Cam Newton or Jake Locker

[l.a. no-teamers]

So Andrew Luck is like possibly the most prototypically perfect QB prospect ever, and a sure fire #1 overall IF he declares.

I'm not sure where Mallet falls, but he reminds me too much of Drew Bledsoe (in a bad way), just my opinion but lets say he's off the board second among QBs.

If you were a team looking for an athletic NFL QB, who would you rather have? Newton or Locker? Discuss

[Chris Raiden]

Easily Jake Locker, and it's not even close.

I'll concede that Newton is the more athletic of the two, but when it comes to translatable quarterback skills, Locker has him beat. He's been playing in a pro style offense for the past two years with mediocre talent around him, and this year, he pretty much dragged that offense into a bowl game with a little help from Chris Polk. Newton, on the other hand, has one year's experience in major college football, and has played in a gimmicky college offense where he does more running than passing.

[Dreamers]

I still have Cam 5th on my QB list with Pryor and Gabber not far behind so Luck easy.

[Chris Raiden]

I still have Cam 5th on my QB list with Pryor and Gabber not far behind so Luck easy.
Not exactly the question, Locker you mean?

[Dreamers]

Not exactly the question, Locker you mean?

whoops sorry yeah I guess I'd say Locker. I still have him listed at 3 but I'm not in love with the guy. Honestly I like Ponder but he does not have the upside of Locker or Cam. Don't really see any of them as 1st round quality.

[Parrish]

I like Mallet behind Luck. Then Newton and then Locker.

[Peter Smith]

Locker by a country mile.

Let's take out the pile of character issues Cam Newton has to answer in interviews for a second. Physically, he has everything you want in a quarterback. He will have 14 career starts in college in a gimmicky offense. That fact alone would scare the crap out of me. Then you add back in the character issues and I want no part of him.

Someone will take him and take him early on the potential, but it wouldn't be me. Big fan of Locker and love what he'd bring to a football team.

[Parrish]

But look at the throws Newton has been making all year long. He makes throws that some NFL starters can't make. What character issues do you speak of?

[Peter Smith]

But look at the throws Newton has been making all year long. He makes throws that some NFL starters can't make. What character issues do you speak of?
Possession of stolen property while at Florida with the laptop thing.
Cheating academically 3 different times at Florida.
Then there is the current pay for play scandal which probably won't be resolved until a couple years down the road.

[Chris Raiden]

Possession of stolen property while at Florida with the laptop thing.
Cheating academically 3 different times at Florida.
Then there is the current pay for play scandal which probably won't be resolved until a couple years down the road.
Not to mention, the fact that he then proceeded to throw said stolen laptop out the window.

[Parrish]

Oh you mean when he was a freshman and 18 years old?

All of the bs this year was his father, not him.

[Chris Raiden]

Oh you mean when he was a freshman and 18 years old?

All of the bs this year was his father, not him.
Yep, and then you add in the stuff with his father this year...I mean seriously, how do you not know your dad's doing that?

I give him credit for playing through all of the distractions though, I do like that much about him.

[Parrish]

See I don't add that stuff in. I believe he's learned from his mistakes and from the interviews I've seen of him this year, I don't think he's a bad guy.

[Chris Raiden]

I'm not saying he's a bad guy, I'm just saying it's a question that needs to be addressed, and in today's NFL, if you've got the squeaky clean guy with the accuracy issue you think you can fix versus the guy with the clouded past with the physical talent, you're probably feeling a little safer writing the big fat signing bonus check to the former versus the latter.

[Parrish]

Have you watched Cam Newton a lot? I have seen some pretty ridiculous throws. I haven't seen Locker but all I've heard is that he has been playing terribly.

[Peter Smith]

Not to mention, the fact that he then proceeded to throw said stolen laptop out the window.
Although some people will still argue he didn't know it was stolen when he bought it. Why the hell else would he throw it out the window if he didn't know it was stolen when the cops came looking?

[Chris Raiden]

That's what you've heard, but it's not what I've seen. I've seen a guy who has zero offensive line in front of him take a beating, and still make plays to keep his team in games. His accuracy isn't what it needs to be yet, but he has two years experience in a pro style offense and he's got similar leadership skills to Newton.

And more experience.

Newton's making ridiculous throws in a gimmicky offense. He's physically talented, but we don't know if he can adapt to an NFL style offense where he has to make multiple progressions in rapid succession. We've seen what Locker can do in that situation, and we've seen that he can progress in that regard.

