Five Reasons Why Beck or Grossman Does Not Matter For The Redskins

I am indifferent to who starts at quarterback for the Washington Redskins. Both John Beck and Rex Grossman performed similarly in their preseason starts. We Redskins fans can exhale after holding our collective breadths at the notion of John Beck starting over Grossman or Donovan McNabb.

Quarterbacks are the glamour boys of football. It’s true they are the lynchpin of the offense. They and the center are the only players who touch the ball on every play. Stop the quarterback and you stop the offense. But the attention paid to Beck or Grossman misses the point. Outside of Washington especially, the focus on Beck vs. Grossman ranges from the excessive to the ridiculous.

Here are five reasons why it does not matter who starts at quarterback for the Redskins.

1. Equal performers in the bottom half

Greg Trippiedi, my Hog Heaven writing partner, and I occasionally indulged in those youth-or-experience debates on the old MVN blog. I inevitably championed experience because I’m more, um, “seasoned.” In the case of Beck’s youth inexperience or Grossman’s experience, it does not matter. Whoever starts will throw for 215 yards per game, completing just under 60 percent of their passes while throwing five or six more touchdowns than interceptions.

Donovan McNabb would have done about the same if he were on the roster. McNabb, Grossman and Beck will perform slightly less well than Jason Campbell will with Oakland. (Poor Campbell. He is finally in an ideal situation with a head coach who wants him and a second go-round with OC Al Saunders. But he has just five games to lock his starting position or Al Davis will make the team start Terrelle Pryor.)

Beck or Grossman isn’t worth the argument. Whoever starts for the ‘Skins will be a bottom half performer. That is no put-down. Only 32 men in the world can do the job. Teams can win with that performance (See Sanchez, Mark).

The Redskins did not get worse because McNabb is gone. The playoffs aren’t riding on the decision.

2. Shanahan’s quick hook

Mike Shanahan benched John Elway, Jay Schroeder, Jake Plummer and Donovan McNabb. The biggest threat to Beck or Grossman is not the other team. It’s the coach. Both players will start…and be pulled… this season. It’s Shanahan’s way. Get used to it.

3. Healthier running backs

The public firing of Donovan McNabb hid the fact that the Redskins’ 2010 rushing attack fell off a cliff. Injuries were the culprit, but the offensive line blocked no better for the rushers than they did for the passers.

Maybe it is just a tease, but Tim Hightower and Roy Helu showed more flash on the ground than anything we saw in Washington last year. Hightower is all but named as the starter. I’m not sure where Ryan Torain fits on the depth chart, or if he even makes the team. With or without Torain, Washington’s stable of young legs is the quarterback’s best friend.

4. Sav Rocca

A punter who averages 50+ yards per punt helps the defense in the field position battle, provided the cover team actually covers, which the ‘Skins did not do well in Baltimore last Friday. The defense has a better chance to make stops when they have a long field to work with. Sometimes that translates into a shorter field for the offense to work with. Short fields ranks up there with running game and O-lines as the quarterback’s best friend.

5. DEE-fence

Or more specifically, pass rush. The football world outside of Washington is so focused on the quarterback race that they are missing the hidden gem of Washington’s front seven. They ain’t perfect, but are improved over last year.

Barry Cofield is a better nose tackle than Albert Haynesworth. Stephen Bowen and Adam Carriker are better defensive ends than Albert Haynesworth. By all signs, first-round 2011 Draft pick Ryan Kerrigan is on a fast learning curve. Tackling machine Rocky McIntosh moves to the inside linebacker spot next to tackling machine London Fletcher. If nothing else, that makes McIntosh slightly less of a coverage risk.

Depth is an issue. The loss of second-round 2011 Draft pick Jarvis Jenkins from the rotation is a severe loss (could cost a game). But overall, personnel upgrades and a year understanding DC Jim Haslett’s schemes make the pass rush the team’s biggest improvement. It dwarfs anything happening at quarterback.

Football is the most team-oriented of sports. The quarterback may be the most important single player, but he is not the only player.