Andrew Walter, Fargas, And Other....

[Angry Pope]

06.03.2006

Andrew Walter, representing the great unknown at quarterback, gives Oakland Raiders fans hope for a better 2006.
Walter's lone two preseason appearances, mildly encouraging, have been held up as a testimony to his potential for leading the Raiders out of a 13-35 wilderness.

"He'll get his playing time," Raiders coach Art Shell said at the NFL owner's meetings. "I watched his preseason games from last year and was really excited about him throwing the football. I remember calling (offensive coordinator) Tom Walsh and saying, `Come look at this. This kid has a lot of talent, a lot of confidence in his abilities.'"

Does Walter actually stand a chance of emerging as the Raiders starter in 2006? Those were the whispers along the sidelines at the club's first mini-camp, even as free agent signee Aaron Brooks got most of the work with the first team and erstwhile backup Marques Tuiasosopo looked sharp with the second team.

With the Raiders leaning toward closing a voluntary upcoming mini-camp the first week of June, there's no telling if Walter has moved up the charts.

There is already speculation that if Brooks falters, either in preseason or early in the regular season, Walter could find himself Oakland's starter sooner rather than later.

There could be more than a little wishful thinking where Walter is concerned. While it's not impossible he could suddenly blossom into the deep thrower Al Davis has always coveted, it takes a leap of faith to assume that greatness will emerge in 2006.

A review of Walter's 2005 preseason finds two unremarkable performances against the reserves of the San Francisco 49ers and New Orleans Saints — two of the NFL's worst teams.

Walter completed 26 of 44 passes for 352 yards and one touchdown for a 73.3 quarterback rating. In 11 possessions, he led Oakland to one touchdown, one field goal, threw two interceptions and lost two fumbles. Four drives ended in punts and one on downs.

He missed the second and third preseason games with a groin injury that was later diagnosed as a hernia that needed surgery after the season. It limited his effectiveness in practice, which did nothing to help his development.

But when the Raiders had a chance to draft USC quarterback Matt Leinart, they instead opted for Texas safety Michael Huff, in part because Walter was on the roster.

The Raiders made no move to get Texas quarterback Vince Young and also passed on Vanderbilt's Jay Cutler.

Walter tried not to pay attention to all the pre-draft speculation, hoping Oakland's decision to take him in the third round the previous year meant they would not need a quarterback in 2006.

After shoulder surgery following his final year at Arizona State, plus the groin surgery after his rookie year, Walter said, "I'm about as pieced together as I've been in awhile."

He deflects questions of a looming quarterback battle with Brooks and Tuiasosopo like a veteran and looks forward to getting extensive playing time in the preseason.

"I'm definitely behind after being a rookie, learning a system and having to start all over with a new one and not having played other than a couple of games in the preseason," Walter said. "It will be good that we have (five) preseason games this year so we can get out there, get in a good flow, get some good snaps and some quality situations."

NOTES, QUOTES

—Running back Justin Fargas has seen his numbers decline in each of his first three seasons due to injury and ineffectiveness, with a low of five carries for 28 yards last season.

Shell says Fargas looks like a new man.

"I don't look at it as a make or break year. Justin is doing well. He has really improved," Shell said. "I was talking to (running backs coach Skip Peete) and he said, `I'm seeing Justin doing some things out there I haven't seen him do over the last couple of years.' That comes from maturity."

—Safety Jarrod Cooper likes the idea that only precious few players appear safe when it comes to their starting roles under Shell.

"It's upped the competition in this room times 10," Cooper said. "Nobody feels safe, which is good. That's how you get people to compete, when you're competing for your job all the time."

—Quarterback Aaron Brooks spoke with only one other team — the Tampa Bay Buccaneers — and came away with mixed signals before signing with the Raiders.

"It was funny, because they said, `Well, we promised Chris Simms this and that, but we really want you,'" Brooks said. "Right now Chris is going to start, but it could change by training camp. And I'm like, `What the hell is that?' They weren't really trying to give me a decent salary to work for. I'm not content, I'm not ready to be a backup."

