Jon Gruden has been described as a man who collected quarterbacks when he coached. He turned Rich Gannon into an MVP, won a Super Bowl with Brad Johnson, and he reached the playoffs with Chris Simms. He seems to know his quarterbacks and is respected for his ability to coach them. That’s part of the reason why he runs a “Quarterback Camp” on TV (however strange the episodes may be). Simply said, when he talks quarterbacks, we listen.
Gruden sat down for an interview with Marty Caswell of Double X Sports in San Diego and was asked which rookie quarterback he felt would have the best chance at making an early impact in the NFL. His answer surprised me.
“I really like Jake Locker,” Gruden said without hesitation. “I think Locker is special. Cam Newton is physically very talented, but I think Jake Locker. And what I’m hearing about Blaine Gabbert’s exciting too, but I’m a Locker stocker.”
I respect Gruden’s opinion of quarterbacks, but I think he’s crazy there. Sure Locker had a strong pro day, but as I said on draft day he was a reach for Tennessee. Locker is big, fast, and has a strong arm, but his big weakness is his lack of accuracy. That is a real problem, not a criticism by haters.
Locker is going to throw a lot of interceptions in the NFL and I don’t envision much success for him. But at least we have a prominent analyst who validates Tennessee’s selection, so they have that going for them.
