I've been trying to figure out what the coaches see in TA since spring. It's obvious - and has been for some time - that he lacks the skills that QBs need to run Langsdorf's system. That's why I was surprised how quickly he "won" the job.
Now it's entirely possible - and accurate to a large extent - that TA does more things better than the other guys we have now. But it's also true - from many media reports - that the other guys didn't get nearly as much of a chance.
Here's my assertion of how things went after the new coaches came on board.
TA was a two-year starter. He played well in the bowl game (the first game the new coaches saw as our coaches). By all accounts, he's popular with the team. And he has good leadership qualities.
The new coaches knew they had a lot of work ahead of them to get their system in place. It doesn't make any sense to try to get 3-4 QBs ready to play. You have to pick a guy - two at max - and get them as many reps as possible. TA was obviously well ahead of everyone else in playing time and years in college. And he has the physical tools. Pretty easy to say "he's our guy, we just need him to work on a few things and learn the system." Thus, he's getting the vast majority of the reps all spring and fall.
Then you have Fyfe. He's the kind of guy you would expect to be a good back-up from an NFL point of view. He's a veteran compared to they other guys. He has more game experience. He doesn't have the highest ceiling but you expect (
) him to be able to come in and run the show if needed (which you're hoping to not have to do).
So the coaches were forced to make quick decisions and they went with the most logical choices. Those guys get all the reps and the other guys get the scraps. Can't blame them - really no other way to go.
But now things are different. The entire team knows the system (more or less). There isn't the demand to keep installing new things. They can work on the things they need to get better at. And you can give more time to the backups. That leaves a wider door open for someone else to make a move. You add all that to the lack of success TA had this year plus however the sexual assault and walking out of practice play into it and I think (hope) POB has a great chance to push for a starting spot.
It would be quite a feat for a true freshman to unseat a fifth-year senior who's a three year starter. But I've also been reading between the lines whenever Riley or Langsdorf talk about TA. All the way back for 11 months. Spring practice, fall camp and through the year. They always talked about how he's a competitor. How he's a leader. How's he bounces back from mistakes. You almost never heard them come out of a practice saying "Tommy really threw the ball well today." Or "Tommy is really running the offense great." It's always been about the intangibles. Those are all well and good. But at some point it has to translate into actual performance. It does in flashes - TA's problem has never been that he can't do what's asked of him. It's always been that he can't do it consistently enough.
It'll be interesting to see if TA can make some progress and hold off the competition or if the coaches are really looking for someone to make a push for the job.
