QB Future Bright in AFC East

This past Sunday featured the debut of two rookie quarterbacks, both of whom play in the AFC East

By Kevin Reese

Geno Smith, product of West Virginia University, started his career in East Rutherford at MetLife Stadium. At the same time, about six hours away in Orchard Park, EJ Manuel, the only quarterback taken ahead of Smith, debuted against the division rival New England Patriots. The results of the two games might not have been the same, but both teams now have a lot to look forward to after watching their rookie signal callers take the field for the first time.

Bloomberg.com

Geno Smith was anointed the Jets starting quarterback this offseason, when former first round pick Mark Sanchez suffered an injury to his throwing shoulder. Of course when playing in New York, expectations are always high, especially for the starting quarterback. Geno did not disappoint. Now he didn’t go out there and sling the football around to the tune of 400 yards and five touchdowns, but what he did do was win. He showed that he has what it takes to get the job done when it needs to be. Trailing 17-15 with 34 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Geno did what he had to do. Starting at his own 20, Geno completed a 25-yard pass down the middle to Kellen Winslow. After rushing to the line to spike the ball, Geno showed of his legs to gain ten more yards. Following the play, Tampa Bay linebacker Lavonte David was penalized for a late hit on Smith. This set up the Jets for a Nick Folk field goal to put the Jets up for good.

Now like I said, Geno Smith didn’t win this game on his own, however, he put his team in the best position to win. Smith finished with 256 yards passing and one touchdown, completing 24 out of 38 throws. Also, he was able to add 47 yards on the ground. During the game winning drive, it was all Geno. He appeared to have the confidence of a ten-year veteran, not a rookie quarterback starting his first game.

Boston Globe

Now lets travel to Ralph Wilson Stadium, where EJ Manuel, first round pick out of Florida State, took the field. This was Manuel’s first live action since Week 2 of the preseason, after which Manuel had a minor procedure on his left knee. EJ lived up to being the first quarterback taken in this year’s draft, a move questioned by many. Manuel played a very efficient game. He completed 18 of his 27 passes including 2 touchdowns, did not throw an interception, and was not sacked once. After halftime, with the Bills trailing 17-14, Manuel led the Bills on a systematic 80-yard touchdown drive, capped off by an 18-yard touchdown pass to Stevie Johnson. At this point, it seemed as though the Bills might be able to defeat the Patriots for the second time in twenty tries. But of course, things returned to normal in the AFC East, and the lone main stay in the division at quarterback showed the young gun how it’s done. Starting at his own 34-yard line, Tom Brady marched his team down the field, putting them right in place for Stephen Gostkowski to kick the game-winning field goal.

While the Bills didn’t ultimately pull off the upset, EJ Manuel gave Bills fans a lot of reasons to be optimistic. First off, EJ played turnover free football, something which has been a bit of an Achilles’ heel for Buffalo recently. Second, EJ posted a Total QBR rating of 70.8. QBR measures quarterbacks performances and what they do to help their team, incorporating the context of when certain plays happen, and how it impacts the outcome of the game. EJ’s QBR of 70.8 was good for 11^th in the league, better than Aaron Rodgers and his Sunday counterpart, Tom Brady.

While both didn’t come out victorious on Sunday, both Geno Smith and EJ Manuel gave fans something to look forward to. While this division is still Tom Brady’s for the next couple of years, the young quarterbacks in this division might be able to supplant Brady in time. The future is very bright for the American Football Conference’s East division.