okay let's play a little quarterback backup quarterback true or false and backup quarterbacks proved their value last year yeah every team needs three some teams started five last year the Vikings started five the Browns started five we'll start with the Browns true or false the Browns will keep four quarterbacks on their 53-man roster they currently have Deshawn Watson Dorian Thompson Robinson who was drafted last year and got a start or two got injured after his second start which was a lot be
tter than his first start added jamus Winston in free agency most recently added Tyler Huntley a pro bowler somehow in 2022 usually that fourth quarterback is like an undrafted rookie Camp arm who's destined to go these are four recognizable names in quarterback circles true or false they're going to have four guys on the 53 man roster when week one rolls around first thing I want to do is this like why is Tyler Huntley having a hard time finding a backup deal like I mean we talk about no idea I
don't understand it we've seen a guy we've seen the guy play in real games and do well and keep Baltimore in the playoff mix I don't really understand that one that one to me is weird good athlete throws the ball well and we've seen him running offense but he can't find a backup quarterback job that to me is weird but I'm going to say false with this one that no there will not be four quarterbacks on the final roster absolutely not now you know at at some point there I mean someone gets release
d or another team in training camp realizes wow we need a third you know how about trading us Tyler Huntley or something like that right that's where I see that going it's honestly when I saw that yesterday I was like wait don't they already have three they're going to get four quarterbacks you know that all got a little talent and got a little namesake in the NFL and all that I thought that was odd to begin with there's barely enough reps to go around for three let alone four uh but no way four
is on the roster to start the year not sure that's exactly the way use name sake but it sounds no I think you're right it was close enough it wasn't the right way so uh so anyway here here here's the here's the reality because I think it is smart for the Browns to have that fourth guy because you know what once we get to practices once we get to preseason games there's a chance that somebody else is going to end up needing a quarterback right so you get value there and you stockpile a draft pic
k for next year and I was talking to somebody yesterday about just this whole Justin Fields situation why the Bears did what they did when they did it why they didn't play it out why they didn't wait why they didn't try to find a way to keep fields around because opportunities will arise later well it was a back it was a real conversation it wasn't just me listening because I eventually suggested and of course people with teams don't want to have this analogy tied to them because of the current
sensitivities to gambling even though the NFL loves gambling except when it doesn't I said it's kind of like like because the point is once you're playing the games you have a different attitude toward your draft picks than you do before the draft that's right before the draft you view those draft picks as much more sacred currency once you're into football season and you're like well you know what we got a chance here let's give up a third round pick for Chase young let's give up a second round
pick for montz sweat let's give up what we need because we're trying to win we're trying to win and I said it's kind of like when you're in football season you're at the casino when you're in the off season you're thinking about what you're going to do when you get to the casino your money has different value when you're not at the casino when you get to the casino it changes it morphs into something else it's a commodity that is part of your effort to win the commodity is much more precious wh
en you're home when you're thinking about what you're going to do at the casino so there's a change in the mindset when it's time to play games and teams approach the value of their draft Capital differently when it's time to play games so if you're the Bears and you want a greater return for Justin Fields you hold on to him because at some point somebody's attitude about those draft picks is going to be different than it is a month before it's time to use them it's harder to get value now than
it is in August September October up until the trade deadline especially if it moves back a couple of weeks that's just two more games on top of the eight already that a guy can get injured and an opening emerges for an owner to say we got to do what we can to be competitive we got to stay competitive we're having a good year go get Justin Fields so that's the point if they would have held him they AR going to get less than a six round pick next year they're likely going to get more and they're
potentially going to get a lot more yeah I I mean listen I don't I don't disagree with that I think the the thing is is like we kind of talked about is it worth the headaches right a little bit that you might have to deal with along the way you know having to constantly answer those questions do that and you know getting back to our you know jovial conversation about business and football as family right I I do think you know some of these guys have a heart and they wanted to do right by Justin
fields too so they okay we we're we getting done a little worth here right to help the player out but okay this is probably best for us anyways too to just not have to constantly talk talk about this right I mean it's all over Bears Radio last week I see people on ESPN every what's going on with Justin Fields I don't even think they're going to draft a quarterback Justin Fields is still there all that this changes it like you know like you talked about you got to kind of set up you know the conv
