How does going 3/10 equate to a "raw deal"? It ain't like he had 7 drops. The entire section where I was sitting (southwest corner, near 15yd line) was literally up out of our seats, pointing to #10 and screaming "SHEPARD, SHEPARD" while the freaking play was developing. Only after we pleaded with him did he FINALLY throw the ball, by which time the safety got over to him. It was a terribly, terribly late decision by Jefferson, and certainly not a "good play" by anyone. What about the second pick he threw, when there was no Tiger within 20yds of the ball? Are you going to apologize for that one, too? No, Jefferson has had FOUR games (plus last year) to improve. Meanwhile, Lee threw for more yards in shared time than JJ did over his previous two games. Do you really, honestly think that there is any chance in hell that JJ leads that last drive down the field? The kid can barely complete a forward pass. Too soon? What else do you need to see from JJ?
This is all true. But Jefferson is being treated equally horribly this year. I agree he struggles with overcoming adversity, which is why I think he got a raw deal Saturday. We got off to the best start we could've asked for, then on his next series he throws a pick. From there, it was a wash as he was getting booed at home and jerked in and out of the lineup. The bottom line, is neither QB was handled properly from the start, and that falls on Crowton/Miles.
He had one drop and one that was ruled an incompletion when it was really a catch and a fumble (or not a fumble as Toliver was already down, but I digress.) For whatever reason, we didn't challenge it and neither did the booth, but two throws which hit Toliver between the 8 and the 0 were not counted as completions. That's 5/10 right there. When I say raw deal, I mean with the emotional roller coaster of starting the game great, then struggling, then getting booed, and then yanked in and out of the lineup. It's not fair to either QB, really. The only other time Jefferson was allowed to throw the ball, he had a nice drive going (hit TT on a slant) and had us in field goal range. Then D-Pete fumbled and Lee was in after that. From there, JJ's confidence began to waver and he wasn't allowed to settle into a rhythm. Lee put up some good yardage, but at least 5 of his completions were parallel to the LOS. He completed two passes down field all game. Congratulations, you, like everybody else, can see the open receivers from the stands better than the players can at field level. Do you want a cookie? Right, it was only after he heard you pleading with him. I think Jackson covered about 10 yards in 3 seconds. Good closing speed and a good play. Not like Jefferson threw it right to the defense, he threw to an open man too late, and the open man was no longer open due to a fast break on the ball by the safety. It's not what I need to see from JJ, it's what I'm expecting to see from Lee. More throws off the back foot, more force jobs into the middle of the field, and more delay of games/intentional groundings. Both QBs are incredibly shaky, I'm just trying to provide some perspective on JJ's struggles. Yes, he was bad on Saturday, but not that bad. And yes, Lee looked better than Jefferson on Saturday, but not to the degree that is being suggested. Hypothetical, yes, but if Jefferson spots the open man quicker on his first throw, and completes that pass, he may go on to repeat his Chick-fil-A bowl performance. There are just too many variables in play to definitively say one QB is better than the other right now.
Jefferson is starting and we're playing musical chairs with the QBs against a MUCH BETTER defense in the 2nd most hostile environment in the SEC.
I agree Jefferson is being treated horribly, but when it was happening to Lee, you could hear the guy talk post game, and he was humble, he was taking all the responsibility, he showed class, and he showed in my opinion, a want to get better and earn his job back. I don't see that with Jefferson, if you listen to his comments, he thinks he is playing good.
Yeah, the nonchalant interview answers are starting to get a little disturbing, but I think deep down, he knows he isn't playing well.
These's are football players not children. JJ's been in the system for 3 years now. As a junior you're suppose to be able to handle the pressure. Lee has taken MORE crap from fans and media and yet when he was asked to come out there with the game on the line and perform, he did just that. What's your excuse for how JJ has played all season? His stats through 5 games: 46/89 51.7% 5 yards/attempt 6 INT 2 TD 449 Yards If you take the first game stats away when they were playing against 2nd string DB's his stats are even worse. 31/68 45.5% 4.3yards/attempt 5 INT 0 TD 258 Yards
Incorrect. It's 3/10. Drops, fumbles, etc. are part of the game, and they happen to every QB. If the kids confidence is really that shaky, then he has no business playing D-1 football. So what? Jefferson can't do that. They ask him to, but he takes about 5 minutes before he gets rid of it, thus nullifying the design of the play. Lee got it there quickly, and allowed our WRs to get into space and gain yards. Again, Jefferson has not been able to do this all year long. His slow release makes it almost impossible. That's just bad math. If 5 were to the LOS and 2 were downfield, where in the world were the other 9? Just quit, already. If we can see it +/-100yds away with no idea what routes are being run, there's no excuse for a QB 15yds away who knows exactly what routes are being run to not see it. Didn't think I needed to spell it out, but the point was to illustrate how long it took him to notice his open reciever. Any average safety playing CFB could have made that play. Nothing "good" about reading the QBs eyes and moving towards their target, especially not with the time that JJ afforded him. Sorry, I'm not convinced. What about this other pick? I'm still waiting to be convinced of what a wonderful pass that was. Yeah, Lee was total garbage on that last drive. Oh, and that long pass to Randle was just awful, too. Look, the kid is certainly not without fault, but he is light years ahead of Jefferson. As demonstrated on Saturday, this team/defense can absorb a couple of mistakes from Lee. What it cannot absorb is absolutely ZERO production from Jefferson. In fact, that's exactly how bad he was. Putrid.
I could have sworn one of those was from Lee. It all averages out, IMO. He still had 8 yards/completion. Not world beater, but he was moving the ball.
That's one of my biggest problems with JJ. Look at the way he reacted in the WVU game when a FRESHMAN WR missed one of his WIDE passes. He started yelling and fussing at the freshman. Also watch the video of him at the end of the Tenn game when everyone thought LSU lost, no reaction at all. It was as if he didn't care one bit. There was no shame, embarassment, nothing.
