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Originally Posted by joecrisp
...For this reason, I think Gibbs will select a starter early, and will not jeopardize the learning curve for his starting QB-- and his offense as a whole-- by holding an open competition at QB throughout the offseason and training camp.
If Ramsey can flourish in these last 3 games, Gibbs should name him the starter for 2005, and focus on fully preparing him for that role from the first QB schools in March, through the start of the 2005 season.
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I am of the view that you want to let the players decide who should play, Joe. And that means competition. Let the best player win the job. If you make a decision about who should play before it is clear who is the best player, then "you" are making the decision, not the players.
When you let the players make the decision, then the players know that what counts is performance. It's not investment in the player financially. It's not who is most popular with the fans. It's not a thought that well let's just settle on someone, we are tired of uncertainty. It's not anything other than this guy is the best player and he has proven it because given a fair playing field, he beat out this other player or these other players.
When players on a team know that it's about how well they play and not other factors, then they play better. They play better because they know that its under their control to determine who is going to play and how much.
Joe Theismann said something interesting during the game - that even for him, Joe Gibbs never let him feel comfortable that he was entitled to the job in a closed minded way. He was always pushing for better performance and Theismann knew he had to play at a level that earned him the right to remain the starter.
Gibbs gave a fair chance for Brunell and Ramsey in the preseason. Brunell won the battle fair and square. Ramsey learned that he isn't entitled to the job and he took advantage of being on the sideline and began to learn the new system. He knew that playing time was based on his performance and being the best player available and not on other factors.
Giving players plenty of reps so they can play at a high level is important. More important is the need to see who is the best player we can realistically have as the starting quarterback of the Redskins.