ersation for your fan base so they know what to expect and I think they're kind of just setting it up that way to go like hey no we we're moving on you guys know it and you're hearing what's going on and it's going to be Caleb Williams and get ready for it and all of that and I I I understand why they did what they did but yeah your point is certainly just and that there's more value in holding on to them that's for sure well it's going to be a quarterback I'm still not entirely sure that Caleb
Williams is fully committed to go into the bears but that remains to be determined that's a topic another conspiracy C NS p i r a c y conspiracy it's not it's it's yeah number one well done for spelling it right you you would have made it to fin the first that's what I'm good at and and and and second of all it's not a conspiracy it's not a conspiracy it's good business for the player to look at his options and maybe maybe push back a little bit on this presumption that he's just going to happil
y go to the team that has the first overall pick all right true or false Jimmy Garoppolo is a good fit to be the backup to Matthew Stafford with Los Angeles Rams yes true I go with that for sure I mean again it's it's a it's a team that's on the up and up we know that yeah they lost Aaron Donald but damn they exceeded expectations we've seen them they're turn the corner here right their offense is pretty damn good they got Carson Wentz there right he's still under contract I believe right as we
sit here right now no no he's so so then no it's desperate there then they got to do that right but I was going to say you're not going to trust Carson Wentz either way you're not going to go well we feel good about that off the bat Garoppo's played a a lot of good football he's going to understand the system right you know there's a Mike llu there who was in San Francisco with him before that so that makes a total you know a lot of sense again a little like we talked about yesterday protecting
their investment in there their football team looks like it's about to be good so they don't want to fall off Earth if if Matthew Stafford misses a few games or does that you know like we saw them a few years ago without a good backup and it was like Hey we got to call anybody on the street that can help us right now we can't get this going two points number one yeah ston Bennett is under contract the guy who won a national championship or two in Georgia it was a fourth round pick last year and
this is just a general bit of advice to all NFL Executives out there be careful when you brag about like getting a guy oh we got him in round four like everybody was surprised they got him in round four and they talked up why they took him in round four and and it's a nonf football thing I don't think he's ever going to be what most people would not have gotten drafted if it was anybody else with sets and Bennetts and the things that he's dealing with off the field that was amazing in itself tha
t it just kind of got swept under the rug like hey he's got this crazy off the field problem buddy quarterback Georgia so we're g to just take him and nobody's going to talk about it and it's just going to be so what and that's weird in itself I'm sorry I just you know it's the elephant in the room with that subject but it just gets swept under the rug cuz he's a quarterback and he played for Georgia and won and it's it's crazy actually nobody with off the field issues that he had would have got
drafted in the fourth round that's the first thing that's insane I'm sorry I just had to say that just to be clear we don't know what the specific off the field issue is that has caused STS and Bennett to be on the nonf football injury list for an extended period of time for the Rams we do know there was an incident when he was training in advance of the draft where there was a public intoxication citation I don't know whatever happened with that but yeah bottom line is ston Bennett is under co
ntract they thought he'd be the backup to Matthew Stafford that's not going to happen so they get Jimmy G you've talked about this in the past and I'm trying to remember which team this was yeah you can't have a backup quarterback who is prone to injury right Talking Teddy Bridgewater in Miami right those years that's right that's right that's what it was you you got to have play that you can trust to stay healthy and we have one guy who you would call Mr glass that's your term backed up by anot
her guy who is Mr glass I don't know that that's the best possible approach for the ram I I would hear you there well this is where I would push back on that Matthew Stafford's not Mr glass Matthew Stafford's freaking Mr iron I play through everything like what right he gets injured though he plays through it but he gets injured right I mean plays through it you know it played through it and I know he missed games you know two years ago and he missed a few games in in Detroit towards Wards the e
nd there but I mean it's remarkable he didn't miss more games I mean he got the kicked out of him for 10 years straight he got to his he got to his Super Bowl team in the Rams and they sucked at pass protecting he still got his ass whooped but made plays but they were at least good enough to like oh well he got his ass whoop who cares he got a 40 yard gain nobody matters so that's where I would push back on that but no people like Jimmy garoo scare me to death as a backup quarterback for the rea
sons you said no doubt about that you know it's it's yeah he played but damn you know he gets hurt almost you know every other play it seems like there uh and there is definitely risk in that for sure garoo signed a one-year deal the terms have not yet been disclosed which means there's nothing to brag about in the Jimmy Garoppolo contract this is a guy who for a while in 2018 for a little sliver of time at 27 A5 million per year was the highest paid quarterback in league history Kirk Cousins an
