Updated: Discuss our Backup QB Situation (formerly Byron Leftwich)

He's also not a scrambling QB, he fumbles constantly when he scrambles that's why he doesn't scramble even though he's athletic enough to be one. He also doesn't mind his surroundings in the pocket when he's looking downfield in the pocket, he chooses to either be minding his surroundings or scanning downfield, thats why he gets sacked so much or misses so many open receivers once he moves out of the pocket.

Jeez man are you watching our games? He scrambled for 258 yards last season w/o a single fumble.

... and he got sacked so much because our line couldn't pass block against good defenses. Against Pitt, Baltimore, Dallas and NY defenders were breaking through the line before Jason had taken 2 steps back.

I am shocked - - SHOCKED - - that no one has looked carefully at this year's free agent QB list and seen THE ANSWER to the problem here.


Patrick Ramsey is a free agent. Think about it:


Former top pick of the Skins.

Had a better winning record after 15 games than either Brett Favre or Peyton Manning.

Knows the pressure of being the QB in Washington.

He's rested and ready.


I love it when a plan comes together. [/ The A-Team] :doh:

^Plus he already knows the WCO cause he played in Denver for so many yrs. lol. ;)

He's already got a ring from Pittsburg. Why would he want to stay with them as a backup, making backup money, and know that he would never get the chance to start unless Big Ben got hurt?

He's still fairly young, is a free agent, and the redskins are the team he presumably grew up rooting for. If he felt he had a chance to come here, get starting money, and actually get to PLAY for the team he loves, why stay in pittsburg and sit on a bench the rest of his career?

There are only a few teams where BL could go and be a starter and the Skins are one of those teams for sure but in the big picture BL is a back up and if one is going to be a back up the Steelers arent a bad team to back up on.

Youre assuming that Campbells replacement is not already in-house... Brennan is going to be a baller someday.



I really hope the skins FO doesnt consider colt the answer if JC doesnt work out . . . a good showing in the second half of the first pre-season game plus a cool name doesnt give me any indication of what kind of qb he will become in the NFL.

i'd rather have JC who has shown he is a good, capable QB while we search for that true elite QB (which could take anywhere from a few years to never). . .we shouldnt stop looking for that Manning or Brady type QB (who could give us 6-10 years of real competitive ball) just b/c we have a solid starting QB and a 3rd string rookie half the fan base thinks will be a baller.

not sayin JC or colt cant become "ballers", just sayin until we have a legit elite qb, we shouldnt stop looking for him.

go skins!!

I can't believe this thread is getting so much attention. It's Byron Leftwich.
Why would we even consider this!! He's pretty much the same type QB as Campbell.
It would be a lateral move in my opinion.

JC is a much better QB than leftwich IMO. ones an entrenched starter with solid numbers, the other is unemployed.

Lotta Campbell-lovers in here apparently. To clarify my remark about Campbell being too tall, Zorn worked with him all offseason to stand shorter in the pocket because Zorn felt he was too tall.... so Campbell is always crouched down a little bit - that cant be comfortable for him. Someone also said something about JLC thinking Campbell is our franchise QB, and thats not accurate. JLC has said he thinks we should stick with Campbell because he's not THE probelm. O-line is our biggest and we still dont have good receivers. JLC thinks Campbell hasnt done enough either way to show if he can be THE GUY for us or not.

Here is an article I found after our first loss this season:

Trying to Get Up to Speed - washingtonpost.com (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/05/AR2008090503414.html?sub=AR)

He's so big, and I just want him to move faster," Zorn said of the 6-foot-5 Campbell, who completed 15 of 27 passes Thursday night for 133 yards with a touchdown and an 81.2 passer rating. "And we'll continue to work on it. I'm not discouraged with a lot of the things he did. I just want him to get better."


Zorn lauded Campbell for protecting the football and not turning it over but was concerned by his tendency to lock onto a particular receiver, which contributed to a sack on the first offensive play of the game. Campbell also neglected to attempt to find a primary receiver downfield too often -- opting for "check-downs" to secondary options instead -- and Zorn is still waiting for a vertical component of his attack take shape.

Some scouts and executives believe Campbell is a poor fit for the West Coast offense, with his size and skills favoring seven-step drops and more deep throws, instead of the three-step drops and quick, rhythmic cadence of Zorn's style. "When I watch that team, I think something's going to have to give," said one NFL executive who has studied Campbell closely and believes he could succeed as a drop-back passer. "Is it the scheme or the quarterback? At some point either the coach is going to have to change what he does to fit the quarterback, or they're going to need a different quarterback."



