An encouraging MMQB Carson Wentz article...

  • To unlock all of features of Rams On Demand please take a brief moment to register. Registering is not only quick and easy, it also allows you access to additional features such as live chat, private messaging, and a host of other apps exclusive to Rams On Demand.

Rams43

Hall of Fame
Joined
Jun 20, 2014
Messages
4,130
[mmqb.si.com]
THE QB: Carson Wentz, North Dakota State
THE COACH: Tim Polasek, offensive coordinator, NDSU
OFFENSE: Multi-spread

Polasek, 36, returned to North Dakota State to lead the offense in 2014 after a short stint at Northern Illinois. Carson Wentz passed for 3,111 yards and 25 touchdowns with 10 interceptions in his first season as a starter in 2014, utilizing vertical passing concepts popular in pro football and foreign to many college spread offenses.

During the pre-draft process, Polasek was quizzed on Wentz’s mastery of the offense and his pre-snap responsibilities. Like Goff, Wentz had the ability in an injury-shortened 2015 season to check to a prescribed run or pass play with an additional check the coaches simply called “Carson.” If Wentz recognized a trouble situation, he could spout any play in the book. Additionally, Wentz was required to call out the protection on every pass play, a job for most NFL centers.

“The NFL people have been blown away with what he’s had to handle protection wise,” Polasek says. “The quarterbacks he’s being compared to are not necessarily allowed to make checks or the right protection call. There’s going to be multiple times in a game where he checks from run to pass. He’s got situations that he has to get us out of otherwise I look really bad as a play-caller.”

However, the most popular questions Polasek faced concerned the level of competition: How good is the FCS, really? What has this kid really been exposed to?

NDSU has won the last five FCS titles and has never had a losing season, and they currently boast five active NFL players, including Jets cornerback Marcus Williams, who picked off six passes in 2015. The same cannot be said for conference opponents like Missouri State and Southern Illinois. NDSU coaches have been using variations of the same anecdote to defend the level of play: Wentz schooled the best defense in the FCS on a daily basis in practice.

“He torched our defense in practice since he walked on campus,” Polasek says. “The corner he picked on when he was a redshirt freshman was Marcus Williams.”

From a physical standpoint, at 6-5, 237, Wentz checks all the boxes, but scouts have wondered about his mechanics. Several have noted Wentz’s tendency to hold the ball longer than necessary or hold the ball for a split-second too long when the open man appears.

Says Polasek: “Can he play faster? Yes. And I think he’s ready for that. There are so many times when he was like, can we make that five steps instead of seven?”

The truly thorough NFL teams, including one whose entire offensive staff has already worked out Wentz privately in Fargo in advance of his pro day today, have quizzed Polasek on Wentz’s character. Can he really be the consummate leader he’s being described as?

“They say, guys, there’s got to be something with his character. This guy can’t be perfect. But those questions have gone away,” Polasek says. “Carson does his best work while we’re not watching, and he’s not a nightlife guy. This is a kid who would be in his truck by 4 p.m. on Saturday and go hunt geese all weekend, and be in the office by 7 a.m. Monday morning and still get a 4.0 GPA.”
 

bwdenverram

Legend
Joined
Jul 25, 2010
Messages
5,497
Name
BW
You know character had to be a huge piece for Fisher and Snead willing to do this.
If his talent measures at the NFL level we could be set for the next decade.
 

Merlin

Enjoying the ride
Rams On Demand Sponsor
Joined
May 8, 2014
Messages
37,043
Thing to keep in mind, @Rams43, is level of competition. I do think Wentz is higher than Goff on 90% of NFL team boards, because he's so big, athetic, and talented. But Goff is in the mix, IMO, because of two reasons: extremely quick decision making ability, and those glorious feet. His feet are ridiculous.
 

tahoe

Pro Bowler
Joined
May 19, 2014
Messages
1,664
The only real question on Wentz is the level of competition but its not like the PAC12 has great defenses. Roethlisberger and Flacco did great coming out of the fcs. Wentz will be a star in the nfl.
 

Merlin

Enjoying the ride
Rams On Demand Sponsor
Joined
May 8, 2014
Messages
37,043
First thing I told my wife after I heard was "well at least I don't have to deal with Fish & Snead's high security BS any more, because it doesn't matter!"

Wrong again lol.
 

Ramrasta

(╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻
Joined
Sep 7, 2010
Messages
3,116
Name
Tyler
I prefer big, physical QBs but it feels like it doubles the risk of this crazy trade to #1 when you spend it on a guy out of North Dakota. I don't think character is a deciding factor between these 2 QBs because they sound like they have it together.
 

RamFanWA

Rams On Demand Sponsor
Rams On Demand Sponsor
Joined
Oct 15, 2015
Messages
3,127
Name
DavidG
In regards to Wentz... that QB from Northern Iowa worked out OK, too!