Have you ever played football? Its not just about "recognizing the open man". There's more nuance to being a QB than that. Even OL play..you gotta be smart to be truly great. At the end of the day, it's about moving the man in front of you, but there's more to it than that
You can distill a QB's job down to three things:
- Making Decisions
- Throwing the Football
- Mobility (Moving in the pocket / Scrambling)
For me, a QB's number one Job is making the best decisions—both on and off the field. On the field, nothing happens until he has the ball in his hands. He has 2-3 seconds on average to make the best decision possible. That means he has to be well-versed on the opponent. He has to know the formation and tendencies. Recognize the coverage. Understand the situation and then make the best decision. If there is nowhere to go with the football, throw it away instead of into triple coverage. Off the field, make decisions that let you be on the field. Don't do stupid shit. It's as simple as that. In Lamar's case, I'd give him B- or C+ in this regard. He occasionally makes a questionable decision on the field, but that comes with the territory. He is still learning.
On the other hand, his whole off-the-field decision-making is somewhat suspect. There is nothing new here. It is just the burden of youth. Unfortunately, life is cruel and is without mercy. Often in life, especially when we're young, we find ourselves overmatched by our situation. Unable to see what is directly in front of us because dreams cloud our vision. We can't hear the siren warning us about what's just around the corner because of the noise in our heads caused by the sound of wants and ego and the chatter of those around us who love us and tell us how great we are. We fly through the days rapidly, rarely taking stock of where we are because of this looming goal. The thing that will make us complete. This year Lamar has not shown the best leadership off the field. Especially where covid is concerned. Last year catching Covid was forgivable. This year to get it denotes a possible carelessness. Many fans howled at the video that surfaced of Lamar playing football on an asphalt basketball court.
While that's risky on its own, nobody is wearing a mask. I know it's outside, but why take the risk. Delta is more contagious, and in close quarters outdoors, you can still get it. When he came down with covid the 2nd time, it became apparent he wasn't vaccinated. So here is a young, incredibly gifted athlete who currently occupies 1 of only 32 positions in the world—that of a starting NFL QB. He puts all that in jeopardy, not to mention his health long-term. He puts the team at risk and the season. Not to mention his 250 million dollar contract. I think it's safe to say that if he catches Covid again, this guy will not get a deal next year. They might franchise him, assuming he survives the 3rd bout with the coronavirus, but now you're getting into a significant risk for the Franchise. Investing in a man whose body has been invaded three times by a virus we know very little about. Two times is already risky enough.
I'm still pulling for the guy, and I think his unique skill set could win a Superbowl, but if he keeps fucking around with covid, he may find himself on the outside looking in.