Jake Locker help...

I am not sure on Locker at next level – he can make some incredible throws and than miss an easy one. Throws great outside pocket not so great inside pocket. Great running ability – great athlete – great work ethic he gave up a lot to come back senior year – gave up baseball for football. But I am not sure if he can play QB at the NFL level just not sure if he is an NFL starting QB it is not a knock but so many very very good College QB fail at the NFL level. He has the arm strength however the game maybe to fast for him at NFL level to make the reads etc to play QB.

Not sure if I was drafting at #12 if I would take him or not – but nobody is a lock when you are drafting – I would take him for sure in second round though. Hope this helps.

Locker had cracked rib(s) during season – missed one full game – can not remember when he cracked them (3rd or 4th game I believe) – I know this affected his passing completion % – he played with the cracked ribs as backups were freshman no game experience. Also no tight end to throw to – UW used extra tackle in lieu of TE much of the time. Also OL was not very good – a lot of shifting positions due to injury and finding right combination had two true freshmen OL playing at times.

and the test is subjective, so I’m not sure it’s really something to rest your laurels on. The bottom line is that last year, his receivers had the dropsies pretty bad, often couldn’t get separation and he spend quite a bit of time running for his life before his checkdowns. He’s only spent 2 years in a pass first system, but he’s already made huge strides as a pocket passer to the point of being a 1st round consideration.

Of course the knock is that he hasn’t proven anything, and the only people who believe in him are apologists of the program who like Jake for coming back and can’t separate UW love from reality. I tend to believe he’s somewhere in the middle, and that if he has a year or three to sit down and learn, that he’ll be a quality QB for quite some time. Not necessarily top flight all-pro, but his career trajectory could look a lot like Matt Hasselbecks if he’s given time to adjust and get coached.

Regarding the Wonderlic score, supposedly guys like Jim Kelly and Dan Marino each scored a 15 on the test (, so a low score on that test doesn’t necessarily mean a QB can’t be highly successful in the NFL. And conversely, there are quite a few guys with really high scores that didn’t do squat in the League. So I wouldn’t get too hung up on a Wonderlic score. It has some predictive value, but not a lot. That said, I guess I’m not totally surprised by his score – he’s a great guy and a phenomenal athlete, but he didn’t strike me as the most cerebral QB I’ve seen play. Not to say that I think he’s not football smart, or capable of being football smart – as much as anything, I think Jake suffered from not being coached in a pro-style offense by good QB instructors until his last 2 years of college.

As far as his accuracy, I don’t know that Jake suffered an unusual amount of drops. Of course us Husky fans all remember most of the drops that happened and might feel like Jake got let down, but I really doubt our WR group was unusually bad in that regard compared to most teams.

No, I think the problems were these:

- Jake didn’t display the greatest footwork in the pocket, and too often was throwing without having his feet properly set, which caused him to lose accuracy; this is almost certainly related to…
- …Jake often being rushed in this throws because his pass-protection was below average;
- Jake also got better this last season about throwing the ball away when the play wasn’t there rather than trying to force a pass or take a sack

Yes, you can also talk about his lingering injury issues, and that probably played a part as well, but most QBs get banged up over the course of a season, so I’m not sure how much worse off Jake was in the respect.

Bottom line, Jake needs to work on his accuracy and comfort level throwing in the pocket. On the run, he’s fantastic; in the pocket, he’s got some work to do.

I forgot to mention… I’m from Skamania County, WA. I was born in WA… Lived in Stevenson / Carson when I was young, & I still have family that lives there.

He’s a quick learner, but has only been taught as a true passer for about 2 years. He has the intangibles and he knows how to manage a game (i.e. doesn’t make many negative plays), but you are likely going to have to give him at least 1-2 years to progress further as a true quarterback.

Having said that, when looking specifically at the Minnesota Vikings, I think he is a decent fit. You have an above average running game and a solid O-line. You don’t need a quarterback to make play after play to win games, yet Jake’s arm strength combined with your receiving core will keep defenses from creeping up to stop the run. As long as you can ease him into the system and not expect a “savior”, I think Jake has a pretty high ceiling.

I’ll paraphrase: “One thing you have to remember about Jake is that we only had him for two years, you really should treat him like a sophomore.”

Also, he spoke incredibly highly of him, and said if the right team gives him time to develop, he is absolutely certain they will get a great QB.

…tough as nails. No QB in the nation took the beatings that he took and kept getting up over and over again.

The only QB that you should consider taking ahead of Jake is Cam based on physical skills. Gabbert is Alex Smith part two. Please.

