Just Quinn
The battle continues ----
Irish's Quinn makes case for No. 1 choice over Russell
Posted: Friday February 23, 2007 8:10PM; Updated: Friday February 23, 2007 8:10PM
Based on his two-year tutorial under Charlie Weis, Brady Quinn believes he's the draft's most prepared QB for NFL success.
Damian Strohmeyer/SI
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Brady Quinn isn't ready to admit defeat in the race to be the top pick in the NFL draft.
Seven weeks since JaMarcus Russell shot up the draft chart after beating Quinn in the Sugar Bowl, Quinn delivered his first major rebuttal in the competition to be selected first overall in April.
"I'd tell them I'm the most prepared collegiate player in the draft," Quinn said Friday at the annual NFL scouting combine. "There's not one other player in college that's had the coaching I've had in the last two years, and I feel I'm the best leader."
Now it's up to the NFL scouts and coaches to make their judgments.
Like great draft debates of the past -- Drew Bledsoe or Rick Mirer, Peyton Manning or Ryan Leaf, Eli Manning or Philip Rivers, Vince Young or Matt Leinart -- this one could be risky.
Russell offers a rare blend of size, mobility and strength. He measured-in Friday at 6-foot-6, 265 pounds -- nine pounds heavier than his playing weight.
Russell says he can throw a football 83 or 84 yards, but it wasn't until he led LSU to a 41-14 victory over Quinn and Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl that he gained national prominence. Less than a week after the game, when Russell heard he was projected as a first-round pick, he announced he was leaving school early.
"I'd been through a few games that went well and we found a way to pull them out," Russell said. "Sometimes you get the recognition, sometimes you don't. But that bowl game really helped."
Even though this draft class contains other talented quarterbacks such as Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith from Ohio State and Chris Leak, who led Florida to the national championship, most considered Quinn the best.
That changed after Quinn injured his knee against Southern Cal and aggravated it in the Sugar Bowl. Doctors advised him to sit out the Senior Bowl, and Russell soon moved ahead in the rankings.
With Oakland holding the top pick, and Al Davis' philosophy of throwing deep, Russell seemed like the odds-on favorite to go first. They even cleared a spot Thursday by letting Aaron Brooks go.
Quinn says not so fast.
Like Russell, Quinn won't work out in Indianapolis. He was measured at 6-3, 232 pounds and has scheduled two pro days at Notre Dame -- March 4 and March 22 -- in an attempt to reclaim top-pick status.
"I had three goals coming into the season," Quinn said. "I wanted to win a national championship, win the Heisman and be the No. 1 pick in the draft. The first two didn't work out so well. The third we'll have to see."
Quinn has several advantages. Playing in Charlie Weis' pro-style offense may make for a smoother transition from college to the NFL. Weis also has a reputation for turning quarterbacks into stars. His prized pupil is three-time Super Bowl winner Tom Brady of New England.
Quinn, who threw for 93 touchdowns and more than 11,500 yards, cannot be pegged as a system quarterback since he also played in Tyrone Willingham's West Coast offense, another staple in the NFL.
And with the exposure Notre Dame typically receives on any given week, Quinn has proven he can handle pressure similar to what an NFL quarterback faces.
Russell, however, is believed to have more potential. He threw for more than 6,000 yards at LSU, where he was 25-4 as a starter, and many around the league think he's still improving.
It's a quandary teams seem to face each year.
Not surprisingly, college teammates of Quinn and Russell at the combine take opposing views.
"I definitely believe he (Quinn) is the quarterback in the draft by far," said running back Darius Walker, who played at Notre Dame. "Nobody has the ability he has to read defenses and the experience in the system that he's played under."
Wide receiver Dwayne Bowe, who played with Russell at LSU, counters: "He's ready to get things rolling and make an impact on any team he's going to."
Ultimately, the decision rests with the team's decision-makers.
Cleveland general manager Phil Savage, who has known Russell since he was in the seventh grade, likes Russell's skills, but maybe not enough to trade up from the No. 3 spot to pick him.
"He is coming out as a junior, which would lead you to believe there might be some upside, and he's played in a pro-style system," Savage said.
But Quinn remains confident he can win this debate.
"It's hard to slip when you haven't done anything," he said. "I've been thinking 'Did someone see me miss a rep in the weight room or something?'
"We worked out in Tempe, Arizona, together and, obviously we played against each other in the bowl game. There's a competitiveness there, but you can't control what a team does. You can only put yourself in the best possible position to succeed, and that's what I intend to do."
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/football/nfl/02/23/quinn.draft.ap/index.html
...remember when we fucked up and forgot to draft Dan Marino?
