Will Bama ever have a first round pick at QB?

81usaf92

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Back to the question at hand. Based on his college production, AJ should have been a 1st round pick. Think about all the other 1st round QBs that have been drafted lately. He's certainly comparable to lot of them. Christian Ponder, Ryan Tannehill, and Blake Bortles are all examples.

He was drafted so much later because of his attitude after losing the Oklahoma game. He chose not to play in the Senior Bowl (his home town), and he came across as arrogant in his interviews and didn't take responsibility for the 2013 season.
He was never going to be a 1st rounder even if he kept his mouth shut. His ceiling was 2nd round. Probably the last time we had to potentially having to a 1st rounder was Brodie, but his injuries cost him.
 
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CrimsonProf

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He was never going to be a 1st rounder even if he kept his mouth shut. His ceiling was 2nd round. Probably the last time we had to potentially having to a 1st rounder was Brodie, but his injuries cost him.
Given that AJ is primed to be a starting quarterback within the next two years and did everything in his power to beat the Steelers in a playoff game, I'm not concerned with where he was drafted. He stands ready to be a major player as the current wave of quarterbacks hit retirement. Just think - within the next three years, Brady, Brees, Eli Manning, Rivers and Romo will all be gone. AJ will be fine.


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smith5753

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I think if we would have beaten the barn and won the title his senior season that someone would have taken a chance on AJ in the first. While there is some stock placed on attitude, the league has shown over and over that they can ignore it if they think a guy can win for them. Newton is a prime example and there are plenty of others as well. AJ developed into a great QB and leader during his time at the Capstone and I think he'll eventually be a solid QB in the NFL as well. I wish we could have seen him in Kiffin's offense with Cooper!

I'm really excited to see how Hurts progresses this off season with Sark. I hope by the end of his Junior season we are talking about how Tau is going to handle the starting job.
 

81usaf92

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Given that AJ is primed to be a starting quarterback within the next two years and did everything in his power to beat the Steelers in a playoff game, I'm not concerned with where he was drafted. He stands ready to be a major player as the current wave of quarterbacks hit retirement. Just think - within the next three years, Brady, Brees, Eli Manning, Rivers and Romo will all be gone. AJ will be fine.


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That's besides the point. The point was even without his mouth problems he would've still have been a 2nd round draft pick
I think if we would have beaten the barn and won the title his senior season that someone would have taken a chance on AJ in the first. While there is some stock placed on attitude, the league has shown over and over that they can ignore it if they think a guy can win for them. Newton is a prime example and there are plenty of others as well. AJ developed into a great QB and leader during his time at the Capstone and I think he'll eventually be a solid QB in the NFL as well. I wish we could have seen him in Kiffin's offense with Cooper!

I'm really excited to see how Hurts progresses this off season with Sark. I hope by the end of his Junior season we are talking about how Tau is going to handle the starting job.
The biggest problems with AJ is that there is nothing unique about him talent wise, and he was never looked as "the offense". If we are being honest Brady isn't uniquely talented compared to 90% of the NFL qbs, but like AJ he makes up for it with what's between his ears. He was pick 199. It's never been about picking a winner it's picking immense talent in the 1st round. The 2nd round is usually when qbs like AJ are picked, and there were credible sources saying the Pats were very much considering taking AJ with their second pick until his mouth came loose and garapolo premiered in the senior bowl.
 

CrimsonProf

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That's besides the point. The point was even without his mouth problems he would've still have been a 2nd round draft pick


The biggest problems with AJ is that there is nothing unique about him talent wise, and he was never looked as "the offense". If we are being honest Brady isn't uniquely talented compared to 90% of the NFL qbs, but like AJ he makes up for it with what's between his ears. He was pick 199. It's never been about picking a winner it's picking immense talent in the 1st round. The 2nd round is usually when qbs like AJ are picked, and there were credible sources saying the Pats were very much considering taking AJ with their second pick until his mouth came loose and garapolo premiered in the senior bowl.
Fair enough - but it's a weird sort of bias that sees Tannehill, Bortles, etc. go in the first when AJ had the resume he did.


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rgw

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Draftniks have Trubisky and Kizer above Watson...nothing should surprise you, these NFL franchises think they're really dang smart.
 

rgw

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Don't get me wrong, Watson has some concerns about his decision-making when throwing it deep. He's got a lot of interceptions but I find it very similar to Winston's 2014 season where he had an over-confidence in his arm. You can't teach Watson's pocket awareness, doesn't seem to bail and rely on his legs too much...that bodes well for the NFL. His arm is a good one but he's probably been a bit overconfident at times. That is fixable.

