John Beck and Shanny's Mind Games

ESPN has several bits about the QB situation in WA. Shanahan is reportedly "okay" with John Beck as his starter. I hope Beck could really get a legitimate shot, but Shanny may be just using him as leverage for another deal. Links:



http://espn.go.com/blog/nfceast/post/_/id/26805/is-shanahan-serious-about-john-beck" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;



http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=6563646" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Beck is the guy as of today, so, he does need to run with it. McNabb is heading out, so the question will be who they bring in. Grossman is not the guy, if you ask me, so why not give Beck a shot, unless you plan on trading for a better QB. Beck just needs to keep his mouth shut, though, act the part, and see what happens.

Lawboy wrote:
Beck is the guy as of today, so, he does need to run with it. McNabb is heading out, so the question will be who they bring in. Grossman is not the guy, if you ask me, so why not give Beck a shot, unless you plan on trading for a better QB. Beck just needs to keep his mouth shut, though, act the part, and see what happens.

i have a bad feeling that beck is going to end up looking real stupid through all of this. also the mouth shut thing is good advice. I mean really, saying that he hopes that things go bad for mcnabb. it makes sense and everybody knows that is true, but you just don't verbalize it.

I have hung out with John a few times and i think he is a great guy with all the tools to be successful as a starter. My only worry is about his mental game. I'm not sure he has that killer instinct that is needed to be top athlete on the biggest stage.



I also hope the lockout doesn't screw his chance at getting another shot to prove himself as a starter.

Toughness and aggression needs to be present at BYU. I like Becks behavior



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I'd really like to see John Beck get a shot @ starting in Washington. I'm kinda partial to the Aaron Rogers approach - just keep working.



I know John has endured a pile of crap and been bounced around the NFL. But, Washington is searching for "that starting QB" & I think John Beck could be the answer - he just needs to prove it to Mike Shanahan.



This is probably a "do or die" year for Mike Shanahan and the Redskins. Mike is looking for that QB that can get them into the playoffs!! I think Beck can do it. It's a good opportunity.

Life-long Redskins and Cougfan here. Nothing I would love more than seeing John Beck have the opportunity to prove he's starter worthy. I honestly don't believe that he'll get the chance. I think everything Shanahan has said to date points to the Redskins trying to re-sign Grossman cheap. If a free agent (Hasslebeck, Orton, etc.) Is available, they'll go after him. Timing is the only thing that works in Beck's favor. If there isn't time to get a free agent prepared, and they can't re-sign Grossman, then the job is Becks, for a while.



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crh55 wrote:
I have hung out with John a few times and i think he is a great guy with all the tools to be successful as a starter. My only worry is about his mental game. I'm not sure he has that killer instinct that is needed to be top athlete on the biggest stage.



I also hope the lockout doesn't screw his chance at getting another shot to prove himself as a starter.

And "hanging out a few times" qualifies you to comment on his mental game? And even if it did, were you out there on the field doing battle with him? Or did he confess to you his problems with his mental game? Ya, he lacked that "killer instinct" in college, didnt he. Lets ask the Utes and Johnny, shall we? You dont know Jack about John. Sorry, crh, I know I am sounding a little tough on you, but dont confuse your mental "worry" game and John's mental game.

What frightens me is Mike Shanahan's history of picking his own QBs. The only time he was really a winning coach was when he took over a John Elway team. Ever since then, it's been bust after bust, after mismanaged talent under QB.

dmcougar wrote:

I have hung out with John a few times and i think he is a great guy with all the tools to be successful as a starter. My only worry is about his mental game. I'm not sure he has that killer instinct that is needed to be top athlete on the biggest stage.



I also hope the lockout doesn't screw his chance at getting another shot to prove himself as a starter.

