The case for Joe Burrow

[Joelist]

A lot of draftniks are projecting Joe Burrow to us at the #1 overall pick. I wanted to look at the case for taking him in the most neutral (to current players) manner I could.

1) He does seem to possess skills we will need in the future at QB, such as pocket presence, football smarts (reading the defense and such) and work ethic. Mobility is good enough - not a jackrabbit but able to be mobile. He also seems to have excellent touch on his passes and ball placement is a strength.

2) In theory we would be able to save cap room because we would be putting a rookie seal salary on the rolls in exchange for a (in NFL terms) NFL veteran QB salary that is a bit under the average.

3) Possibility to generating some fan excitement for the franchise.

On the other hand, we might be well advised to redshirt Burrow if we take him until we stabilize the Offensive Line and know we have some targets for him to throw at. Now if we do invest in said issues in Free Agency and/or the Draft this situation kind of goes away.

I will say this - if we go Burrow (I was a Tua supporter until the injury) then I start to strongly consider going WR in Round 2 for a fast, tall WR whose scouting says can run proper routes and play the ball properly in the air (Tee Higgins or Laviska Shenault?).