Rex Grossman and John Beck amidst a QB War they didn’t start
Could we be headed into another quarterback controversy? Could there be a QB controversy happening outside the confines of Redskins Park in Ashburn, VA and on the grass field of a Northern Virginia High School?
It appears that way but may not be the case. Why you ask? Because neither man has been officially appointed such by head coach Mike Shanahan, and neither will be until mid to late training camp, whenever that is. But until then, each man has given good reasons why they think they will be the man under center this fall.
Dan Steinberg transcribed great interviews from both Rex Grossman, a free agent, and John Beck. John Beck has been active in giving the rookies playbook material and helping them get caught up to speed on the plays and offense.
"“I just tried to put myself in their shoes. If I was one of them, I would have wanted to know what in the heck’s going on. It was crazy, when I called Roy [Helu Jr.], Roy said ‘Man that’s crazy you called me, because 10 minutes ago I was telling myself, I’ve got to find a way to get a hold of him. I just kind of felt like if I was a rookie that got drafted and I didn’t know what was going on, I would have wanted somebody to call me and say hey this is the plan, this is when we’re getting together, this is what our offense looks like, let me send you something so you can start looking at it.”"
Likewise, Grossman with an opportunity of his own to reach out had his own opinions.
"“I just didn’t feel the urgency, and we knew we were coming up here for this. To be able to talk to them on the phone is great and all, but this is where we’re gonna get a chance to show ‘em the offense, show ‘em how to run the routes….There’s plenty of time for that. All the other extra stuff that sounds good, it is what it is.”"
But Grossman is prepared for the long haul and wants to win the job. He is not seeing Beck’s outreach to rookies as an advantage. He feels his skills will speak for itself.
"“If I am back here, I just want a chance to compete,” he said. “I’ve been playing quarterback for a while now, I feel like I’m coming into my prime as far as experience and understanding how NFL defenses work and how I play and my strengths and weaknesses. And [I’m looking forward to] being able to go out there and prove that I’m a Super Bowl quarterback again.”"
In any case, Beck is prepared to do the things necessary to earn that spot. He know his best shot is through practices. He says this, via DC Sports Bog”
"“I go to bed at night, when I was laying in my hotel room here, I watched ‘The Brady 6,’ and I mean, I was so fired up, I wanted to have another practice. That’s the way I am. That’s why I fly all the way from San Diego. My flight got in at 3 [a.m. on Tuesday], and by the time I got to my hotel it was pushing 4, and when I was out here yesterday I was dying to just keep my eyes open. But it means that much to me, because I want to be out here to help this team get better.”"
I personally feel that Grossman will be back because, who is really left out there? Where I think it is not a given he starts, he does know the offense and he can help resume the installation. Prepare for a battle, for Skins fans that’s the best thing that could happen at that position. Just hope there is another quarterback in the mix.