spent every offseason of his entire NFL career working with a QB coach. Mechanics aren't something that ever stops getting addressed. It's not like a one-time permanent fix. The human body naturally erodes motor patterns over time. The best QBs work on mechanics their entire career.

Originally posted by Heroism:
There are a bunch of QBs that play at a high level in spite of bad footwork and throwing mechanics. The most obvious one is Patrick Mahomes, who has improved his mechanics under Andy Reid. He's still far from perfect, tho. It's a process for all QBs.

It's the job of coaches to coach their players up, and the job of players to seek out help. That's why guys like Peyton Manning and Tom Brady spent every offseason of his entire NFL career working with a QB coach. Mechanics aren't something that ever stops getting addressed. It's not like a one-time permanent fix. The human body naturally erodes motor patterns over time. The best QBs work on mechanics their entire career.

People need to watch Josh Allen in college to get an example of how drastically mechanics can be improved with some proper coaching.

Originally posted by Heroism:
There are a bunch of QBs that play at a high level in spite of bad footwork and throwing mechanics. The most obvious one is Patrick Mahomes, who has improved his mechanics under Andy Reid. He's still far from perfect, tho. It's a process for all QBs.

It's the job of coaches to coach their players up, and the job of players to seek out help. That's why guys like Peyton Manning and Tom Brady spent every offseason of his entire NFL career working with a QB coach. Mechanics aren't something that ever stops getting addressed. It's not like a one-time permanent fix. The human body naturally erodes motor patterns over time. The best QBs work on mechanics their entire career.

sounds like it is just a mindset for personal improvement instead of coaching then. Because Jimmy G is still throwing off his backfoot and hes never improved it.

I would entertain the idea of Darnold if we went 7-9, and we're out of reach on the top 4 QBs in the draft. I don't like the idea of reaching on the 5th best QB prospect. If it takes a 2nd round pick, then it might be worth it.

Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:

Originally posted by Heroism:
There are a bunch of QBs that play at a high level in spite of bad footwork and throwing mechanics. The most obvious one is Patrick Mahomes, who has improved his mechanics under Andy Reid. He's still far from perfect, tho. It's a process for all QBs.

It's the job of coaches to coach their players up, and the job of players to seek out help. That's why guys like Peyton Manning and Tom Brady spent every offseason of his entire NFL career working with a QB coach. Mechanics aren't something that ever stops getting addressed. It's not like a one-time permanent fix. The human body naturally erodes motor patterns over time. The best QBs work on mechanics their entire career.

People need to watch Josh Allen in college to get an example of how drastically mechanics can be improved with some proper coaching.

Are we sure KS is the type of OC/HC to be able to teach someone how to be the QB?

He's been great calling plays for already developed guys like Matt Ryan and he did have the stint with RG3 but that could have been as much to do with his Dad as it did his coaching plus where is RG3 today?

Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:

Originally posted by Heroism:
There are a bunch of QBs that play at a high level in spite of bad footwork and throwing mechanics. The most obvious one is Patrick Mahomes, who has improved his mechanics under Andy Reid. He's still far from perfect, tho. It's a process for all QBs.

It's the job of coaches to coach their players up, and the job of players to seek out help. That's why guys like Peyton Manning and Tom Brady spent every offseason of his entire NFL career working with a QB coach. Mechanics aren't something that ever stops getting addressed. It's not like a one-time permanent fix. The human body naturally erodes motor patterns over time. The best QBs work on mechanics their entire career.

People need to watch Josh Allen in college to get an example of how drastically mechanics can be improved with some proper coaching.

It can but CJ is in year four under this staff and his footwork in the pocket is still a mess. I don't know who's to blame for that but it's certainly noteworthy.

Originally posted by Ensatsu:

sounds like it is just a mindset for personal improvement instead of coaching then. Because Jimmy G is still throwing off his backfoot and hes never improved it.

I would entertain the idea of Darnold if we went 7-9, and we're out of reach on the top 4 QBs in the draft. I don't like the idea of reaching on the 5th best QB prospect. If it takes a 2nd round pick, then it might be worth it.

I'd be down with this as well if we don't get one of the top 4 prospects except not for a 2nd, I'd only part with a 3rd for him. He does have youth and a lot of tools, been on the awful Jets who I don't think any young QB would've had success with. But the one thing that stands out with him, that was also there in college and I can't stand is that he's so freaking turnover prone.