[l.a. no-teamers]

I'm pretty sure Locker is actually faster than Newton, and he certainly has a better arm. I'm not sure what to make of Newton, he's so hard to project because of Auburn's offense, but I don't feel all that confident that Locker will figure it out despite his freakish abilities. To me, he's like Alex Smith on steroids. Juiced up crap is still crap

[Dreamers]

I'm pretty sure Locker is actually faster than Newton, and he certainly has a better arm. I'm not sure what to make of Newton, he's so hard to project because of Auburn's offense, but I don't feel all that confident that Locker will figure it out despite his freakish abilities. To me, he's like Alex Smith on steroids. Juiced up crap is still crap

Depends on what speeds your looking at. Most of the people saying Cam has blazing 4.4 speed are using his times from HS when he was like 40 lbs lighter. If you go by his most resent times yes Locker is faster. He really can run a 4.45 40 now. I do not expect Cam to do better then a 4.55 at the combine. Either way Locker is more technically sound and a safer bet. I like your take on Locker, Smith on roids. lol I just don't know about his decision making ability.

[Texecutioner]

What character issues do you speak of?

Are you serious with this?

[jmazzulo920]

Personally, I like Jake Locker as the #1 QB in the draft, now that Luck has opted to go back to school. Sure, Blaine Gabbert has the unbelievable measurables, Cam Newton is riding the hype train, and Ryan Mallett has the insane arm strength. But to me, Jake Locker is the best of the bunch.

Not only does Locker have absolutely nothing around him, save a good college RB, but he doesn't run a gimmick offense that is set up to inflate stats.

In my opinion, if you put Jake Locker onto any of those 3 teams, he'd have out of this world production and would have been battling Andrew Luck for the #1 overall QB spot in college football, let alone ranked ahead of the aformentioned 3.

The combination of speed and athleticism to go along with upper echelon arm strength will be enough to dazzle NFL brass at the combine and I still firmly believe that Locker will shoot up the draft board after his workouts and interviews and be a top 10 pick and maybe be the first QB taken.

Cam Newton is a real wildcard in all of this. He has character issues, but those can easily be attributed to being a dumb college kid. NFL teams are going to look at Cam Newton and see Vince Young without being a psycho. Those types of players might not be proto-typical NFL QB's, but just look at Vince Youngs winning percentage. Cam Newton has that type of ability, and with the relative success Tim Tebow had in his few starts in Denver, Newton might not be looked upon as such a project.

I can't help but think of Derek Anderson when I watch Ryan Mallett, I'd want no part of him.

[Peter Smith]

I can't help but think of Derek Anderson when I watch Ryan Mallett, I'd want no part of him.
Some team is going to talk themselves into Ryan Mallett based on what are simply jaw-dropping throws, but when he's under pressure, off balance, or basically anything is less than ideal, it is not pretty. I agree with the Derek Anderson comparison, although with far more upside and far more touch. Maybe he can work himself into Drew Bledsoe, but it is not a gamble I would want to take. When he's on though, some of those throws are absolutely perfect and even the best coverage cannot stop them.

[Peter Smith]

In case anyone thought Cam Newton was out of the woods...


The NCAA is asking still asking questions (http://msn.foxsports.com/collegefoot...estions-010107)

[jmazzulo920]

In todays NFL, you have to be able to make plays from a variety of different set-ups as a QB. Whether it be on the run, off your back foot, off-balanced, etc.

With so much speed on defenses now, getting to the QB is the priority of every defense, Mallett is going to be in trouble until he learns to make plays without his 2 second wind-up.

[Chris Raiden]

Some team is going to talk themselves into Ryan Mallett based on what are simply jaw-dropping throws, but when he's under pressure, off balance, or basically anything is less than ideal, it is not pretty. I agree with the Derek Anderson comparison, although with far more upside and far more touch. Maybe he can work himself into Drew Bledsoe, but it is not a gamble I would want to take. When he's on though, some of those throws are absolutely perfect and even the best coverage cannot stop them.
The three of us would know, that's exactly what he looks like.

I admire Mallett's arm, and I think someone's going to fall in love with that and take him much higher than they should. It's his ability to handle pressure that worries me, and that was very similar to what killed Derek Anderson's career in Cleveland.

Most NFL quarterbacks can be good when they're standing in the pocket with all day to throw, it's the great ones that handle pressure and make things happen in the face of it, and I just don't see that with Mallett.

With Locker, I do see that ability, and it's in part because he's such a great athlete outside the pocket with running back speed and the guts to use it. I'd love to see him slide a bit more, if for nothing else than to make sure he isn't a James Harrison hit away from a concussion, but that's another of the things that makes him who he is. He's a leader on the field, moreso than any of the other three quarterbacks in this class (with Newton a somewhat distant second). That's why he came back for his senior year, to finish the job and get Washington into a bowl game (check). The things he did down the stretch were not great from a passing perspective, but from a leadership standpoint, any time they needed to make a play in those last four games, he stepped up. That's intangibles, and you can't teach that. Accuracy can be fixed.

[Chris Raiden]

In case anyone thought Cam Newton was out of the woods...


The NCAA is asking still asking questions (http://msn.foxsports.com/collegefoot...estions-010107)
Not surprising, it took them what? The better part of four years to wrap up the Reggie Bush investigation and slap the program with penalties?