He's gonna be a star in the NFL and somebody up top is gonna regret not taking him if it goes like people are projecting.
 

JDCrimson

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He was never going to be a 1st rounder even if he kept his mouth shut. His ceiling was 2nd round. Probably the last time we had to potentially having to a 1st rounder was Brodie, but his injuries cost him.
Yeah if he would have not acted like a prima donna and made a cameo appearance in the senior bowl he would likely have went in the 2nd round and not to the Bengals - probably playing already.

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Bamabuzzard

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That's besides the point. The point was even without his mouth problems he would've still have been a 2nd round draft pick


The biggest problems with AJ is that there is nothing unique about him talent wise, and he was never looked as "the offense". If we are being honest Brady isn't uniquely talented compared to 90% of the NFL qbs, but like AJ he makes up for it with what's between his ears. He was pick 199. It's never been about picking a winner it's picking immense talent in the 1st round. The 2nd round is usually when qbs like AJ are picked, and there were credible sources saying the Pats were very much considering taking AJ with their second pick until his mouth came loose and garapolo premiered in the senior bowl.
I wonder if AJ were to be asked now if he has any regrets on how he handled the team interviews, would he say he did? There were guys picked ahead of AJ that I have no doubt he was and is today, better than. Some life lessons come with a steep and expensive price tag. I hope he gets his shot because when I saw him play in place of Dalton in the playoffs. I saw a guy who could start in the NFL and be successful. It's a shame he let his mouth cost him so much.
 

smith5753

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I wonder if AJ were to be asked now if he has any regrets on how he handled the team interviews, would he say he did? There were guys picked ahead of AJ that I have no doubt he was and is today, better than. Some life lessons come with a steep and expensive price tag. I hope he gets his shot because when I saw him play in place of Dalton in the playoffs. I saw a guy who could start in the NFL and be successful. It's a shame he let his mouth cost him so much.
Was his mouth and/or attitude that much worse than a guy like Newton or Manzel? Did GM's overlook them and pass on AJ just simply because of the perceived talent gap? Disregarding his obvious baggage, I feel like AJ always had a higher ceiling than Manzel for the pro game so why take a shot on Johnny? I am aware of who picked him and their track record, but someone else would have given him a shot as well, at least early second round
 
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Bamabuzzard

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Was his mouth and/or attitude that much worse than a guy like Newton or Manzel? Did GM's overlook them and pass on AJ just simply because of the perceived talent gap?

No question they did. That's how it works. In the documentary of Jimmy Johnson's "A Football Life". Johnson spoke of a time when a third string defensively player fell asleep in the film session. He cut him immediately. E. Smith was sleeping in a film session and Jimmy just told him to wake up. The better player you are perceived to be the more teams will put up with.
 

81usaf92

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Was his mouth and/or attitude that much worse than a guy like Newton or Manzel? Did GM's overlook them and pass on AJ just simply because of the perceived talent gap? Disregarding his obvious baggage, I feel like AJ always had a higher ceiling than Manzel for the pro game so why take a shot on Johnny? I am aware of who picked him and their track record, but someone else would have given him a shot as well, at least early second round
The first round is about critical needs and immense talent. A qb that isn't immensely talented is not going first round. I guess Matt Ryan is somewhat of an exception to that rule, but i would argue his scrambling ability and his arm strength got him there. AJ is a Tom Brady carbon copy of a qb with decent arm strength but a high football IQ, but that doesn't mean it is a can't miss talent. Yeah we can say everyone was stupid for letting Brady go to the 5th round, but if we are honest his draft ceiling was 2nd round.

Where the AJ mouth incident comes into play is that you are talking about a mid to late 2nd rounder at best already popping off at the mouth to scouts and back office people saying that he is going in the 1st round so they need to waste a 1st round pick on him to acquire his services. Then everyone got spooked when Bill Belichick pulled the trigger on an Eastern Illinois qb instead of an Alabama qb who happens to be coached by a former assistant coach of his.

There is a huge difference between Tunsil, Cam, and Johnny doing something or saying something very stupid because you can see the talent without having a real game, but with players like Brady and AJ you really need to see them in a game to show their worth.

FWIW. Brady dropped so low because Carr screwed him over with the Henson situation in 99. It was not his ego.
 