Did Campbell improve in some areas of his play between 07 and 08? Sure. His passer rating went up a little bit (as it should for any QB in a WCO) and he stopped fumbling every game... thats good. But the fundamental flaws in Campbells game mentioned in the article - holding on to the ball too long and locking onto a receiver - have plagued campbell his entire career. They were a problem in college. They were a problem under Gibbs. They were a problem under Saunders. They were a problem at the beginning fo the season with Zorn. They were still a problem at the end of the season. In the WCO, you simply can't have a QB who holds on to the ball to long. Arguably, that would apply to any offense, but in a Coreyll style offense like the one we ran before, 5 and 7 step drops are more common than they are in a WCO. In that type of offense, Campbells tendancy to hold onto the ball can be covered over a little bit. but not here. the WCO (and one with a weak offensive line), where the majority of the passing plays involve 3 step drops, its KILLER.

If Campbell had shown some improvement in getting rid of the ball quicker and not locking in on his receivers as the season went on, i might feel differently. but he didnt. we're wasting our time with Campbell and the WCO. Either he needs to go, or the system does. However, if the system went (and Zorn was fired), and Campbell had to learn another new offense - theres no way he'd want to resign here, so we'd lose him anyways as a free agent. Holding onto campbell now does nothing but delay the inevitable. One way or another, chances are, he wont be our starting QB in 2011. We can keep him another year or two, and get nothing for him when he leaves, or we can get something for him in a trade and start developing a plan B.

Alot of you have made good arguments for Campbell, and I understand in your opinions, he is the undisputed savior of our franchise. I felt that way about Ramsey. I used to feel that way about Campbell. Maybe i just havent done a good job of expressing my argument convincingly, but i just dont have much hope for Campbell in a skins uniform.

Lotta Campbell-lovers in here apparently. To clarify my remark about Campbell being too tall, Zorn worked with him all offseason to stand shorter in the pocket because Zorn felt he was too tall.... so Campbell is always crouched down a little bit - that cant be comfortable for him.Zorn didn't feel he was too tall. He needed to be quicker and have better balance on his drops which means deeper bend in the knees. That helps keep your feet balanced and allows a quicker set and release.

JLC has said he thinks we should stick with Campbell because he's not THE probelm.Not to argue your point, you're correct here. But I don't put to much stock in what JLC has to say other than direct quotes he gets from Redskin Park or the players. This is the same guy whose in-depth knowledge of football had him writing a column after the draft about 4WR, 2TE sets.


Here is an article I found after our first loss this season:

Trying to Get Up to Speed - washingtonpost.com (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/05/AR2008090503414.html?sub=AR)
you should've posted these two paragraphs also:
Zorn discounted the notion Campbell might not be a perfect fit for this offense but was honest about the length of time necessary to grasp it fully. He spoke again yesterday about how "wild" Pro Bowl passer Matt Hasselbeck (http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Matt+Hasselbeck?tid=informline) was in his first season in Seattle (http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Seattle+Seahawks?tid=informline) with Zorn as quarterbacks coach, even after Hasselbeck's four years as a backup in the same system in Green Bay (http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Green+Bay+Packers?tid=informline), but said Campbell has enough talent to overcome any hiccups.
"I think he's got enough athleticism, I really do, to speed up his game in certain situations," Zorn said. "And part of that, I'm hoping, is just the idea of understanding the offense better, the speed of it. He's not there yet, but I'm not totally discouraged. We have to make big plays when the opportunity is there."

pretty good endorsement from Zorn, and this was after a discouraging loss....

They were still a problem at the end of the season.The problem at the end of the season was the OL breakdown.

Alot of you have made good arguments for Campbell, and I understand in your opinions, he is the undisputed savior of our franchise.I can't speak for anyone else, but I don't believe he's the savior. I believe he is a solid, competent NFL starter who hasn't reached his potential. He has the potential to be a borderline Pro Bowler, if he develops in the WCO. He will never be a Manning, Brady (future HoFer) type

No question Leftwich can start in the NFL and the perfect fit for him is Carolina, not here. He's going to need to solid line in front of him and a running game. If he has those two things ( plus a nice deep target..Steve Smith) then he can get the job done. It really shocked me that certain teams didn't jump to get this guy.