By Going into the year 2021, there is a former Alabama quarterback playing in the NFL for four teams. Those former Crimson Tide are Tua Tugovailoa, Jalen Hurts, Mac Jones, and AJ McCarron. For the sake of the article and relevance, I will be focusing on Tua, Jalen and Mac. Although, McCarron has put in multiple years in the league as a backup and should be acknowledged. It is no secret that Alabama quarterbacks have not carried their success from Alabama over to the NFL, the last Super Bowl winning quarterback to come out of Alabama was Ken Stabler, who won Super Bowl XI. That’s right, the last time a former Alabama quarterback won a Super Bowl was forty-four years ago. This stat could come as a surprise because Alabama has won the National Championship eight times since Stabler’s Super Bowl win in 1977.
Whether it is due to the change of scenery, maybe the talent outside of the quarterback position was too lopsided matching up against their opponents and life is just easier as an Alabama quarterback, or maybe they just don’t have the tools to run a successful NFL offense, whatever the reasoning is, there are three young quarterbacks looking to break that stereotype. Tua Tugovailoa, Jalen Hurts and Mac Jones are all entering the season under different circumstances. The goal of this article is to recognize each of their situations, and to explain why they can succeed, and why they may struggle.
Tua Tugovailoa
Tua Tugovailoa ended last season with question marks. In nine games started for the Miami Dolphins, Tugovailoa put up an 11:5 touchdown to interception ratio, along with having a 6-3 record when starting. Tua did not start the season last year, current Washington Football Team quarterback, Ryan Fitzpatrick, kicked off the start of the 2020 season, but was benched after starting out with a 3-3 record. After that, Fitzpatrick took on a role similar to a relief pitcher in baseball. Fitzpatrick came in on two occasions mid game, where the Dolphins lost one, and miraculously came back and won the other to beat the Raiders. The Dolphins this year will be looking for Tua to learn from last year and be able to finish games out strong, something they clearly believed to be an issue last year. There is no Fitzmagic in Miami anymore, the Dolphins picked up quarterback Jacoby Brissett over the past offseason, which most would consider a down grade in terms of backup quarterbacks, meaning Miami Head Coach Brian Flores seems to have more trust in his young quarterback going into the 2021 season.
There were rumors brewing before Deshaun Watson’s allegations that Watson could possibly have been sent to Miami for a package of Tua Tugovailoa and picks. With the season starting in less than a month, a league shaking move this late does not seem likely. Over the offseason, Miami picked up an old friend of Tua’s in the first round of the 2021 draft, former Alabama wide receiver and Tua’s old teammate, Jaylen Waddle. This sense of familiarity can only help Tugovailoa, Waddle had his best year his freshman year in 2018 with Tua, the two connected for 848 yards and seven touchdowns in fifteen games. The Dolphins’ offense will look to be the focal point of the team this year after their defense was the headline last year, with the addition of Waddle and pairing him across from veteran pass catcher DeVante Parker, plus Mike Gesicki at tight end, a lack of weapons will not be the reason Tua struggles this year.
Tua Tugovailoa admitted that last year, he did now know the entire playbook. That isn’t entirely his fault, as he was a rookie coming into the season with no preseason games and amid all of the COVID chaos. Now, with a year under his belt, Tua looks to expand his knowledge of the playbook. Miami Head Coach Brian Flores is under the impression that Tua is more comfortable this year, growing pains are a part of the process, “We’ve talked about his growth a lot from the last six months and how he’s reflected on that. I think my focus is on helping him improve on a daily basis. Obviously you use the past to kind of point you in the right direction of where to make those improvements and we’ll just continue to focus on this one day at a time and help Tua” said Flores. A 6-3 record is not bad at all for a rookie quarterback, Tua has shown that he can get his team into position to win games. Out of the three Alabama quarterbacks, it looks like going into the season, Tua has the overall best roster. After getting taken before last year’s Rookie Of The Year, Justin Herbert, Tugovailoa will have to prove that he was the correct choice to lad Miami back to a winning culture. Tua is a proven winner looking to make his mark on the league, after a 10-6 season and narrowly missing the playoffs last season, with Miami’s stout defense, and a revamped offense this year under a more confident Tua Tugovailoa, the Dolphins will try to break through and make a run in the playoffs.
Jalen Hurts
Though he did not graduate from Alabama, Jalen Hurts had multiple memorable moments playing for the Tide. Hurts started four games last season, finishing with a 1-3 record with 1,061 yards, six touchdowns and four interceptions. He is a bit more of an oddball, with rookie Head Coach Nick Sirianni basing the offense around him this year, Jalen Hurts will hopefully be able to build some sort of normality with what seems to be now, his locker room. Hurts played against a few tough defenses last season in the small sample we saw him play. I would not base this year off of last year though, last year he was QB2 on the depth chart playing in an offense mainly centralized former Eagles first round pick, Carson Wentz. Now, Jalen Hurts will have a full offseason to prepare and learn the playbook, and he has all of the reps to build much needed chemistry with his teammates.
