Quarterback Carousel Goes Round And Round
Written by: Bill Campbell
The answer to the question "Who is this week's quarterback?" is not confined to Eagle Land.
Kevin Kolb had been labeled the starter against Jacksonville until the sudden switch to Michael Vick. There is nothing like an Andy Reid press conference to keep you on the edge of your chairs.
He always tells the media, "The time is yours" but it really isn't. Who will quarterback the team from here on? Good question. We thought some kind of a decision might have been made after Jacksonville but now even that is subject to change.
Eagle Land is not the only place examining quarterbacks today. How about Minnesota? Forty-year-old Bret Favre has attempted 63 passes in 2 games, 4 of which have been intercepted. He has also fumbled once. And the Vikings are 0 and 2. Is it possible that Coach Brad Childress and his group, who made that trip to Mississippi to beg and cajole Favre to return, may be having at least a gleam of a second thought? There is no question that Favre led the Vikes to that impressive 12 and 4 record last year to come to within 1 victory of the Super Bowl. He has always played the game like it was such fun. But nearing age 41, there might be more amusing games elsewhere.
But quarterback problems are everywhere, even among the young. Baltimore's Joe Flacco was expected to give Cincinnati a test, but he threw 4 interceptions last week and Bengals kicker Mike Nugent kicked 5 field goals. Flacco has the lowest passing completion percentage in the league.
The second lowest percentage belongs to Carolina's Matt Moore. But he threw 3 interceptions and had a fumble in losing to the Giants in game one and suffered a concussion. He came back in game two, fumbled again and was replaced. So this week the Panthers quarterback will be rookie Jimmy Clausen.
There are quarterback changes all over the league.
Ryan Fitzpatrick will replace Trent Edwards for hapless Buffalo. Jacksonville will use David Garrard at quarterback against the Eagles. The Jags were going to use Luke McCown, who had replaced Garrard last Sunday, but McCown tore his anterior cruciate ligament in the process and is out for the season. In Oakland, Coach Tom Cable says he has a good idea who will start this week for his team but he's not ready to announce it. Jason Campbell was benched at half-time last week and the former starter, Bruce Gradkowski, looks like the guy. Andy Reid should have gone the Cable route.
The quarterback carousel goes round and round and no place seems set in stone. Lack of performance decides from week-to-week. But for now in Eagle Land it's Michael Vick instead of Kevin Kolb. And who knows what tomorrow will bring?
