Give Brown A Chance

The title lets you know where I stand regarding Dave Brown. I support him and think that he has not yet been given a fair chance to prove himself. Dan Reeves has not given him a chance, George Young has not given him a chance, and the fans who are bad-mouthing him have not given him a chance. I will address each of these assertions in turn, then move on to a few other points about DB as a QB.

First, Dan Reeves. Very few  Giants fans like Reeves, so I should be on popular ground here. As we all know, Reeves does not think Brown is an NFL-calibre QB. George Young does. Some theorize that Brown started last year because Young wants him to. Reeves has undercut Brown's chances at success in two ways. First, his consistent lack of support for Brown must make it hard for the young QB to maintain his confidence. His head coach is constantly making comments that make it obvious that he does not have confidence in the QB. Reeves' actions in the Philly game of pulling Brown for Maddox, then leaving Maddox in there despite the all-time worst QB performance in Giants history further drove the message home. This behavior by Reeves is another example of the division within the leadership of the team, and of Reeves' ego-driven coaching.

However, Reeves has sabotaged Brown's chances of success in a more fundamental way: by handcuffing the young QB to a ridiculously simplistic and timid offensive scheme. It is common knowledge around the league that the Giants' pass routes are vanilla. The pass route schemes are incredibly simplistic, and they are not designed to give the QB maximum options. The Giants' pass plays are simple to defend my the opposition. The playcalling is incredibly predictable -- except for the occasional trick play. A trick play here and there is no substitute for creative and varied playcalling. The Giants are as predictable under Reeves as they were under Ray Perkins -- a coach to whom Reeves can be compared. When I watch the Giants, I can see the formation and know the circumstances -- down, score, etc -- and predict the play the Giants are going to run. I must be correct three-fourths of the time-- even to selecting the hole the play is going to run through. If I, a mere layperson, can so predict the offense, imagine how NFL defenses are able to read the offense. How is an offense supposed to succeed in the NFL when the defense knows exactly what the offense is going to do? Finally, by being so stupidly conservative and running on most first and second downs, Brown is placed in numerous third-and-longs. Third-and-long is an incredibly difficult position for a QB.

I draw evidence for my contentions about Reeves from Brown's performance in games and quarters when Reeves has been willing to throw the ball on first down and mix up trhe play-calling a bit. When he has done that, Brown has looked like a good QB. When Reeves reverts to form, Brown looks like a terrible QB. The San Diego game was a prime example. The first half, the Giants were aggressive on offense. Brown looked outstanding. The second half, Reeves reverted to his shell to protect the lead -- playing not to lose instead of playing to win -- and Brown looked horrendous. This inconsistency in Brown seems tied directly to the game plan. Moreover, if you check Brown's career at Duke, he put up incredible numbers when Steve Spurrier -- who recruited him -- was the coach there. When Spurrier's successor came in and the overall talent level at Duke slipped, Brown struggled some, and he left school. More evidence that given a good coach with a creative game plan, Brown can succeed.

So what does Reeves need to do to give Brown a chance? He needs to diversify the offense. Develop new pass routes. Overhaul the scheme. View tape of the "west coast offenses" in the NFL and draw some of their pass route schemes into the Giants offense. The other thing is to diversifdy the playcalling. More play-action on first down and second and short. More short passes. More routes with different options. Come on, send Toomer deep, Calloway on a crossing pattern, Cross or Pierce down the seam, and a back in the flat. That creates options.

Now George Young. Young has not given Brown a chance in that he has not given his young QB an offensive line that can protect him and wide receivers that can get open. During the infamous Philly game, Jerry Glanville must have commented on every passing play that nobody was open. A QB is doomed to failure when his receivers don't get open and his line is porous. Young may have made the necessary moves to do his part. Drafting Toomer, signing Dawsey (if it happens), getting rid of Sherrard, and re-signing Calloway are all moves that will improve the receiving corps and maybe give Brown a good group to pass to. The moves on the OL may improve that situation. They drafted Gragg and Zatechka last year. Drafting Oben was a good move this year. They signed Ron Stone. While I am not sold on any of those players, and remain skeptical of Bishop and Davis, at least there is an infusion of young -- and large -- talent. If this group develops, the Giants could have a good line. So Young appears to be doing his part.

Now the fans. I think that those fans who are jumping on Brown are neglecting to take many things into account. First, is the above. How can you expect a QB to play well when he has lousy wide receivers, poor pass protection, and a predictable game plan? Second, he's a young QB. He has played two years in the league. In case you haven't noticed, all of the young QBs in the league had poor years. Drew Bledsoe looked TERRIBLE last year. The league is tough on young QBs. There is an awful lot to learn. Phil Simms, that QBing god all the Brown critics send paeans to, said that it took him six years to develop. When I grade a young QB, I look for inconsistency. I expect him to scew up massively now and then, but I look for moments of brilliance. I see the moments of brilliance as the potential, with the screw-ups being opportunities to learn. I expect those screw-ups to go away as he gains experience. If a QB gets into his fourth year and is still screwing up, then it is time to start getting down on him. Brett Favre is a good example of this progression.

And I have seen moments of brilliance in Brown. He played very well in the second Dallas game. He looked outstanding against the Chargers in the first half. He had several other very impressive drives throughout the year. His first year, he did an excellent job down the stretch at winning games with late drives. The drive he engineered at the end of the first half against Minnesota in 1994 was sone of the most beautiful drives I've ever seen the Giants mount. I like his resilience and his resourcefulness. He has shown an ability to think fast under pressure. He has used his running ability and that little shovel pass to turn numerous disasters into first downs. I've seen the potential. He needs two more years.

However, I don't expect Reeves to give him a chance. I don't see Reeves changing his game plan. So my challenge to Giants fans is this: don't judge the QB until we have a new coach. In my mind, the year Brown has to prove himself is the first year under the Giants next coach. If they bring in a coach with a good offensive philosophy, and he implements a creative -- yet still basically conservative-- game plan, and Brown still looks terrible as often as he does now, THEN it is time to give up on him. But if as I suspect will happen Brown blossoms that year, we will all know what the main problem was.

Now, as to his contract. Many of you have blasted him for "wanting Marino money." Now, bear with me. Dan Marino signed a contract that pays him almost $6 million per year. Dave was asking for $4 million per year. This is "Dan Marino money"??? Marino signed for 50 PER CENT more than Brown's asking price. Neil O'Donnell, a mediocre NFL QB who has reached his potential, signed for $5 million per year. That's a full million dollars more than Brown's asking price. Elway and Young signed their contracts in a different market. Let's see how much their next contracts are for. Same with Aikman. You'll see those guys at $6 to $7 million per year. Bledsoe? I'm not convinced he's any better than Brown. And Brown wound up signing for $3 million, half of Marino's salary. No, I think Brown's contract is in line with the market.

The final point I would like to address is Brown's arm strength. Many of you say he has a weak arm. Baloney. Brown has a very strong arm. If you've seen him throw those cross-field line drives on the run, you should know that the arm strength is there. The problems with his deep ball are the result of mechanics, not strength. He lays too much air under the ball. His accuracy problems also have a lot to do with mechanics. I read somewhere that Brown was a pitcher for years and turned to football kind of late. He said that at times he reverts to pitching the ball, which is great for baseball but poor for football. With continued work, he can improve his mechanics. Again, if he still can't throw the deep ball in a couple years, then make a judgment.

Brown has the tools to be a good NFL QB. Give him a chance. You listening Dan? I didn't think so.

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