Nick Sirianni was the offensive coordinator for the Indianapolis Colts from 2018-2020. It is difficult to gauge how a rookie head coach will do in his first year, there are a million things that can happen, but one thing you can take to the bank is that it is not going to be easy. The Eagles’ receiving core has been below average, and their defense has holes. Hurts does not have the roster or, at least as of right now, the coach that Tugovailoa does. The NFC East has two defenses that look good going into 2021 in the New York Giants and Washington Football Team, both of which the Eagles will play twice this year. Hurts and Sirianni will have their work cut out for them, it will be an uphill battle this season. Not many are expecting much from Philly, but that can be dangerous.
Yes, Nick Sirianni is a new head coach, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. Sirianni has not had a true dual threat quarterback until now, with Jalen Hurts. Having a quarterback who can both sling and carry the rock well is a feature that all coaches appreciate. The Eagles offense this year at the very least will be unpredictable, we do not know what Sirianni will draw up and Jalen Hurts has the ability to turn a broken play into positive yards. Veteran tight end Zach Ertz looks to be back with Philadelphia this season despite mock trades from the offseason predicting he will be gone, along side fellow tight end Dallas Goedert. The addition of Hurts’ former teammate and last college football season’s Heisman winner, DeVonta Smith, in the first round was a huge grab for Philly. With an improved defense and progression in Hurts’ second season, the Eagles have the potential to make noise in the NFC East.
Mac Jones
Bill Belichick invested his fifteenth overall pick in the 2021 draft on former Alabama quarterback Mac Jones. Jones is in a bit of a more interesting situation. He is currently attempting to give former league MVP Cam Newton a run for his money for the starting job in New England. Jones put up numbers similar to former Heisman winner and first overall pick, Joe Burrow, in his final year at LSU last year for Bama. Mac Jones had 4,500 yards on 402 pass attempts, he had a fantastic 41:4 touchdown to interception ratio, and had a 77.4% completion percentage. Mac Jones is known for his football IQ, which is a beneficial thing going into your rookie year. I would be surprised if he was the starter week one, but if the Patriots are struggling and drop a few games in a row, don’t be surprised if Belichick sends Jones out on the field.
Jones had the best team in all of college football last year, three of his teammates went in the top ten picks in the 2021 draft, and one of his tackles went two picks after him at pick seventeen. The biggest question about Mac Jones is whether he can produce similar numbers to his college days in the NFL with a team that does not have one of the top players at the position at multiple positions. The playing field has been leveled, and now Mac will have to keep his head above the water. The NFL is a completely different feel, there is a reason there are only thirty-two teams in the league and some still struggle to find their next franchise guy. It is still Cam Newton’s job to lose, Newton had struggled last year for multiple reasons, but a hungry Cam Newton will be difficult to beat out in your first year of camp while learning the entire playbook.
The Patriots have improved their offense by beefing up their offensive line and by obtaining pass catchers. They are notorious for using the tight end position, and now they have two very effective guys at the position in Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith. They also acquired Nelson Agholar who had a career year last year with the Raiders. Since Tom Brady’s departure, the Patriots have relied heavily on their run game and guys up front. Easing Jones into that sort of offense can greatly help him if or when he gets his first start. Taking some of the pressure off of a young quarterback can fast track their progression and comfortability. Jones has the traits to play for a long time, but I guess most quarterbacks who get drafted show some kind of promise. Personally, I was surprised to see him fall to pick fifteen, given how much hype Burrow had around him going into the draft. Could we potentially be looking at the steal of the 2021 draft?
In Conclusion
Regular season football is almost here, and it is an exciting time to be an NFL fan. Realistically, any of these guys can make a splash this year, they are three great athletes who all played under the best modern college football coach in the country. I am a fan of all three guys, Tua’s reads are quick and precise, Jalen Hurts’ athleticism is something that cannot be taught, Mac Jones’ football IQ is something you look for in every quarterback. To answer the question in the title of the article, I believe Jalen Hurts will have the most successful season individual player wise. He is the most difficult of the three to predict and game plan for, and I am optimistic in Sirianni’s play calling ability. I believe Tua is on a better team, and will probably finish the season with a better record, but in terms of who I think will boost their stock the most this season, I think Hurts will prove that the Wentz trade was the best move for the franchise. Mac has a little bit longer, but I do believe that he has a good chance to be New England’s quarterback for the future. All three quarterbacks will be looking to be the first former Alabama quarterback to win a Super Bowl since Ken Stabler, who do you think can win the Super Bowl first?
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