In response to Wonderlic scores… I had mentioned QB’s such as Favre, Marino, McNabb, V. Young…
They stated that Wonderlic scores matter now more than before, because the game has changed and wanted current QB’s Wonderlic scores… which I find to be a bone-headed and stubborn comment anyways…
But here was my response:

I am going to include some of the "current generation" of players… not necessarily current starters, but who have started.
We have:
Tim Tebow : 22
Chad Henne: 22
Mark Brunell: 22
Trent Dilfer: 22
Mike Vick: 20
D. Culpepper: 18
V. Young: 6 & 16
D. McNabb: 14
David Garrard: 14
Bruce Gradkowski: 19

On the other hand we have:
R. Fitzpatrick: 48
A. Smith: 40
B. Griese: 39
M. Leinart: 35
B. Quinn: 29
Ja. Russell: 24

I’m not opposed to drafting:
Gabbert
Ponder
Dalton

or trading for: (in no particular order & for the right price)
Kolb
Palmer
Hasselbeck
Orton / Tebow
McNabb
V. Young

I just see Locker as somebody who can temporarily manage the game & keep us competitive.

I feel that if you look at Mallett, Dalton, Stanzi, Kaepernick…what you see, is what you get… that’s the end of the line… they have shown that they are above average at the College Level, and that’s what you will get in the NFL… which is fine, if you want somebody like Dilfer, Rosenfels, Brunell, Garrard, etc.

Jake Locker is good enough RIGHT NOW, that regardless of how bad his season was last year, teams are still willing to take him in the first round. He hasn’t finished rounding out yet. Yes, maybe it will take a season or 2 to get there, but he is good enough right now to start, you know he will be studying his A$$ off, as he is definitely a leader & student of the game.

There is no Sam Bradford in this years draft. I will take Gabbert, Locker, or Ponder pass on the rest… Every QB in this years draft will need time to develop.

Gabbert, Locker, Newton, Ponder, and Kaepernick have the abilities to get out of trouble with their athletic abilities.
Mallett, Dalton, Stanzi, are sitting ducks.
Dalton & Mallet "Spread" and Kaepernick "Pistol" are "system QB’s" (although Dalton & Gabbert should be able to transition into a West Coast offense pretty well)
Ponder is reported to lack "mental toughness", which also makes me question his leadership ability, and has a small frame and possibly prone to injury.
Stanzi is middle of the road on about everything except his Wonderlic, but is also very inconsistent in his footwork and accuracy.
Kaepernick is the next project QB, the next TJAX, or could be a duplicate of Webb… Why draft what we already have / had…
I think we can pretty much all agree that Newton is a Diva that I haven’t seen a lot of Viking interest out of him… Mallett is a head case that reminds a lot of people of Ryan Leaf, he has some great skills, but I tend to put him in the back of my mind…

I feel that if we are going to take a QB that we MUST sit (behind Webb? … really?) to gain experience, we might as well not draft a QB at all, and see what Webb has in him.

Unless we trade up, Gabbert, Newton and possibly Locker might already be gone.

Locker had a bad season, and really has nowhere to go but up. Put him on a team with some skill players, and you have a dangerous team again.

If Locker has an "average" rookie season with the Vikings, things will be good.

Teams will be blitzing the crap out of us this upcoming season (if there is one) because they will assume all we have is a run game… let’s at least draft somebody who has a chance to avoid the blitz. With the leadership, pro-style offensive experience, and athletic ability, Jake Locker is going to be a great fit for the Vikings.

Hoping to get some comments regarding his pro day, maybe looking for something “out of the ordinary” that hasn’t already been posted a million times by ESPN.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/draft2011/news/story?id=6299398

His ceiling is immense. Arguably higher than any other QB in this class with the possible exception of Cam Newton. However, both of them also have a very low floor. Locker’s work ethic is gonna help you out a great deal, as is his loyalty/leadership, which any true Husky fan can attest to. Also, when arguing with your fellow vikes fans, you can talk about Locker’s ability to win games when it matters.

I’ve heard a lot of comments saying that the Huskies only won their last few games including the bowl game because of Chris Polk, so you’re definitely gonna get some people who make that argument. While Chris Polk was certainly an integral part of that miraculous finish, none of those games would have been won without Jake Locker and I can prove it.

First, lets look at the Cal game. Everybody remembers that Polk ran in the TD to win the game, but it was Locker who got the ball to the 1 yd line in the first place. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VuJ2VcCKUg&feature=related (there’s also a nice 50 yd completion to show off in that video)

Next, lets look at the apple cup. Polk had 284 yds in that game, but it was Locker who threw the game winning TD. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EirImYJjGIs&feature=player_embedded

In the Holiday Bowl, Locker, to me at least, only had one inaccurate pass. When i watched a replay of the game recently, Locker threw the ball away 6 times, and had 4 passes dropped. That should put his 5/16 stats into perspective. Also, you’ll notice that Locker scored the TD that really put the game away for UW.

Hopefully that helps! :D