So, another piece of the puzzle falls
into place. This Monday, John Dorsey signed on to fill the confusing
co-general manager position here in KC. The signing ends a long stint
with the Packers, where Dorsey spent 12 years as Director of College
Scouting, then earned a position as Director of Football Operations
just last year. Dorsey will report only to Hunt, but for the first
time in franchise history, the head coach will also report directly
to the team owner. Clark explained to the press that Dorsey will have
control of personnel decisions, while Andy has full control over the
team on the field.
This move reunites Dorsey and Reid
after they worked together in Green Bay from '92 to '97. The Packers
averaged nearly 11 wins per season over that time, and never ranked
lower than 6th league-wide in total points scored. Their
final three seasons together include a Super Bowl win, a Super Bowl
loss, 7 playoff wins and 37 regular season wins. Those years brought
some legendary moments, with Elway and Favre simultaneously playing
their best football. But, as much as I love thinking back to those
times, the nostalgia brings with it more proof of a very important
point.
Andy Reid has a strong resume and
loads of success in the NFL. That much is clear. But, his presumed
expertise is the ability to engineer a pass-happy, top-shelf offense.
He is generally well-respected in the league, and his reputation is
strong enough to improve the resume of others around him. The NFL had
enough faith in Andy to offer head coaching jobs to five coaches he
hired previously. But forget about all that respect and reputation
nonsense, and look at the numbers. Andy Reid is
a successful coach, but he has never succeeded without an elite
quarterback. In the four seasons of coaching without McNabb or Favre
starting at QB, teams led by Reid average 6.75 wins in the regular
season. In those four years, Andy Reid has exactly zero playoff
victories.
So
what does that mean? Are we screwed? Are we really back to a
situation where indecision at the quarterback spot is this team's
biggest flaw? Oh god, what if we sign Michael Vick? The realization
of Reid's limitations brings up plenty of unnerving questions. Sadly,
many of them will go unanswered until this year's draft, unless a
bold move is made in the free agency market before then. But either
way, I'm either gullible or wise enough to believe it will work. Even
though looking at the options we have for improving at QB makes me
weep softly, I think this duo will make the team a winner. There are
just too many pieces, too many uber-talented skill players on the
offense for Dorsey and Reid not to
make something good out of it. John Dorsey earned this job by
providing vital insight for the draft. His impressive list of draft
choices include Aaron Rodgers, Clay Matthews, BJ Raji, Jermichael
Finley, Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb and AJ Hawk. Reid has utilized
players similar to Jamaal and Bowe and Moeaki well enough to make
them all Pro Bowlers. It sounds crazy, but if you take the misused
offensive weapons from last year and supplement them with the first
pick in every round of the draft, this team is already a winner on
paper.
Obviously, all
this hinges on Dorsey and Reid's communal choice of a franchise QB.
Considering how quickly Mr. Hunt made his moves for coach and GM, one
would assume he'll be prompt in bringing a new QB to Kansas City. The
options are plentiful, but nobody stands out as a special franchise
quarterback. There will be a lot of rumors and a lot of time to
analyze the possibilities, especially if the team waits until this
April to draft their next QB. For now, I see one option as being
markedly more interesting than any other:
First, wait until
the 49ers season is over, and figure out what they're doing with Alex
Smith. Then, if and however we can, offer him a contract. After Smith
is signed on, spend your second draft pick on Matt Barkley,
who many project to fall as far as the third round. Now, you have two
competent, highly motivated guys to compete for the starting job.
Imagine it: in one corner is Smith, who went to the Pro Bowl this
year and was then benched for an unproven young QB. At the season's
end, he gets (hypothetically) cut or traded or whatever, then he ends
up in Kansas City fighting against another young unproven QB to take
back his starer position and avoid holding the clipboard yet again.
Then, in the other corner, there's Matt Barkley. Will he finally be
the USC quarterback that lives up to expectations? Will he live the
rest of his life regretting coming back to college for his senior
year? With all those questions weighing on him, Barkley has all the
reasons in the world to succeed.
With this option,
we have a Pro Bowl QB fighting for his pride against an elite college
prospect with everything to prove. Sounds better than Tebow to me. At
this point, I'd be happy knowing that only one of those guys will be
given a chance at the starting spot next season. Are we really so
down on Barkley that we'd rather see Cassel or Quinn? Again?
Seriously? There's no way that can happen. So, as we keep this
pie-in-the-sky idea in mind, we can only kick back and wait for the
rumors to spread. We'll hear a lot of names in the next few weeks,
from Matt Flynn to Geno Smith to Jason Campbell to Mike Glennon. But,
amidst the plethora of options, Smith and Barkley's battle for
respect still stands out as the most intriguing possibility.
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