Ponies in the Draft - McCown

[SMU00]

ESPN's description of Josh McCown:

"Josh McCown
QB | (6-3, 217, 4.65) | SAM HOUSTON STATE
By Pro Football Weekly

Notes: Older brother Randy is a former college quarterback from Texas A&M, and younger brother Luke is the starting quarterback at Louisiana Tech and a future NFL prospect. Josh is a Southern Methodist transfer who was immediately eligible to play without sitting out a year because he went from a Division I to Division I-AA school. Started five games as a freshman in 1998, but did not look like he was ready and really struggled, completing 46-of-99 passes for 619 yards, seven touchdowns and eight interceptions. He often seemed to panic and force the ball and made more than his share of rookie mistakes. Started every game in '99 and really encouraged the coaches with his improvement, as he completed 125-234-1,434-11-10 and did a much better job of running the offense. Had a very uneven 2000 season and seemed to regress. Completed 169-331-1,969-9-16 and ran 78 times for 75 yards and three scores. Came right in and took over at Sam Houston State and really stood out on the I-AA level. Completed 259-429-3,481-32-12 and ran the ball 112-351-6. Only had one really bad game when he played similar to how he often played at SMU.

Positives: Big, athletic quarterback with a very good size-speed ratio and pretty good running ability. Has a quick delivery and snaps the ball off nicely. Good NFL arm and can drive the ball down the field and get arch and distance when he throws the "nine" route. Throws well on the move. Improved a lot in 2001, went to the Senior Bowl, responded very well to NFL coaching and showed he could play with the big boys.

Negatives: Never really could establish himself at SMU and would often seem to panic in crunch time. Mechanics improved a lot at the Senior Bowl, but he still needs a lot of work in this area. Still can be inconsistent throwing and all over the place with the ball at times. Has a tendency to bail out of the pocket too soon, and some felt he would look at the rush and not his receivers at times at SMU.

Summary: Has the size and talent to play at the next level. Could start once he gets a little experience and improves his mechanics, if he has nearly the heart, toughness and mental toughness of his idol, Brett Favre.

* Player biographies are provided by Pro Football Weekly.

[91Stang]

And this offering from Dan Pompei of The Sporting News:

"NFL scouts still are buzzing about what Sam Houston State QB Josh McCown did at the combine. Forget about McCown's 38.7-inch vertical jump and his 3.97-second short shuttle, which were among the best combine marks ever for a quarterback. McCown impressed the gathering the most during the defensive back drills, when corners were asked to defend the deep ball. It had been arranged for McCown, David Neill of Nevada and Vanderbilt's Greg Zolman to throw some of the long passes because throwing about 80 deep balls would be too much for one passer. But Neill and Zolman didn't hang around, leaving McCown as the only available quarterback. McCown launched all 80 or so bombs, and his arm showed no ill effects. For his reward, he was given an upgrade to first class on his plane ride home. And now that everyone knows he has a fantastic, durable arm, he might get an update on draft day."

[Guest]

I went up to Sam Houston State to watch Josh play once in the fall, and he looked great. I hope he's every bit as successful in the NFL as these reports suggest he can be. I always thought he had talent, and I'm glad to see it's being developed.

[Putt Choate fan]

I'm glad that everyone thinks that McCown, who left SMU because he made terrible decisions on the field, is so great now after playing D1-AA.

Did anyone forget that he was horrible against decent/mediocre defenses while at SMU. I don't really see how going to a less competitive division makes a quarterback smarter.

I don't even think the people who booed him at SMU doubted that he is an incredible athlete, we all hated the fact that he was stupid.