Alasippi

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I really liked A.J. and appreciate how great he performed at Bama. I thought he would go rounds three-four. I also think he's probably better than Andy Dalton. He performed really well when Dalton got hurt, and that Bengal idiot on defense cost them a playoff game after A.J. had driven the team for what should have been the winning touchdown.
But when you're talking first round you're talking "Namath like", and A.J. wasn't close to that level.
Yeah, yeah, different era's. A 19 year old Namath, even in today's football climate, would be the starting QB at the University of Alabama. He was that good.
 

CrimsonProf

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I really liked A.J. and appreciate how great he performed at Bama. I thought he would go rounds three-four. I also think he's probably better than Andy Dalton. He performed really well when Dalton got hurt, and that Bengal idiot on defense cost them a playoff game after A.J. had driven the team for what should have been the winning touchdown.
But when you're talking first round you're talking "Namath like", and A.J. wasn't close to that level.
Yeah, yeah, different era's. A 19 year old Namath, even in today's football climate, would be the starting QB at the University of Alabama. He was that good.
So Blake Bortles and Ryan Tannehill are "Namath-like"? Come on, now.

Look, AJ was held back because it was thought that his success was due to Saban and he acted like a jerk in the six months after he finished up. If you can explain the thought process of the average GM, be my guest, but I'll eat my hat before I admit that given the opportunity, AJ McCarron wasn't every bit as good as Andrew Luck or Jameis Winston.
 

colbysullivan

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Re: Will Saban ever have a first round pick at QB while at Bama?

Like I said earlier, AJ "should" have been a 1st round pick, that doesn't mean he "would" have been.

He is better or at least as good as some of the other 1st round QBs that have been drafted lately. He was typecast as a system QB before he even graduated due to all the talent around him. Add in all of his pre-draft smack talk and, well...you saw the end result.
 

Bamabuzzard

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Re: Will Saban ever have a first round pick at QB while at Bama?

Like I said earlier, AJ "should" have been a 1st round pick, that doesn't mean he "would" have been.

He is better or at least as good as some of the other 1st round QBs that have been drafted lately. He was typecast as a system QB before he even graduated due to all the talent around him. Add in all of his pre-draft smack talk and, well...you saw the end result.
I think it would have SIGNIFICANTLY increased his chances of going in the first round or early second round if he wouldn't have been given the rubber stamped typecast designation of "system quarterback"/"game manager" while in college. I have no doubt that played a big role right off the bat. AJ wasn't given credit for ANYTHING Alabama accomplished in the way of all the winning and NC's. The media narrative was basically they could go pick any intramural quarterback on campus, stick him behind center and accomplish the same thing AJ did. Then add to that him trying to disprove this narrative so bad to the NFL teams, that he overloaded his mouth and it cost him.
 

Alasippi

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So Blake Bortles and Ryan Tannehill are "Namath-like"? Come on, now.

Look, AJ was held back because it was thought that his success was due to Saban and he acted like a jerk in the six months after he finished up. If you can explain the thought process of the average GM, be my guest, but I'll eat my hat before I admit that given the opportunity, AJ McCarron wasn't every bit as good as Andrew Luck or Jameis Winston.
I'm referring to legit first rounders who get drafted, win the job, and start for many years.
Of course there have been many busts, as you mentioned two of the biggest.
I think AJ was an outstanding college Quarterback and will end up starting somewhere in the NFL.
But yes, his attitude knocked him down a bit. The primary reason he didn't go rounds one or two though was a perceived notion that he didn't have a cannon on his right shoulder. Good arm..not great one.
 

BamaMoon

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Re: Will Saban ever have a first round pick at QB while at Bama?

I think it would have SIGNIFICANTLY increased his chances of going in the first round or early second round if he wouldn't have been given the rubber stamped typecast designation of "system quarterback"/"game manager" while in college. I have no doubt that played a big role right off the bat. AJ wasn't given credit for ANYTHING Alabama accomplished in the way of all the winning and NC's. The media narrative was basically they could go pick any intramural quarterback on campus, stick him behind center and accomplish the same thing AJ did. Then add to that him trying to disprove this narrative so bad to the NFL teams, that he overloaded his mouth and it cost him.
That's about as good a summation as it gets on AJ! He was so undervalued and, in his trying to correct it, he distorted himself to look as it he thought he was better than he was.

If AJ would have played in a pass happy offense he would have probably won the Heisman and drafted near the top in the first round. I think AJ was vastly under-appreciated while quarterbacking Bama to two of her greatest championship years ever in '11 and '12.
 

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