the return of rex grossman

The real Rex Grossman, that is. We all knew it had to happen at some point and more likely sooner than later. To back up my claim of prior knowledge of current affairs, allow me to quote a previous post of mine: "...as long as Rex Grossman doesn't realize that all Florida QB's are supposed to suck in the NFL..." Go figure. Someone must have reminded him of his alma mater. Our friend Rex decided that he wanted to throw interceptions instead of touchdown passes today, and that's sure what he did. How's 18/42, 1 TD, 3 INT, 1 FUM for a bad day? Thanks for that one Rex. Way to step it up against that uber-dangerous Dolphins D.

Oh well, I was hoping he'd at least hold out until the end of the season and be a one-year wonder. And I still hope he'll bounce back in the coming weeks, but judging from his performance against Arizona three weeks ago and the one against Miami today I'm not holding my breath. It appears that the days of the semi-reliably awesome Rex Grossman are over for the foreseeable future.

His performance points out the strength of consistent QB's. Not just guys like Manning and, well, anyone else that plays on that level for streaks of games -- guys that are good enough to rely on to win games. I mean guys like Trent Dilfer in his Ravens days, McNair with the Titans, or the Hogs' Mitch Mustain, the ones that may rarely put up huge numbers but are reliable to not do so bad as to cost their team the game. They don't do much but that's the point. You know about what to expect when they step out there and they consistently deliver.

For example, Mustain currently has 10 TD and 8 INT, and a mere 7 yds/pass average, through seven plus games. Not great stats, but he's been consistent. Except for the Alabama game he hasn't done anything so crazy as to put his team in danger of losing. Arkansas doesn't put him out there to take over the game but to be a role player in support of one of the nation's best ground offenses. And he's undefeated as a starter.

Or take McNair before this year. The Titans didn't expect him to carry the offense, they were basically a running team that needed him to do just enough to keep the defense honest and not make too many stupid plays. And that's what he did. He was basically a running quarterback who could hurt you on occasion with his arm. He rarely put up gaudy numbers but he rarely cost them games too. The Titans did well for several years back there with him at the helm and even made a trip to the Stupid Bowl.

Contrast those players with guys like Rex Grossman or former Hogs QB Matt Jones. They're flashy and they can do a lot with the ball, and they often do. The problem is, they run the big risk of doing a lot to hurt their own team. Grossman is a prime example, and we all remember Matt Jones' antics with the Razorbacks.

I don't know if there's ever been a player who was more suspenseful to watch than Jones. He'd either win the game or lose the game in unbelieveable fashion. Those are some of the most aggravating moments in my memory and I probably lost a few years off the end of my life just from watching him in the waning minutes of games. But I must admit, the game was always thrilling to the max with a guy like that in charge.

Consider Grossman this year. When the Bears' offense has been hot, they've been unstoppable and Grossman has put up killer numbers. Hapless opponents like the 49ers and Seasquawks have had no answer for him. But when he's been bad, he's been real bad. Six turnovers against the Cardinals (4 INT, 2 FUM). Four turnovers earlier today against the Dolphins (3 INT, 1 FUM). And neither of those defenses are reknown for their ability to keep opposing offenses from scoring at will. He's nice to have when he's throwing TD passes, but with that luxury comes the cost of him every so often giving opponents the ball deep in his own territory several times in a game. So the guy will win games, but he'll also singlehandedly lose games.

In closing, I guess I must say QB's like that have had success -- Kurt Warner and Michael Vick come to mind. But it's more than a bit unnerving having the Stupid Bowl aspirations of your favorite team riding on the roller coaster performance of a guy like that. And it's even worse when that guy is an ex-Florida QB who is guaranteed to come down to earth and start consistently sucking eventually. Let's hope he can hold out for another 11 games and get a ring first.