After the Indianapolis Colts announced their decision to benvh second-year quarterback Anthony Richardson in favor of Joe Flacco after Week 8, media pundits have started to discuss whether there is a quarterback development problem in the NFL. But as far as Fox NFL broadcaster Greg Olsen sees it, the problem extends far further than just the NFL.
On Friday, Olsen discussed the topic on The Ryen Russillo Podcast, sharing his opinion that the problem stems from how the art of quarterbacking is being taught to athletes far before they ever reach the NFL level.
“There is no doubt, we have a quarterback problem in the NFL,” Olsen told Russillo. “I think a lot of it is manmade. Asking your quarterback to stand in the shotgun, catch the ball, and throw the ball every down is virtually impossible in today’s day and age. These guys don’t learn to get under center. They’ve never taken an under-center snap in their entire lives. Their entire lives have been 7-on-7 football. It’s been passing offense.
“I coach middle school football at my kid’s school. Of the eight games we’ve played, six of the teams never once lined up under center. Never one time had two backs in the backfield and never one time had a tight end. The best teams, they get under center, it’s play action. The reason they are doing that is because it takes the stress load off the quarterback.
“So I think there is a developmental problem in the whole pipeline of quarterbacks. From high school to college and then of course to the NFL. We want the entire game to be on their shoulders. And then we get mad when they can’t handle it at 22 years old. You can’t tell me these guys aren’t wildly talented. They need to be coached. They need to be developed. I just don’t think as a league in general we do a good job of that.”
Olsen is far from the only personality around the NFL that seemingly feels this way about the quarterback position. Longtime ESPN NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. recently shared a very similar opinion on quarterbacks not being allowed to develop in the NFL in light of the Richardson benching.
Even before the Richardson news, the man who replaced Olsen on Fox’s top NFL broadcast team, Tom Brady, had plenty to say about young quarterbacks not coming into the NFL with the proper skills needed to succeed at the next level.
Brady’s comments, which came before the season started, have seemingly since been proven right with Bryce Young and Richardson being benched by their respective teams in just their second year in the NFL.
When people with over a decade of experience in the game like Brady and Olsen speak about where the sport is currently at, it’s typically smart to listen. So now, it is on NFL front offices around the league to make the change necessary to put their young quarterbacks in a position to succeed despite the holes in their development coming into the NFL.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.