Washington Redskins: 5 Reasons to Believe in John Beck

Whispers out of Redskins Park have been that John Beck is Mike Shanahan’s guy.  Beck certainly believes it to be true.  Shanahan must have told him something. 

Earlier this summer, Beck trumpeted himself up on local sports talk radio shows about how he was ready to take over the No. 1 job. 

Are we to believe that Beck is the answer?  Does Shanahan really have confidence in him or is there something else going on behind closed doors? 

Time will certainly tell, but lets take a look at why the Redskins have reason to be optimistic about the journeyman Beck.

Intelligence

Beck has been described as a student of the game.  He scored high coming out of college on his ability to read defenses and improvise. 

As Tom Brady has proven, pure athleticism and physical tools can be over-hyped.  What is important is knowing your own abilities and having confidence in them.  The rest is all X’s and O’s.

After working the pine last year, Beck should be up to speed on the playbook.  Now comes the confidence part.  Interviews he has given recently lead us to believe he has this part down as well. 

For Beck, training camp can’t begin soon enough.

Leadership & Poise

The quarterback must be the leader, a totem of confidence and respect.  So far for the Redskins, Beck is demonstrating these qualities admirably. 

It will be his performance on the field that will garner true respect from his teammates, but his desire and passion are certainly glimmering through. 

One of the big positives from scouting reports on Beck has been his poise under fire and his ability to deal with pressure.  He will certainly need those attributes with an offensive line currently resembling the Texas-Mexican border. 

He is willing to stick out plays and take a hit.  He will not be fazed from the risk of injury.

The Golden Arm

The big knock on John Beck has been his arm strength, and there is some reason for concern.  In player-run mini camps earlier this year, John had difficulty throwing the deep ball. 

This is a bit perplexing, to say the least.  During Beck’s appearance at his scouting combine in 2007, his ball speed was measured at 61.1 mph.  That was good enough for second best among all those who participated.  Comparatively speaking, it was better than Jay Cutler did the year before. 

Scouts were impressed with the zip Beck could put on balls in short to intermediate range.  His approach, however, is not to throw the ball as hard as he can if he does not have to.  It makes for a higher percentage toss. 

Experience

He’s carried the clipboard since his rookie year and has bounced around the league.  This is where you can turn a negative into a positive. 

He's backed up, just as Super Bowl quarterbacks such as Aaron Rodgers, Len Dawson, Bart Starr, Steve McNair, Mark Rypien and Jake Delhomme had done before him.  Sure, some are not top-tier QBs, but they got the job done. 

Considered to be a bit of a nerd with the playbook, all Beck needs now is consistency and reps.  He will be 30 years old by the time the season starts.  His time is now.

Character

Beck is in that elusive category that scouts refer to as being a “high character” guy.  How much does this play out on the field?  It may be hard to say, but if scouts analyze it, it must be worth something. 

Camaraderie is a key as well.  The idea is if you bring players in with similar values and personalities that mesh well, they will naturally be able to click more on the field. 

Joe Gibbs believed in this approach, and from what we have seen so far, Mike Shanahan does as well. 

So there you have it.  With the NFL season about to get under way, now is the time to be most optimistic and dream.  

By no means am I saying that Beck will be successful as the Redskins starting quarterback, but at least there is some reason to be hopeful.  Beck certainly is.