And "hanging out a few times" qualifies you to comment on his mental game? And even if it did, were you out there on the field doing battle with him? Or did he confess to you his problems with his mental game? Ya, he lacked that "killer instinct" in college, didnt he. Lets ask the Utes and Johnny, shall we? You dont know Jack about John. Sorry, crh, I know I am sounding a little tough on you, but dont confuse your mental "worry" game and John's mental game.

beck is mentally weak unless he feels really comfortable. he didn't feel comfortable until his last year at byu. i remember him crying each weekend on tv after they would lose prior that season. i just don't think any franchize will give him enough time to get to that point in the nfl. hopefully we are wrong but i agree that beck seems mentally weak and struggles under pressure. yes yes i know his last year he did some great things, i agree, but the nfl is different and i don't see him doing that in the nfl.



i really hope i am wrong. i like beck. i think shanny is playing games here though. i will be surprised if beck starts.

Didn't he only ever cry one time in a post game press conference? Your obvious exaggeration leads me to believe you've got something more against beck than your letting on.



I frankly like the fact he got choked up early on in his career. It showed how much he cared about the programs tradition of winning and how he didn't want to be associated with the losing. If he cried when he was a senior that would have been one thing. But he was a freshman, maybe a sophomore, an



d with as brutal as the media and fans are on BYU QBs it's frankly not that surprising.



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gmj81 wrote:
Didn't he only ever cry one time in a post game press conference? Your obvious exaggeration leads me to believe you've got something more against beck than your letting on.



I frankly like the fact he got choked up early on in his career. It showed how much he cared about the programs tradition of winning and how he didn't want to be associated with the losing. If he cried when he was a senior that would have been one thing. But he was a freshman, maybe a sophomore, an



d with as brutal as the media and fans are on BYU QBs it's frankly not that surprising.



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I figured someone would read too much into my exaggerated point. I was just using it as one example of him being mentally weak. while crying does not necessarily = mentally weak, he was just a mess overall and his crying was simply an indication of that. I have nothing against John Beck. I like John Beck. I simply have an opinion that he will not make it in the nfl. he most definitely has what it takes physically, but I am not convinced he has what it takes mentally. It will take him too long before he will get to that mentally comfortable point in the nfl that he was at in college. It would take a perfect storm for that to happen and as you can see that has not happened yet. He has had a less than ideal situation since he came into the nfl. I don't see it happening in the future either.



Hope I am wrong. I love Beck. I also liked that the he really cared and wanted to win. That is what made him so great. He was a crazy hard worker and had some serious skill. He had an amazing senior year. To think simply because I think he doesn't have what it takes I have something against him personally is quite a stretch.

Just a mess overall??? examples please?



John Beck was one of the few bright spots of an otherwise dark period at BYU.

declocoug wrote:
Just a mess overall??? examples please?



John Beck was one of the few bright spots of an otherwise dark period at BYU.

Until his senior year, beck struggled under pressure. Just go rewatch the tape if you would like. Yes he was a bright spot but he couldn't handle pressure. It was mental with him. His senior year after his hard work and experience he seemed to be able to handle that pressure. he seemed above it mentally. will he get to that point in the nfl, i don't know, my guess is no.



he has been shuffled around in three different offenses now. he has only been with his current team about a year now and i just don't see him getting to the point he got to at byu. there he knew the system, knew his opponents and his teammates. finally it clicked. the pressure wasn't too much for him. in the nlf where he has been shuffled around and basically expected to get results right away i just don't see it happening. I don't see a team waiting for him to get comfortable mentally.



my whole assumption is that he struggles mentally unless he feel very comfortable. I dont see him being given enough time to feel comfortable in a system. maybe if he had been kept on one team for a few years and worked slowly into it, but that has not happened for him unfortunately. my assumption could be wrong. I have no inside connections. just a fan that has watched his career relatively closely.

Johnny, I usually like what you have to say, but in this case I think you have quite over-stated your point. Your cheap shot about his crying when it was only after one game discredited you about as bad as it did for beck crying--which he did after a horrible loss and during a dark and dreary time at byu. Lets see you have to deal with crowton in your head and try to function as a D-1 qb in a program that was at an all-time low.

