Time to get Webb some valuable on-field ‘experience’
THE DEBATE is actually quite silly. For those who wonder if Davis Webb is ready to start an NFL game, we bring you back to late November 2004. Was rookie Eli Manning ready to start his first NFL game?
The answer: Not even close. But that did not stop the Giants from coming to an organizational decision to start the meter running on Manning, benching Kurt Warner even though the Giants were 5-4 and their veterans on that team were looking forward to making a run as playoff contenders. Young Eli got in the huddle and the season went down the tubes, as he lost his first six starts. How ready was Manning? He threw 20 incomplete passes in his starting debut against the Falcons, completed six passes the next week against the Eagles and two weeks later compiled a Bluto Blutarsky-esque passer rating of 0.0 in a deer-in- the-headlights loss in Baltimore. He was not close to ready, but he had to start sometime.
“There’s a lot to learn and honestly I believe the best way to do it is through experience and to get out there,’’ Manning said, thinking back to the early days of his NFL development. “Make the mistakes, see it all and try to just find ways to get completions and move the ball.’’
Manning was the new face of the franchise, while Webb is a third-round pick who might have a chance to earn the starting job, one day. Still, there is no magic formula for when a quarterback is ready. Manning needed those unsightly performances, building from the embarrassments.
“There is a growing pain to playing quarterback in this league and that’s just part of it,’’ Manning said. “Obviously, some guys have come in and played well right away, but they’re usually surrounded by a talented team. But I think every game you play, you learn from it, and still at this age.’’
A reduced offensive package can be installed to better suit Webb’s command of the playbook. He is a sharp guy and a start or two will greatly benefit him and the Giants’ knowledge of him. He has got to get on the field before time runs out on this sorriest of seasons.