Tuesday’s edition of the Chris Russell Show could’ve been a QB Tuesday, as the first two hours of the show focused on Sam Howell (and Matt Miller’s Colt McCoy comp and its aftermath) and the latest on the Andrew Luck-Commanders tampering situation.
But, Chris also delved into something similar to what the Junkies discussed Tuesday morning: Mike Clay’s power rankings of teams’ positional depth charts, the latest of which has the Commanders’ QB room ranked dead last with Howell, Jacoby Brissett, and Jake Fromm listed as their trio.
Quite a few ex-Washington QBs got various levels of shine, as Kyle Allen (now the third-stringer in Buffalo) was as high as second, while now-Falcon Taylor Heinicke is 30th with Atlanta counterparts Desmond Ridder and third-stringer (and former Titans part-time starter) Logan Woodside.
And then, below Baker Mayfield and the Bucs, there’s Howell and crew ranking dead last.
“Even I was surprised to see this – the Commanders ranked dead last, even behind the Buccaneers, who have Baker and Kyle Trask, and just signed some jabroni today,” Russell said, not mentioning the name of ex-Ram John Wolford. “This ranking doesn’t have Wolford – they have a zero next to Kyle Trask – but they’re still one spot ahead of Washington.”
Russell doesn’t think the Commanders’ trio is the worst of all…but can you really rank them ahead of Baker Mayfield, even on his fourth team in 15 months?
“Here’s what I know: the Commanders, in my opinion, because of Brissett’s experience and relative success, along with the potential of Howell, should be ranked higher,” Russell said. “The problem is, Brissett is looked upon as a career journeyman, which is essentially what he is. Can I argue that the Commanders’ trio is better than Tampa Bay? Yes, but it’s not like I can say, ‘Oh my God, what a dopey take that is’ from Mike Clay, because Baker Mayfield has had some good seasons. The problem is, he’s not consistent and can’t stay healthy.”
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Maybe, then, the Bucs do belong ahead of Washington…but Russell isn’t feeling Atlanta ahead of both of them.
“The one thing I can make a reasonable good argument for, is that the Commanders are better than Atlanta, because again, Jacoby Brissett is an upgrade from Taylor Heinicke, and to me, Sam Howell vs. Desmond Ridder is a wash, because I also need to see more from Ridder. It’s close, but if Brissett is an upgrade over Heinicke, I can make a logical argument Washington is better than Atlanta.”
Woodside is probably better than Fromm, sure, but as Russell himself even noted, think about what he’s trying to convince you of.
“Brissett as an upgrade over Heinicke is debatable, but I think I’m right – and even if Ridder’s draft status and more experience is a difference maker over Howell, that’s essentially even,” Russell said. “So, Logan Woodside and Jake Fromm? Six of one, half a dozen of the other, but the point is, even as embarrassing as being 32 on this list is, you look around and the only real arguments you can make are teams right in the bottom five…maybe they’re slightly better than some of those teams, but they’re not appreciably better, because QB1 has no experience, and QB2 is what you would consider a career journeyman.”
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And that just isn’t good enough to be anything better than a bottom five team at best.
“The bottom line is that right now, they are not good enough,” Russell said. “I can’t say they stink, because they have upside and weapons, but they’re not good enough. Are they worst in the NFL? I don’t think so, but it is ever so slight to make an argument they’re better.”
Listen to all of Russell’s thoughts on the subject above!
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