d his 28 million per year deal in Minnesota Eclipse that but for a week or two Jimmy G was the champ and now and I respect it I respect the hustle this is the Joe flacko approach I'm not done playing I love football I'm still going to be part of the game even if they're paying me not all that much and it's not all that much or we would know exactly what it is so Jimmy G behind Matthew Stafford the Rams have had five different backup quarterbacks start games the last two seasons Brett rippen Cars
on Wentz Baker Mayfield John Wolford Bryce Perkins now this past year it wasn't because Matthew Stafford was injured they what was it week 17 they played Carson went cuz they were in the playoffs so they missed it was meaningless he missed one game this year right I think he missed one legitimately am I right about that I feel like there was one game he missed a game in Green Bay they lost in Green Bay right because they started Brett ripping that was the game that was the game Brett ripping pla
yed and they realized after that game no he's got to go we need a backup right we need a real backup right so and then he sat out two years ago yeah he missed a few games certainly he got his you know he got killed behind that bad Ram team post Super Bowl and all that uh but no you know the point's real and that's where Jimmy's a little he's played but yeah he's a little fragile too all right uh last true or false topic yeah Josh dos is the favorite to be qb2 behind Brock pie in San Francisco ov
er Brandon Allen I'm going to say false there you know I I don't have any in inside information here on this like I know anytime the 49ers come up people think I know right but I don't know I know they like Brandon Allen a lot I do know that right you know I think he's a a worthy number two quarterback I you know and in a lot of ways you know we we'll see I think that's one that's going to be battled out a little bit I think that the field and practice will dictate that but I think it's one wher
e you go hey we got two guys that certainly can be the backup and then whoever's not we can feel really comfortable and going man we got a a good quarterback room we got three really good guys that we could trust and do all that but I'm not going to say it's in the bag that Josh dobs is the uh backup no yeah I agree with you two and a not two and a half 2.25 million guaranteed on a one-year deal for Josh jobs which once again highlights the bargain the Steelers have gotten with Russell Wilson th
e very well-traveled Josh dos who was a chariot until he quickly became a pumpkin for the Vikings last year is getting 2.25 million guaranteed on a one-year deal the Steelers got Russell Wilson for 1.21 million on a one-year deal Brandon Allen resigned on a one-year veteran minimum deal so if we are going to do apples to apples contract comparison they value or they had to pay Josh dos more than they're paying Brandon Allen to be on the depth chart and we'll see and you know the broader point is
I think we are going to see more teams that instead of having two guys on the active roster and one guy on the depth chart who in theory on the practice wait two on the active roster and one on the practice squad who in theory could be signed by any team at any time I think you're going to see three guys on the active roster more often because last year that that that long-standing tendency of quarterbacks to stay healthy evaporated and all of a sudden there was a widespread need for quarterbac
ks and I think we're going to see that adjustment and it may not be four but I think you're going to see more teams with three yeah for a long time the trend has been a lot of teams go with two not many go with three I think it'd be foolish after last year you you get in trouble with your owner think about it how do we not have three quarterbacks on the roster this year and then you get a couple of guys injured and you're you're scringy one well wait a minute we saw what happened last year in th
e NFL how were you not prepared for it this year last year I understand it this year you got to be ready for it and I think general managers are going to realize we got to send that spend that roster spot on uh on a on a on a third string quarterback yeah and I think the 49ers probably will keep all three of those guys yeah agreed with everything you said there and I think the other thing that's going to change in in the front offense and people's minds too is that hey when we used to be like oh
we get to the third string quarterback it's over we can't win we can't do that that's not the sentiment anymore in the NFL it's no way we can find a new way you know some of these backup quarterbacks and whatever they might not be great but they played a ton in college they threw the ball 45 times game in college and they've got a little experience at least in that man in that manner to run an offense and I think that's where maybe expectations have changed where coaches owners GMS are a little
bit like uh we should still be able to win with our third Stringer we got this guy and this guy let's see if our coach can keep us competitive I think expectations changed there a little bit over the last year and a half or so at one point last year when the quarterbacks were dropping like proverbial or literal flies I said if I ever talk about about expanding from 32 teams again punch me in the face you know what the TV numbers did well right you can't reach me all the way you got long arms bu
t you can't reach me from Connecticut right now the TV numbers weren't affected by all the backup quarterbacks and as you said there's plenty of guys out there that can play and uh I think the NFL when they take a step back and look at this they're going to be undeterred by increasing the inventory whether it's increasing the games or increasing the teams or both hi it's Mike Florio thanks for watching PFT on YouTube hit subscribe for the latest news and Analysis from pro football talk
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