Colt McCoy - Arm Strength
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McCoy came in with everything but ideal height and ideal arm. A smart, focused, hardworking player will try to improve his shortcomings... like Brees and Brady both improving arm speed and overall body strength in their few couple seasons.
It was written about McCoy that his arm improved from year to year at Texas, but I see a bigger jump between last April and this October than between any of those years. He also looks way more cut, bigger in the arms and chest. He was skinny before. He needed it... and I think it shows up.
I can't explain why he spins the ball so much tighter now, but it might have been a simple, small adjustment to his grip and release (which also seems quicker to me). He just looks different throwing the football. Not night-and-day, not magic... just more refined, faster, not turning the hand it to put that little wiggle on the ball.
I noticed it first against Pittsburgh but more against the Bengals: His arm is just really live right now. He's throwing effortlessly and the ball takes that "hop" off his hand that Quinn never had. Like it's got a little booster in it. If you watch a few quarterbacks warm up together, you'll see some have it and some don't. Brees was the same way... suddenly around his third year, the ball started popping off his hand. I'm sure it was the result of a lot of work. I read about how he trained to improve his arm speed.
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McCoy came in with everything but ideal height and ideal arm. A smart, focused, hardworking player will try to improve his shortcomings... like Brees and Brady both improving arm speed and overall body strength in their few couple seasons.
It was written about McCoy that his arm improved from year to year at Texas, but I see a bigger jump between last April and this October than between any of those years. He also looks way more cut, bigger in the arms and chest. He was skinny before. He needed it... and I think it shows up.
I can't explain why he spins the ball so much tighter now, but it might have been a simple, small adjustment to his grip and release (which also seems quicker to me). He just looks different throwing the football. Not night-and-day, not magic... just more refined, faster, not turning the hand it to put that little wiggle on the ball.
I noticed it first against Pittsburgh but more against the Bengals: His arm is just really live right now. He's throwing effortlessly and the ball takes that "hop" off his hand that Quinn never had. Like it's got a little booster in it. If you watch a few quarterbacks warm up together, you'll see some have it and some don't. Brees was the same way... suddenly around his third year, the ball started popping off his hand. I'm sure it was the result of a lot of work. I read about how he trained to improve his arm speed.
McCoy came in with everything but ideal height and ideal arm. A smart, focused, hardworking player will try to improve his shortcomings... like Brees and Brady both improving arm speed and overall body strength in their few couple seasons.
It was written about McCoy that his arm improved from year to year at Texas, but I see a bigger jump between last April and this October than between any of those years. He also looks way more cut, bigger in the arms and chest. He was skinny before. He needed it... and I think it shows up.
I can't explain why he spins the ball so much tighter now, but it might have been a simple, small adjustment to his grip and release (which also seems quicker to me). He just looks different throwing the football. Not night-and-day, not magic... just more refined, faster, not turning the hand it to put that little wiggle on the ball.
I noticed it first against Pittsburgh but more against the Bengals: His arm is just really live right now. He's throwing effortlessly and the ball takes that "hop" off his hand that Quinn never had. Like it's got a little booster in it. If you watch a few quarterbacks warm up together, you'll see some have it and some don't. Brees was the same way... suddenly around his third year, the ball started popping off his hand. I'm sure it was the result of a lot of work. I read about how he trained to improve his arm speed.
His skills have progressed, but he hasn't been a Tebow esque project either. He hasn't rebuilt his throwing motion ground up or drastically changed his body composition. He's definitely better, though.
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McCoy came in with everything but ideal height and ideal arm. A smart, focused, hardworking player will try to improve his shortcomings... like Brees and Brady both improving arm speed and overall body strength in their few couple seasons.
It was written about McCoy that his arm improved from year to year at Texas, but I see a bigger jump between last April and this October than between any of those years. He also looks way more cut, bigger in the arms and chest. He was skinny before. He needed it... and I think it shows up.
I can't explain why he spins the ball so much tighter now, but it might have been a simple, small adjustment to his grip and release (which also seems quicker to me). He just looks different throwing the football. Not night-and-day, not magic... just more refined, faster, not turning the hand it to put that little wiggle on the ball.
I noticed it first against Pittsburgh but more against the Bengals: His arm is just really live right now. He's throwing effortlessly and the ball takes that "hop" off his hand that Quinn never had. Like it's got a little booster in it. If you watch a few quarterbacks warm up together, you'll see some have it and some don't. Brees was the same way... suddenly around his third year, the ball started popping off his hand. I'm sure it was the result of a lot of work. I read about how he trained to improve his arm speed.
His skills have progressed, but he hasn't been a Tebow esque project either. He hasn't rebuilt his throwing motion ground up or drastically changed his body composition. He's definitely better, though.
His skills have progressed, but he hasn't been a Tebow esque project either. He hasn't rebuilt his throwing motion ground up or drastically changed his body composition. He's definitely better, though.
Totally agree. The bigger transformation is in the way the ball comes out, not the motion.
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His skills have progressed, but he hasn't been a Tebow esque project either. He hasn't rebuilt his throwing motion ground up or drastically changed his body composition. He's definitely better, though.
Totally agree. The bigger transformation is in the way the ball comes out, not the motion.
Totally agree. The bigger transformation is in the way the ball comes out, not the motion.
