Now We’ll See What Is More Important…A Good QB or a Good Team?

There is an old debate I’ve heard hashed and rehashed by friends, commentators and radio talk jocks several times. The debate is what is more important…a good QB or a good team. I think it’s safe to say that quarterback is one of, if not the most, important position in all of sports. If a team has a solid franchise QB at the helm, then typically they will be successful. Prime example of this is the Cowboys. Throughout their history, Dallas has had several outstanding quarterbacks which are why they now have 5 Lombardi Trophies. I know this isn’t the norm as several teams haven’t been as blessed over their history, in this way, as Dallas (Chicago, Arizona, New Orleans and Atlanta to name just a few). But even with the Cowboys, the times they haven’t had good quarterback play (recently, the 2000-2004 seasons), they haven’t been real successful. Now that they have Romo, Dallas is the team with the best odds of winning the Super Bowl.

So, back to my point. The debate is which type team will go further…an average, or even slightly below average, team with a good quarterback or a good team with an average, or slightly below average, quarterback. We are about to find out this season by looking at which team will have more success this season, the New Yawk Jets or the New England Patriots. The Jets were 4-12 last season and no one really expected much of them this year. The Patriots on the other hand went 18-1 last year, loosing only the Super Bowl, and were the preseason odds on favorite to win the championship this year. However, the Jets traded for Brett Farve who, even though is a bit long in the tooth, is still a top 10 quarterback and the Patriots just lost reigning MVP Tom Brady for the season and are moving forward with Brady’s backup, Matt Cassel, who hasn’t started a game since he was in high school. Which team will end up with more wins at the end of the season?

You can make a case for both. In the case of the Jets, one can argue that a great quarterback will make other around him better. A transcendent quarterback has the intangibles that every team looks for in their leader. Some call it the “it factor”. “It” can’t be measured, like height, arm strength or foot speed, but “it” is the burning desire to win and whatever it takes to get there. If that means making everyone around them elevate their respective level of play, so be it. If you look at all the great quarterbacks, the majority of them all have, or had, “it”. Peyton Manning has “it”. Tony Romo has “it”. Brett Farve has “it”…as well as a pretty average team around him this year in the Jets. But Farve elevated his team to a road victory over Miami on Sunday which I’m not sure would have happened with Kellen Clemens leading the team, despite how bad the Dolphins are.

In the case for the Patriots, you can make the case that football is the ultimate team sport and that no one person is bigger than the team. If the team itself is strong, then you don’t necessarily need a great leader to get to the championship. Two examples of this would be the 2000 Baltimore Ravens and the 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Both of those teams won the Super Bowl without having a high profile quarterback. Baltimore had Trent Dilfer and Tampa Bay had Brad Johnon neither of whom produced eye popping stats but they played within their respective team’s “system” and, as a result of the team being strong, ended up winning the Super Bowl. Matt Cassel has no skins on the wall but team itself does having won 3 Super Bowls in 4 years. However, the 2007 Patriots were the most prolific scoring team the NFL has ever seen and that success was due, in large part, to the ability of Tom Brady. What will happen if the incumbent quarterback doesn’t possess the skills Brady has? Will the offense still continue to click or will defenses load up to stop the run daring Cassel to try to pick them apart as Brady would have done?

If I were a betting man, I would bet that the Patriots have a better chance of being a playoff team with Matt Cassel than the Jets have with Farve. Even thought the Patriots are an aging team, they have experience on their side and a solid coaching staff. Plus the Patriots have more talent at their skill positions (WR/TE/RB) than the Jets. So, I guess we will see if a more talented and experienced “team” can offset an inexperienced quarterback. By the end of the season, I would expect the Patriots to be 10-6, maybe 9-7, and the Jets to be 7-9, maybe 8-8.