I can accept John needing to "feel comfortable' and that his near incomparable ethic to prepare has some explanation/connection to that need to feel comfortable. But for many QB's as well as other positions in the NFL, it is so often the case that preparation has to meet scheme, luck, timing, depth chart, etc to help create a good fit. AND, on point, I htink most of who care do have some concern about Shanny's motives, communication and history as it relates to John.

I don't get why people say Beck sucked until his senior year. He was very good in 2005, and I don't think his play cost us a single game that year. He led the league in total offense and was 1st team All-MWC.



* The 20-3 loss to BC was the first with a new HC and OC, resulting in a small playbook full of dump offs, and our O-line was green and got flagged for holding all day. Beck did exactly what he was asked to do, going 27-35 (77%) for 232 yards and no picks.



* The loss to TCU featured a ridiculous performance by Beck that could have only been better had Todd Watkins not dropped a couple of guaranteed TDs. It was thanks to numerous injuries to the defense, a bad long snap in OT on an extra point, and a worse fumble no-call that we lost that game. Not because of Beck's "mental issues." The dude threw 5 TDs and 517 yards.



* The SDSU loss was a team-wide effort at losing, and you can't give that one to Beck's "mental issues." Bronco sure didn't, and blamed himself.



* The New Mexico win could be chalked up to a lucky fumble at the end. But somebody had to lead two 4th quarter TD drives to actually get the points on the board. Who was that? Oh yeah - John Beck, the head case. His overall stat line in that game is pretty decent, too.



* Against Notre Dame, who would eventually play in a BCS bowl, the final score shows a blowout, 23-49. But do you realize that we had it at 23-28 (and almost 25-28) in the third quarter? A much bigger issue in that game was our inability to cover the ND receivers (who were all 6'3" or taller). Beck's pick six game in desperation garbage time.



* I don't want to talk much about the Utah game. That game pissed me off. I don't know how you give up a TD on 3rd and 28. That's ridiculous. And there was enough other crap that happened in that game that it should never have gone to OT.



* In the bowl game against Cal, Beck was nails down the stretch. Every single scoring drive had to go like 90 yards (except one, which was a wimpy 74 yards) against one of the Pac-10's stingiest defenses. If our defense doesn't fall asleep right before halftime, Beck's last drive in that game is to win it before overtime, not force overtime. He was good in that game, and despite the fluky end of half play and the bad field position, he still would have marched down the field and won the game if it weren't for that last pass getting tipped.



2004 would have been rough for anybody given the injury situation, the QB carousel, and the strength of schedule. (We played THREE teams that finished the year undefeated.) Also, Crowton.



I just think that Beck did as well as anybody could have expected any other great BYU quarterback to play in 2004 and 2005 given the circumstances, teammates, and opponents he was faced with.

redneckjedi wrote:
I don't get why people say Beck sucked until his senior year. He was very good in 2005, and I don't think his play cost us a single game that year. He led the league in total offense and was 1st team All-MWC.



* The 20-3 loss to BC was the first with a new HC and OC, resulting in a small playbook full of dump offs, and our O-line was green and got flagged for holding all day. Beck did exactly what he was asked to do, going 27-35 (77%) for 232 yards and no picks.



* The loss to TCU featured a ridiculous performance by Beck that could have only been better had Todd Watkins not dropped a couple of guaranteed TDs. It was thanks to numerous injuries to the defense, a bad long snap in OT on an extra point, and a worse fumble no-call that we lost that game. Not because of Beck's "mental issues." The dude threw 5 TDs and 517 yards.



* The SDSU loss was a team-wide effort at losing, and you can't give that one to Beck's "mental issues." Bronco sure didn't, and blamed himself.



* The New Mexico win could be chalked up to a lucky fumble at the end. But somebody had to lead two 4th quarter TD drives to actually get the points on the board. Who was that? Oh yeah - John Beck, the head case. His overall stat line in that game is pretty decent, too.



* Against Notre Dame, who would eventually play in a BCS bowl, the final score shows a blowout, 23-49. But do you realize that we had it at 23-28 (and almost 25-28) in the third quarter? A much bigger issue in that game was our inability to cover the ND receivers (who were all 6'3" or taller). Beck's pick six game in desperation garbage time.