Yeah he just gives it a very quick little flick and the ball flies 30 yards. It may not have an amazing amount of zip, but even if it arrives a split second later because of that, his fast release shaved off a split second because he didn't have to plant and wind up. And the receiver gets a way more catchable ball that way.
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On OBR, two guys from the amazing Football Outsiders analyzed a Browns play (one of my favorite features there)... and McCoy. They talked about a lot of McCoy's qualities (anticipation, accuracy, intelligence, mobility) but said his very best is learning and processing, making mistakes only once.
In that article, it said McCoy has an average arm at best and it would be a legitimate limitation in some offenses... but not the West Coast.
I feel a lot better about McCoy's arm because it IS in the average to slightly below average area now... but as fans, we need to know it does create limitations. McCoy is ideal for the WCO and, as the article pointed out, Holmgren is the "best living teacher" of it now.
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Oh boy. The old "arm strength" argument. Listen up. Nobody has ever lost a game because their arm strength wasn't good enough. Well you know. Within limits. They lose games by throwing it to the wrong person, making a bad read, that kind of stuff.
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Oh boy. The old "arm strength" argument. Listen up. Nobody has ever lost a game because their arm strength wasn't good enough. Well you know. Within limits. They lose games by throwing it to the wrong person, making a bad read, that kind of stuff.
Oh boy. The old "arm strength" argument. Listen up. Nobody has ever lost a game because their arm strength wasn't good enough. Well you know. Within limits. They lose games by throwing it to the wrong person, making a bad read, that kind of stuff.
Yes and no. I think more quarterbacks wash out because of what's between their ears... but plenty of really good college quarterbacks just don't have the arm to put the ball in a tight spot in a very short period of time. Some are out of the league, others are lifetime backups (Billy Volek, Colt Brennan, Ken Dorsey, etc.).
But it really isn't a league that depends on a big arm anymore, with the shorter, more efficient passing game. Intelligence, accuracy, anticipation, a quick release, mobility... all more important. Agreed.
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But it really isn't a league that depends on a big arm anymore, with the shorter, more efficient passing game. Intelligence, accuracy, anticipation, a quick release, mobility... all more important. Agreed. Shep
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Bless you, Sheppie ! ("sniff, that was beautiful, man !)
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Oh boy. The old "arm strength" argument. Listen up. Nobody has ever lost a game because their arm strength wasn't good enough. Well you know. Within limits. They lose games by throwing it to the wrong person, making a bad read, that kind of stuff.
Yes and no. I think more quarterbacks wash out because of what's between their ears... but plenty of really good college quarterbacks just don't have the arm to put the ball in a tight spot in a very short period of time. Some are out of the league, others are lifetime backups (Billy Volek, Colt Brennan, Ken Dorsey, etc.).
But it really isn't a league that depends on a big arm anymore, with the shorter, more efficient passing game. Intelligence, accuracy, anticipation, a quick release, mobility... all more important. Agreed.
But it really isn't a league that depends on a big arm anymore, with the shorter, more efficient passing game. Intelligence, accuracy, anticipation, a quick release, mobility... all more important. Agreed.
Try telling that to Jamarcus Russell.
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The NFL has seen dozens of bazooka armed QB's who had lousy, short careers. McCoy's arm is adequate enough to make all the necessary throws and more importantly, he is very accurate.
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The NFL has seen dozens of bazooka armed QB's who had lousy, short careers. McCoy's arm is adequate enough to make all the necessary throws and more importantly, he is very accurate.
The NFL has seen dozens of bazooka armed QB's who had lousy, short careers. McCoy's arm is adequate enough to make all the necessary throws and more importantly, he is very accurate.
Yeah, he's fantastically accurate. He also had a nice, compact release, is now throwing a tight ball (important in the wind), and can throw on the run or without optimum set and plant (quick decision on a slant while backpedaling, for instance). The latter is something Steve Young talks about a lot, the ability to throw in different ways. He has great anticipation.
Arm strength matters. I'm not talking about having a bazooka, which isn't really that important and seems too often to come with an empty head and a lack of accuracy. But you have to have enough arm to open the whole playbook, hit the deep outs, drill the ball into tight spots, etc. You can make up for some of it with accuracy and anticipation... but not all of it.
Of the really good, accurate passers, leaving out all the numbskulls, you're only talking about Cutler, Vick, Flacco, and Rodgers with "big" arms. Stafford when he's healthy. With Pennington no longer a starter, there are no real "light" arms among the top 32. It's pretty tight cluster of "more than enough."
The good news on McCoy is he seems to still have room to grow in that area. He has way more arm today than a year ago. By next season, I expect him to be the Drew Brees area.
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I agree. When he was, well... NOT impressing anybody throughout the preseason, I said you can't really count out a kid with that kind of fire and work ethic. They tend to find a way... I just didn't think it would happen quite so fast. In retrospect, I think that last preseason game was more meaningful than I thought at the time. He was unlearning a pretty funky Texas offense... and has clearly been doing his homework in the film room AND in the weight room.
He has "it." " Shep...
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Thanks for the "it" thing, Sheply, when it comes to McCoy. I don't believe that whatever Colt and Seneca lack to be "elite"... makes them not winners with the right pieces in place.
BTW, Sheply, what did you think of the hit on McCoy by harrison? You haven't been around....
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