—Shell did not sound overly concerned about place kicker Sebastian Janikowski, who managed to stay out of trouble last season but missed a third of his 30 field goal attempts.

"It's more mental than anything else," Shell said. "He's had the same guy holding for him all these years, so that hasn't changed. He'll be fine. I told him I expect him to be in the Pro Bowl this year. He has that kind of talent."

During Oakland's first mini-camp, Shell put pressure on Janikowski by making his teammates run laps every time he missed a kick.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "We're going to block until the quarterback gets rid of the ball, until the whistle blows. It's not about getting the ball out in 1.5 seconds or 2.2 seconds or whatever it is. We have never been about that. The mentality is, you block, block, block." — Raiders coach and Hall of Fame left tackle Art Shell on the tenacity he expects to see from the offensive line.

 

[Angry Pope]

Here is another article on Walter...take it for what it is worth...

Young Walter's still unproven

Jerry McDonald



THEY'RE BACK behind closed doors, safe from the eyes of a prying media, perhaps giving their quarterback of the future a chance to become the quarterback of the present.

In the Raiders' only public workouts after the NFL draft, Oakland coach Art Shell said he hadn't determined a starting quarterback from among free agent Aaron Brooks, veteran backup Marques Tuiasosopo and second-year player Andrew Walter, but that ideally he'd have one by the time the training camp convened in mid-July.

Common sense and yearly salary seem to favor Brooks, but Shell insists the former New Orleans Saints starter was promised nothing.

Tuiasosopo, in the final year of his contract, will have a hard time shaking his reputation as a career backup.

While there are no open practices or interview sessions for the voluntary mini-camp in progress at the club facility in Alameda, one team source said it was safe to assume the Raiders were watching Walter closely, gauging his progress to determine if he is a viable candidate to be a starter in 2006.

Invoke Walter's name among much of Raider Nation and those who claim to be in the know, and they'll tell you he will be the chosen one before the year is out.

Walter is big — 6-foot-6, 230 pounds. He throws a wonderful deep ball and was a record-setting passer at Arizona State. He showed promise in the 2005 preseason. Al Davis loves him.

Besides, the only reason the Raiders could have passed on USC's Matt Leinart in the NFL draft is that they had serious plans for Walter.

And there you have it — the complete case for Andrew Walter as the next starting quarterback of the Oakland Raiders.

It's possible Walter starts in Week 1, seizes his opportunity and leads the Raiders out of a 13-35 abyss and into the postseason, but that's not the way to bet.

More likely, Walter's growing popularity is simply because he has a less familiar face.

As recently as two years ago, there was a sizable contingent for strong-armed Kerry Collins over that noodle-armed former MVP, Rich Gannon.

While Walter may some day be a viable NFL starter, there's little to suggest that day has arrived.

A few things to keep in mind before anointing Walter the latest people's choice:

- At the mandatory minicamp, Walter, to the untrained eye at least, didn't throw the ball any better than Brooks or Tuiasosopo, and was decidedly less mobile than either.

To be fair, practice performances aren't always the best indicators of quarterback play. Jeff George belongs in the weekday Hall of Fame wearing a red practice jersey, but things changed considerably when it was open season on Sundays for opposing defenses.

- In the past two years, Walter has already two surgeries — one to repair his throwing shoulder and another for a hernia. He says he feels fine now.

"I'm about as pieced together as I have been in a while," Walter said.

- The hernia nagged Walter all of last season, and he was less than 100 percent. As a rookie quarterback, he was essentially under managed care just to get him through practice sessions.

- His two preseason performances, which seem to have grown in stature among those proclaiming him good to go, were pretty average efforts against the 49ers and Saints reserves — two of the NFL's most underwhelming teams.

In 11 possessions, Walter threw one touchdown pass, led the Raiders to one field goal, threw two interceptions and lost two fumbles. The Raiders punted four other times and turned the ball over on downs once.