* I don't want to talk much about the Utah game. That game pissed me off. I don't know how you give up a TD on 3rd and 28. That's ridiculous. And there was enough other crap that happened in that game that it should never have gone to OT.



* In the bowl game against Cal, Beck was nails down the stretch. Every single scoring drive had to go like 90 yards (except one, which was a wimpy 74 yards) against one of the Pac-10's stingiest defenses. If our defense doesn't fall asleep right before halftime, Beck's last drive in that game is to win it before overtime, not force overtime. He was good in that game, and despite the fluky end of half play and the bad field position, he still would have marched down the field and won the game if it weren't for that last pass getting tipped.



2004 would have been rough for anybody given the injury situation, the QB carousel, and the strength of schedule. (We played THREE teams that finished the year undefeated.) Also, Crowton.



I just think that Beck did as well as anybody could have expected any other great BYU quarterback to play in 2004 and 2005 given the circumstances, teammates, and opponents he was faced with.

Awesome! Post of the day. I hope this puts to bed the "John Beck is weak minded" talk. BYU was never out of a game with Beck at QB with the exception of the utah game in 04. He fought all game long and always had BYU in a position to try to win in the end, even when BYU was inferior to the other team. ND's recievers killed our defense in that game and Beck had BYU in it at the end until he threw the pick 6. The utah game in 05 is 100% on Robert Anae, that game should have never gone into over time. Another classic example of Anae trying to get cute with the play calling at the end instead of just doing what had worked all game. We settle for a tying FG and utah wins in OT. I would take John beck over pretty much every BYU great with the exception of maybe Young, McMahon, and Detmer. Beck was the offensive victim of our defense being decimated with the suspensions in 04. Once they got the defense sorted out in 06, we got 11-2.

Sounds like we have some man crushing and man hating going on here. I give beck a break on the first 2 yrs of his career. 05 he did not look like he knew what he was doing a lot of the season. That could have been anae's play calling. But byu was a couple dropped Todd watkins passes and a Curtis brown dropped wheel route on the opening play against the u from being an 8 and 4 team. Beck did not play well at the first of 06 it took Jason beck beating a lowly aggie team to get the team jump started no one played very well until that point. We had moments of brilliance in 06 but it took an aggie beat down to bring it all the way out. After that john was awesome. I don't think he'll ever be an all-pro, but he'll be good. We should just all root for a coug qb to do well in the pros.



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trueblue72 wrote:
Beck did not play well at the first of 06 it took Jason beck beating a lowly aggie team to get the team jump started no one played very well until that point.

For a guy with two bum ankles, I thought he did pretty darn well. The loss at AZ is mostly on PAC-10 officials and our favorite punching bag, Anae, not taking what the defense was giving him. The loss at BC was probably the best we've played an east coast team in their house since Pitt in '84, and would have been a win with better placekicking. You also seem to be forgetting the Tulsa game, which featured a couple of the most epic plays I've ever had the pleasure of watching, a 25-point blowout, and the lightning delay, which all combined to make that game one of my favorite games to have ever attended.



The '06 team, despite early adversity, was fantastic start to finish, and we do them a great disservice by saying that they weren't playing well until after the TCU game.

I've read the articles and I really like John Beck. I will always remember watching that final drive in '06 against Utah.



That being said, I think Shanahan was just using Coach Speak. He talks up Beck because he realizes Beck may be the best he will have. But if you think a head coach in the NFL is putting all his eggs in the basket of a QB that has been on three teams in four seasons, well you're just a little bit :crazy: . I don't blame anyone for that, but I wouldn't be surprised to hear that Washington signs someone else to take the reigns at QB. Objectively speaking, if I were the HC I would do the same (that is, speak positively about who I have on staff, and keep looking out there for a good QB replacement).



I do think he will get a chance to prove himself in practices, so long as no one else is signed in time--assuming that a season even occurs. This lockout could either give or take away Beck's chances at starting depending on how long it lasts.