ESPN analysts deride colleague for bypassing Patrick Mahomes as QB to start franchise
ESPN’s Mike Greenberg thought he’d get universal agreement from the “Get Up” panel that Chiefs star Patrick Mahomes would be the quarterback of choice when starting an NFL franchise.
But former Patriots linebacker Rob Ninkovich picked Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson.
“I’d take him because of the upside that he has. Last year, 22 years old, the league MVP, leading the NFL and yards per carry, leading the NFL in touchdown passes,” Ninkovich said. “Look, he didn’t throw the ball that much from the pocket Imagine if he gets better from the pocket with accuracy throwing the ball down the field and understanding when to get out of bounds and when not to take some unnecessary shots.
“The one thing we can all agree on, number one, he’s a playmaker and he’s going to make everyone around him better. When you play the Ravens you say how do we stop Lamar Jackson. When you play Kansas City, you say how do we stop all the weapons that Kansas City has, so look when I think about the best player that could potentially be moving forward, (it’s) Lamar Jackson as a developing quarterback who was the MVP last year 23 years old. Very, very young, and can continue to grow in the NFL in a league that is going to continue to change with the RPOs and the college style with quarterbacks that can move, get out of trouble. You know, as a defender I just know how hard it is to stop a quarterback like Lamar, and if I had a team, I want to start a team with Lamar.”
Domonique Foxworth, the former Broncos and Ravens defensive back, addressed the argument of teams having to focus solely on Jackson.
“It makes some sense, but I don’t think it matters necessarily,” Foxworth said. “Just because (Jackson is) the best player on that team doesn’t mean that he’s the best player to start a team with.
“I think Rob like nullified his whole argument at the beginning when he said Lamar Jackson could get better at X. There is nothing — nothing — that Patrick Mahomes needs to get better at,” Foxworth said. “We’re done. He’s already the best. You said Lamar’s 23. Pat’s 24! It’s not like we’re talking about a 37 year old.”
Here’s the discussion:
That segment followed one in which Ninkovich first spoke up for Jackson. Like Foxworth, ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky also was having none of it:
