Sideline Scouting

by Pete Dymeck

Quite frankly, Jason Campbell is a bust.

With just a year to go for Jason Campbell to sign an extension with the Washington Redskins, the organization that drafted him in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft has thus far shown no commitment to re-signing its “franchise” quarterback.

With 36 starts under his belt, Campbell’s lofty expectations have been deflated due to mediocre play, a revolving playbook, and a lack of supporting cast. To be fair, Campbell has shown some flashes of what is expected from him, mainly in 2008 when he led the Redskins to a hot 6-2 start before fading quickly and finishing the season with an 8-8 record.

If his seven fumbles in 2008 weren’t disconcerting enough, than maybe we should look at the fact that Campbell isn’t even on JaMarcus Russell’s playing field, when levied out to number of starts when many thought by now that Campbell would compare more to Donovan McNabb or Eli Manning.

Last season, Campbell threw for just 13 touchdowns and 6 interceptions in 16 starts. Oakland’s JaMarcus Russell, in his first year of starting, threw 13 touchdowns and 8 interceptions while fumbling 12 times.

Too add insult to injury, Campbell looks like he has about the same amount of confidence as JaMarcus Russell, Mike McMahon, or Drew Henson does in the pocket.

Jason Campbell isn’t getting thrown under the bus people, he simply isn’t cutting it and the Redskins themselves are showing their disdain for his lack of accomplishments by not giving him an extension yet.

For more comparisons, you will see that fifteen quarterbacks had more passing yards than Campbell in 2008, including David Garrard and Chad Pennington. Kyle Orton, Tyler Thigpen, Matt Schaub, and Joe Flacco all finished with more passing touchdowns than Campbell (Shaun Hill passed for 13, along with Campbell and Russell).

The offensive line in Washington was atrocious last season, which may have played a part in Campbell’s deteriorating play behind center as he was the fourth most sacked quarterback in the NFL.

His passer rating of 84.3 was nineteenth best in the league, behind the likes of Shaun Hill and Seneca Wallace.

Numbers aside, Campbell has been a very frustrating quarterback. He misses targets in stride and struggles putting the ball on target, especially when pressured. Campbell lacks the “coolness” while being pursued that we have seen from Aaron Rodgers and Matt Ryan.

The constant changing of coaches and the offensive playbook doesn’t help either as Campbell has struggled learning the offense since being drafted in 2005.

Typically, the formula for a successful passer in the NFL must contain a good running game, a solid set of receivers, and a good offensive line. While the ‘Skins need to improve on the offensive line, they do have one of the premier running backs in football (Clinton Portis) and a trio of dependable receivers (Chris Cooley, Santana Moss, Antwaan Randle El).

The lack of commitment that the Redskins organization has shown is an indicator of where Campbell stands as the franchise quarterback. The question now is will Campbell overcome adversity like Chad Pennington did and be a successful passer or will he succumb to the path that J.P. Losman took in Buffalo?

Only time will tell but it may get real interesting this year if Matt Stafford or Mark Sanchez are still on the board when the Washington Redskins pick at 13, especially if the top four offensive linemen have already been drafted.

All systems are indicating that Jason Campbell is a bust though and that should been on the minds of the staff in Washington as they decide on their future in the coming months.

He simply isn’t a winner. He doesn’t look like a winner. He will never be the guy that leads Washington to their next Super Bowl victory.