re: Did starting Underwood as a freshman hurt his development?

quote:

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Do you think doing that to Underwood hurt? Can you do that with freshman qbs today when you have paid a lot of money for them?

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Couple things at play. First, they paid too much money for him to be on the bench, much like the old NFL model before the newest CBA. QBs were getting $50+ million a year right out of the gate, too much to let them sit and develop.

Second, guys are recruited on talent and production. Underwood put out some gaudy film and is a talented athlete. Problem is that when it comes to playing QB, that only gets you so far when the talent around you is equal and rising through development. Processing speed and understanding defenses are the skills that take you to the next level at QB. Underwood is still seeing the game too slowly and stuck at high school speed. The game is too fast and complex for him right now.