Walter completed 26 of 44 passes for 352 yards and had a passer rating of 73.3. If all those numbers sound familiar, simply check out Collins in any given week, and you might find something similar.

Rather than pick up where he left off as a pro, Walter is learning an entirely new system under Shell and offensive coordinator Tom Walsh.

It's an offense that emphasizes running the ball and quick-strike, play-action passing, but for the most part, Oakland has historically enjoyed its most success with quarterbacks heavy on leadership and intangibles.

Ken Stabler was a shot-and-a-beer field general who worked primarily between 15 and 18 yards. Jim Plunkett could strike deep occasionally, but at the Raider stage of his career was nowhere near the strong-armed passer he once was, winning instead with toughness and clutch play-making.

Jeff Hostetler and Gannon were similar in a lot of ways, although Gannon took it to a higher level in terms of precision, command and running ability.

As for the big-armed quarterbacks, once zone defenses helped derail Daryle Lamonica, there have been the likes of Jay Schroeder, George and Collins. All were eventually discarded.

Which isn't to say Walter is doomed simply because he has a strong arm.

But it helps illustrate that Walter's ability to throw a nice pass is only one of several qualities a quarterback needs to win, and based on the evidence at hand, there is nothing to suggest all those traits are ready for display on Sundays in 2006

 

[Angry Pope]

Here is a story on Andrew Walter...

Walter sees better chance to play

By Jason Jones -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:01 am PDT Saturday, June 10, 2006

Andrew Walter came to the Raiders as a rookie last season at 6-foot-6 and 230 pounds with a strong arm, impressive college credentials -- and no chance of getting on the field.

Such is the case for first-year quarterbacks, who usually do a lot of watching from the sideline unless the team is out of playoff contention.

The Raiders weren't a playoff team, but that didn't provide Walter with playing time during Oakland's 4-12 season.

That's why there's always next season.

Entering his second season, the third-round draft choice said he believes he is a lot closer to taking the field.

With new coaches and another offense to learn, Walter is more comfortable this spring and excited that coach Art Shell has said he, Marques Tuiasosopo and Aaron Brooks would be given the opportunity to win the starting job.

"Coming in last year, it was evident to me that Kerry (Collins) was the guy, and I wasn't going to be competing to start," Walter said. "This year, that's not the case. As a player, you have to love the fact that it's not set in stone. When you have something to play for, you want to play more."

Walter has reason to be more optimistic about playing this season. No longer is the pace of the pro game dizzying, as it can be for rookies; NFL playbooks are no longer intimidating; and he's familiar with the personnel on offense.

Still, because he hasn't taken a regular-season snap, Walter isn't close to labeling himself a veteran.

"That's like the final step before I can say I feel like a veteran," Walter said. "That and getting a season under my belt."

The conventional thinking is Brooks, who signed a two-year contract in the offseason, will start until Walter is ready.

Things could turn out that way, but Shell has come in and managed not to alienate any of the quarterbacks.

Tuiasosopo was the No. 1 quarterback in Oakland's first minicamp, and Brooks worked with the first team in a second minicamp.

Walter had the opportunity to be evaluated with the first-team offense during this week's voluntary minicamp.

"I was a little bit of everything," Walter said. "The majority of it was probably with the (second team). I definitely bounced around and flip-flopped. There was a little rotation."

Walter said that working with the second or third team isn't a hindrance to picking up offensive coordinator Tom Walsh's system.

"I don't know if it's hugely important because the big thing is getting the offense down, and that's what everyone's doing no matter who you're working with."

Walter said the offense is similar to the system in which he set school and Pacific-10 Conference records at Arizona State. And he can't wait for training camp to begin late next month so he can work in the system every day, not for three days at a time during minicamps.

It also helps that Walter can prepare with thoughts of possibly playing and not depending on injury for an opportunity.

"Now I'm in a position where I'm closer to the field per se," Walter said. "It's more exciting, but my responsibility has increased."