In John Hughes classic movie, “Home Alone,” Kevin, the child left behind tells everyone he meets: “Christmas is the season of perpetual hope.” The NFL has its version of “perpetual hope” and it occurs from May through July, until the pads come one and the reality sets in. Once the rookies arrive, the free agents integrate into the team, hope rises to Super Bowl-winning levels — for all teams.
I’m serious, even the Atlanta Falcons, and Jacksonville Jaguars believe they can win it all. Talk to any executives or scouts after they examine practice, they tell everyone within an ear shot that roster decisions will be challenging and players on the bubble are easily tradeable. I can hear them now saying, “this roster will be tough to cut.” It happens every year at this time as predictable as the sparrows flying south from winter. The assistant coaches love the rookies, love the additions to the roster and feel their problems have been solved. Again, until the pads return, hope makes every NFL building come alive. When the preseason games begin, and teams determine most rookies are not ready for prime time and the holes once thought were plugged, are wide open again, then reality sets in.
Which leads us to the key for success of any team: their best player playing better. The true hope springs from the core players playing better, not the rookies. And often the reason the team failed to fulfill its promise from a year ago, is the best players didn’t play their best. The hardest admission for fans and even team executives to acknowledge is its best player isn’t playing his best. Everyone assumes it’s not them, they cannot be the problem and the excuses for poor play are overflowing.
Here are four QBs that need to play better in 2022: