San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
Don’t believe QB’S mind games, Lawrence will enter the NFL Draft
Sez Me …
Let’s play What If, a bored game for 2020’s growing number of disinterested shut-ins.
If the 2021 NFL Draft were held today, and it included quarterbacks taken in April and those eligible now, who would go No. 1?
This would include Clemson matinee idol Trevor Lawrence, Ohio State’s Justin Fields, and the top three QBS in the 2020 draft, Joe Burrow (Bengals), Tua Tagovailoa (Dolphins) and Justin Herbert (Judases).
As much as I like Burrow, I’d go with Herbert No. 1, Joe No. 2, with Tua, so gifted but fragile, No, 3. They have played in The League, you see, and played well. The others may never play well.
And, what my daddy always said rings true for aspiring professional quarterbacks: “You never know what a captain’s like until you’re on the water with him.”
But there aren’t many football people who wouldn’t take Lawrence. Salivating scouts gush over Trevor to the point of needing a drool cup and mop bucket.
But Lawrence is playing it cute. Playing with minds.
Maybe it’s what he plays best.
I’ve yet to genuflect at his shrine. He’s good, but he’s never lifted my kilts. Can’t misses can miss.
To football men, however, Clemson’s prince is John Elway and Andrew Luck combined and stuffed into one magnificent cannoli, a QB who can walk across the Sea of Galilee … well, you know, with that long hair, they just might believe it.
He is not Elway, the best, who still didn’t win anything for 15 years. Or Luck, who left early sans ring.
Meanwhile, Lawrence, a junior, seems to be ripping a chapter out of the Book of Elway and Eli Manning, saying he may not enter the draft next year, obviously looking at Dan Jenkins’ Dogass Jets as a team not on the cusp of succeeding any time soon. This Elway did with the Colts, and Manning with The NFL Team That Used To Be Here (although they were out of college eligibility).
Once the Heisman front-runner, Trevor missed two games after testing positive for COVID. He probably would be the No. 1 overall pick if he never played another down of college ball (although Fields is the better college player).
His coach, Dabo Swinney, doesn’t believe he’s staying put for a moment, nor do most scouts, nor do I. But I was covering San Diego’s NFL team in 1983, when it had three No. 1s it could have used to get Elway and fatten the Colts.
Instead, Denver won the sweepstakes, the Colts took less, and as I’ve since discovered, the Broncos were it, no matter what. The fix was in.
This, from a source who was extremely close to the Denver situation: “Edgar Kaiser owned the Broncos and was close to Bob Irsay (Colts owner). Kaiser went to Stanford and was close to Elway’s dad, Jack. Irsay, besides getting players in the deal, also got a few exhibition games in Denver. The Broncos always sell out exhibitions, so there was more easy money for Bob. The Chargers never had a chance.”
I believe Elway, who also played baseball, would have held out. The Mannings wouldn’t have called A.J. Smith’s bluff here. Eli eventually would have caved.
Lawrence will come out.
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sezme.godfather@gmail.com • Twitter: @sdutcanepa