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Rosenfels' 3 intriguing QB performances from Week 3: An MVP and 2 rookies

Bill Streicher / USA TODAY Sports

Sage Rosenfels is a former 12-year NFL quarterback who now writes, does radio, and podcasts about the NFL and college football.

Cam Newton

Cam Newton is the reigning NFL MVP. He’s an excellent quarterback. His abilities are well-documented. But in order to win more trophies, especially a Lombardi, a key element of his game needs improvement.

Mike Shula, who was my quarterbacks coach in 2002 in Miami, is a well-respected offensive coordinator. Carolina has a long history of having a strong running game going back to the Jake Delhomme era, and Shula has used Newton’s rare ability to improve this rushing attack. The passing game, however, is still a weakness for Carolina - but that can be addressed.

Sunday, Carolina faced a top-notch Vikings defense that stopped the run (105 yards rushing as a team) and forced Newton to pass. This is when his main weakness showed up. In a carbon copy of the Super Bowl, when Denver’s No. 1-ranked defense forced Newton into third-and-long situations, Newton made mistake after mistake. In each game, his issue's been footwork, which is very correctable. Though Carolina’s pass protection was poor, a quarterback’s footwork can help the line with the ball coming out before the rush gets home.

Newton has one of the strongest arms in the NFL, probably second behind Aaron Rodgers. But when his feet aren’t right, key mistakes such as interceptions and fumbles pop up. With the Panthers up 10-0 and the offense backed up inside their 5-yard line, Shula decided to take a shot. Newton, coming off a full play-action fake, took four hitches in the pocket before getting sacked for a safety. No play in any NFL offense takes four hitches after a seven-step play fake. Generally it’s one hitch for the deep ball, a second hitch to the intermediate route, and a third hitch to your check down or run. But despite being in his own end zone, where you should have some sense of urgency, his poor footwork allowed the Vikings back into the game.

On the late third-quarter interception to Terence Newman, Newton again took a second hitch on a timing route to the sideline. In the NFL, being just a tenth of a second late will cost you, especially against a team that plays excellent man-to-man coverage, as the Vikings do. If Newton lets it loose on his first hitch and trusts his wide receiver to be in the right spot, that play would have been a completion and first down Panthers. But poor footwork cost him again.

This problem is fixable, and I know Mike Shula is coaching Newton to improve his footwork to become a great passer. The question is whether he puts that coaching into action. As he ages, his legs will win him fewer and fewer games. Passing-game footwork is the key to Cam Newton winning more than one MVP trophy and getting his first Super Bowl ring.

Carson Wentz

There is a lot of luck involved in being a successful NFL quarterback. Being drafted by a team with good players helps. Having a great defense and strong running game takes loads of pressure off a young quarterback as well (i.e. a young Ben Roethlisberger). But as a former quarterback, I believe there is nothing more important than the coaching staff that surrounds the most important player on the field.

Philadelphia isn’t the first team to take a gamble and give up multiple draft picks to move up and select a quarterback. But having a head coach who played quarterback in the NFL for 12 years, an offensive coordinator who played the position for 14 seasons, and a QB coach who was under center in college significantly improved the gamble's chances of paying off.

Before the draft, I was a Carson Wentz believer. I saw him destroy my alma mater Iowa State in his first career college start. As a midwesterner, I watched him win two national championships at North Dakota State. He checks off every box as to what teams look for in a quarterback. I believe Wentz would have had success no matter where he was drafted. He’s that good. But this much success this early has a lot to do with the coaches around him.

I played for five NFL teams and both offensive- and defensive-minded head coaches. From this experience, I learned it was a huge advantage to play for a coach or coaches who played quarterback in the NFL. They understand the challenges of the position and how to curate a plan for a quarterback’s success. Whether it’s installing an offense, teaching defenses, organizing practices, or calling plays, former quarterbacks understand the importance of the detail it takes to be successful.

Yes, I’m biased, but I believe nothing can replace experience. The quarterback has become without a doubt the most important position in football. To find or develop a good one is a mystery to many or even most NFL franchises. It is obvious to me that Eagles head coach Doug Pederson not only knows how to find one, but he knows how to develop one, too. Though it’s been only three games, Carson Wentz is going to be a stud in this league. A lot has to do with his ability, but his early success tells you a lot about his coaching staff’s as well.

Jacoby Brissett

Speaking of coaching, I wonder what award will be named after Bill Belichick when he retires. If he didn’t already own the title of greatest NFL head coach ever, he is making it a challenge to think otherwise after going 3-0 with his backup quarterbacks.

I’m fairly sure Jacoby Brissett didn’t think he’d be starting game three of the NFL season for the New England Patriots when he was drafted in the third round last May. But with Tom Brady’s suspension and Jimmy Garoppolo’s Week 2 shoulder injury, Brissett found himself in the middle of a coaching-tree reunion when the Patriots played the Texans. Not only is Texans head coach Bill O’Brien a Belichick disciple, but many on his staff are as well. Per usual, Belichick won this battle of mentor versus mentee.

Belichick and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels do a fantastic job of scouting personnel, both their own and their opponent's. Belichick has always been known for taking away the other team's strengths, and he also understands how to use his own players’ talents.

Brissett is young but has a solid skill set. He’s smart. He throws a nice ball and is accurate. He can make plays with his legs as well. But very few young quarterbacks really understand the complexities of the game. This takes time - in most cases, years of practices, meetings, and film sessions.

So Belichick and McDaniels maximized Brissett’s strengths and minimized his weaknesses. Though he only threw 19 passes in the game, most were simple half-field reads, three-step drops, or play action. Only a few times did Brissett have to worry about blitz issues, as he either had extra help in protection or the ball was out before the linebackers and safeties could get to him. That is 100 percent coaching. Don’t put a young quarterback in position to make mistakes. Take the complexity of the game out of his hands and keep it simple.

Nobody knows if Jacoby Brissett is a legit NFL quarterback yet. But he showed enough in his first game that, with the right coaching, it's clear he has enough ability and gamesmanship to win in the NFL.

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