He Was Doomed From The Start

I have been biting my tongue for so long now, it is about to come off. I can’t do it anymore. I heard the most preposterous, most insane, most ridiculous solution to the Redskins problems the other day, and I just about lost it. “Bring back Mark Brunell!!” What in the world was this person smoking? Don’t get me wrong, I loved Mark Brunell, but do people have selective amnesia? Wasn’t Mark Brunell replaced by Jason Campbell? Hell wasn’t Mark Brunell replaced by Byron Leftwich in Jacksonville. And this is what people call a solution to the problem? Are you kidding me? I am going to ruffle some feathers, but some of Jason Campbell’s problems stem from him being a Black QB. Prove me wrong on this one, and I’ll stop posting.

I have been watching football for a while now. Do you recognize these names? Names like Vince Evans, Randall Cunningham, Warren Moon, Doug Williams, Daunte Culpepper, Donovan McNabb, Michael Vick, Vince Young, David Garrard, Byron Leftwich, Kordell Stewart, Aaron Brooks, Seneca Wallace, Dennis Dixon, Charlie Batch, Andre Ware, Troy Smith, Chris Leake, Josh Johnson, Josh Freeman, Andre Woodson, JeMarcus Russell, Pat White, Quincy Carter and countless others. There are other Black QB’s who were asked to change positions in the NFL in order to continue their careers. Do you recognize names like Michael Robinson, Josh Cribbs, Hines Ward, Brian Mitchell, and Antwaan Randle El? By no means am I saying that all of these guys were great, but are you meaning to tell me that not one of these guys were good enough to be considered a Franchise Quarterback? Not one of them? Are you kidding me? See when you have people like Mel Kiper telling you that Ryan Leaf will be better than Peyton Manning I don’t know how much I want to listen to him. Or when I hear Tim Couch is the best player in a draft that featured Daunte Culpepper and Donovan McNabb, I tend to scratch my head. And if you ask me Jason Campbell was doomed before he started.

I remember watching the draft and hearing when Jason Campbell was drafted. I was excited because you rarely hear anything good on draft day about a Black QB. One of the first things that I remember hearing Coach Joe Gibbs saying about Jason Campbell was something that I NEVER hear people say about any Black QB. “He is super smart.” How many times have you heard this about any Black QB? Go ahead and think. I’ll wait. I have all day. I have heard this numerous times regard non-Black QBs. Another term that I hear about average non-Black QBs is, “He has the “it” factor.” To me this is a cop out. The “experts” can’t really find anything to say that will set this guy apart so they make up something. The “it” factor!!! The “it” factor is a bunch of IT if you ask me. See right now, there are a myriad of things wrong with the Washington Redskins that are minor, but the general consensus is Jason Campbell is the biggest problem. Really?

See a couple of years ago when Carson Palmer was stinking up the joint, the “experts” were saying Palmer didn’t look like himself and that he is distracted by his Wide Reciever Chad Ochocinco (then Johnson), and that his Offensive Line was banged up, and that he was still feeling the after affects of his ACL surgery 4 years later. These are all excuses people. Even last year when Peyton Manning was struggling, he got a free pass. “Peyton Manning doesn’t look like Peyton Manning.” Look, just say the dude was playing poorly. Don’t get it twisted, I love Carson Palmer and Peyton Manning is the best QB in the NFL right now (but we all know when he gets healthy, Tom Brady is the best QB in the NFL, hands down). I think he’s a stud at QB, but he gets a free pass. Even Donovan McNabb, arguably the #3 best QB in the NFL at one point wasn’t getting his due respect. Matt Hasselbeck has pretty much done the exact same things McNabb has done, but for some strange reason, Donovan gets most of the criticism. Poor Josh Freeman couldn’t even celebrate his first NFL start and first NFL win in peace before some “expert” said that he didn’t have a great game. Which game was he watching? My point is, it doesn’t matter what Jason Campbell does at this point. He will never be considered good.

He can go win a Super Bowl or two later on in his career and all people will remember is him struggling. He doesn’t get the excuses Palmer gets. Jason Campbell’s line is actually banged up. Jason Campbell is actually suffering from some minor injuries. Jason Campbell has never been backed up by the organization. Jason Campbell has never been referred to as a Franchise QB. Jason Campbell could go to other teams and start. Which teams you might ask? Buffalo, Miami, Cleveland, Kansas City, Oakland, Chicago, Detroit, Carolina, Tampa Bay, St. Louis, San Francisco and Seattle. But all he endures is criticism. I will hear people say that he doesn’t have a #1 Wide Receiver. I will hear people say that he holds on to the ball too long. I will hear people say that his Offensive Line is horrible. I will hear people say that he is playing for a poorly run organization. I will hear people say that the Redskins have no running game. I will hear people say that the Redskins don’t have the personnel to run the West Coast Offense. Well if Jason Campbell has all of these things working against him, why doesn’t he get a free pass? Because, from the beginning no one is really sold on Black QB successfully running any team. They are still looked at as athletes who happen to play QB. No one really thinks Black QB posses the mental capacity to handle a play book or to think quickly and make decisions (thanks to dumbest test in the world, the Wonderlic). And when the chips are down, people will use some very harsh and unnecessary adjectives to describe that particular player. Worthless, stupid, sorry, dumb, and god forbid the QB is a pocket passer, which Jason Campbell happens to be, he is called…. SLOW!!! All of these words ring with racial undertones that give me flashbacks. Face it people. Football is a microcosm of the real world. Guys like Jason Campbell could have a building fall on top of him, and for some strange reason, it would still be his fault.

I am one who believes in looking at players as players, not based off of skin color and I don’t use code words. I talk straight. If you ask me right now, I will tell you that I am sold on Tom Brady being the best QB in the NFL. I will tell you that the owners for New England and Pittsburgh are exactly how an organization should be run. I will tell you that, even though I am a bit biased, Joe Gibbs is the perfect mix between being an authoritarian and a players coach. At the same token I will tell you that the most controversial player in the NFL, Terrell Owens, is still the best player in the NFL. Donovan McNabb and Tom Brady are the only two QBs in the NFL to win on a consistent basis with less than stellar talent around them. The best Center in the NFL is Jeff Saturday. The best players in the NFL floating under the radar are Kyle Orton and Miles Austin. The next guy to be considered the best WR in the NFL is Brandon Marshall. The best Defensive Coordinator in NFL is Dick Lebeau. I am only biased when it comes to Defensive Coordinators. So I am by no means, blindly playing the race card. But, I will call a spade a spade. Jason Campbell is in the worse possible situation right now, and does not deserve the criticism that he is being laced with. We need to rethink our standards of what a good QB is. He is by no means the worse QB in the NFL, but he is the QB in the worse position. You can put Mark Brunell, Peyton Manning, Joe Montana, or Tom Brady back there, and they wouldn't do any better. If you know football, New England and Indianapolis got it right. Give your QB a line and it is amazing what they can do. Tom Brady is the perfect example. He won 3 Super Bowls with average Wide Receivers, but a stellar Offensive Line. In my opinion, give Jason Campbell an Offensive Line and a vote of confidence and he will join Doug Williams, hopefully one day, Donovan McNabb, as the only Black QB's to win a Super Bowl.