Martinez

[RedBlack&Blue]

Tommie Armstrong!!!

oh, wait, sorry,

Brion Carnes!!!!

[huskernut]

Any one who puts as much effort as he is on improving is ok in my book, and I agree, last year he was not even close to our biggest issue. Getting off the field on third down on defense seemed to me the biggest problem.

Yes.

[huskrthill]

Don't forget improved offensive line play would go a long way with making the QB look good.

Not if he doesn't figure out how to move in the pocket and make the correct reads in the run game. A lot of his sacks came from him running into the back of one of his blockers while he was still engaged with the defender. The line certainly has room to improve, but Martinez needs to have a better awareness of what is going on around him. A step up, a step to the side... suddenly the play gets an extra 2-3 seconds, which is an eternity for a DB covering a receiver downfield.

[HuskerWeatherman]

Not if he doesn't figure out how to move in the pocket and make the correct reads in the run game. A lot of his sacks came from him running into the back of one of his blockers while he was still engaged with the defender. The line certainly has room to improve, but Martinez needs to have a better awareness of what is going on around him. A step up, a step to the side... suddenly the play gets an extra 2-3 seconds, which is an eternity for a DB covering a receiver downfield.

Yep. He's horrible in traffic. In just about every facet possible.

[FeelLikeAStranger]

Let's not forget he switched offenses yet again last year and had to deal first and foremost with that...Beck admitted they had no time to work on anything else. Plus, he was being asked to aidible and actually MAKE reads last year, whereas Watson either didnt allow him, want him, or trust him to..even in the zone-read game, it was often pre-determined. Despite that, he made incremental progress in many areas last year...especially leadership. Per the reports he is going above and beyond to work on footwork and mechanics this off-season on his own. That's leadership and commitment, and it will definitely pay off. He's never going to be Peyton Manning, but he doesnt need to be. Give him the benefit of the doubt and let him progress.

[wcbsas]

Let's not forget he switched offenses yet again last year and had to deal first and foremost with that...Beck admitted they had no time to work on anything else. Plus, he was being asked to aidible and actually MAKE reads last year, whereas Watson either didnt allow him, want him, or trust him to..even in the zone-read game, it was often pre-determined. Despite that, he made incremental progress in many areas last year...especially leadership. Per the reports he is going above and beyond to work on footwork and mechanics this off-season on his own. That's leadership and commitment, and it will definitely pay off. He's never going to be Peyton Manning, but he doesnt need to be. Give him the benefit of the doubt and let him progress.

[wcbsas]

I'm gonna get the 1 millionth post one way or another!

[BasilLongfellow]

This will probably be taken as player-bashing by some guys, but these are just my observations...

The guy makes poor decisions with the football. I'm not convinced that he understands his reads in the running OR passing game. He has little pocket presence, and he's not elusive. He runs into his own players while they are blocking for him. He is a high risk to fumble the ball whenever he is in traffic.
His accuracy is suspect. Many of the dropped passes involved a receiver making a great adjustment on a poorly thrown ball but not quite being able to hang on. He hangs receivers out to dry across the middle and frequently throws the ball behind them.

He wasn't the only reason for Nebraska's struggles, but he was a big reason for our offensive inconsistency. We all know about his struggles against Wisconsin, but he generally struggled in the other losses as well. He had a decent passing day against Northwestern, but struggled against Michigan (39%, 3 sacks; 49 yds on 16 carries) and South Carolina (116 yds passing, 1 INT, 6 sacks, 37 yards rushing on 16 carries). Six of his ten completions in that game went to running backs, and Kenny Bell was the only WR to catch a pass from him.

It appears as though he is putting in a ton of effort in order to improve his game, and that excites me. He is a going to be a 4th year junior, so he is out of excuses. It's time to step up and be a difference maker. Teams have neutralized his straight-line speed, so he's going to have to be more polished in other areas.

I wish I didn't agree with you here.

[jikastew]

This will probably be taken as player-bashing by some guys, but these are just my observations...

The guy makes poor decisions with the football. I'm not convinced that he understands his reads in the running OR passing game. He has little pocket presence, and he's not elusive. He runs into his own players while they are blocking for him. He is a high risk to fumble the ball whenever he is in traffic.
His accuracy is suspect. Many of the dropped passes involved a receiver making a great adjustment on a poorly thrown ball but not quite being able to hang on. He hangs receivers out to dry across the middle and frequently throws the ball behind them.

He wasn't the only reason for Nebraska's struggles, but he was a big reason for our offensive inconsistency. We all know about his struggles against Wisconsin, but he generally struggled in the other losses as well. He had a decent passing day against Northwestern, but struggled against Michigan (39%, 3 sacks; 49 yds on 16 carries) and South Carolina (116 yds passing, 1 INT, 6 sacks, 37 yards rushing on 16 carries). Six of his ten completions in that game went to running backs, and Kenny Bell was the only WR to catch a pass from him.

It appears as though he is putting in a ton of effort in order to improve his game, and that excites me. He is a going to be a 4th year junior, so he is out of excuses. It's time to step up and be a difference maker. Teams have neutralized his straight-line speed, so he's going to have to be more polished in other areas.

Well done.

[cm husker]

Lou Holtz is literally a blithering fool.

I'd base my opinion on his assessment about as soon as I start looking to Skip Bayless for advice on pro football, basketball, baseball, lacrosse, cricket, buzkashi etc.

[ColoREDo]

Two thirds of our Ohio State come back points came while the first string quarterback was in the game. The Ohio State quarterback never was on the field when we scored all of the come back points. No way was the second string Ohio State QB the reason. Go back and look at the game!!!!

And ALL of the points that OSU scored was with Miller at QB. Lets not pretend that we would have come back if Miller had stayed in the game.

[statman29]

I will agree that there are many things that Martinez should improve on and I admire the fact that he knows this and works his tail off to get better. However, when I start to see the negitive remarks I just take a look at his stats and it becomes clear just how special a player he is. Below shows the career stats of Martinez compared to two of our best. I will give you the INT's and, although I didnt look, fumbles, but he will leave Nebraska as the best QB(stat wise) that ever played here.

Attempts Yards TD Avg/Carry Avg/Game
Crouch 648 3434 59 5.8 69.9
Frazier 342 1955 36 5.7 55.9
Martinez 350 1609 21 4.6 64.4


% Yards TD Int Rating
Crouch 51.49 4481 29 25 121.14
Frazier 49.47 3521 43 11 138.09
Martinez 57.44 3720 23 15 131.48


http://www.totalfootballstats.com/Pa...eer.asp?id=111

Those rushing totals from that site for Martinez are incorrect.

2010: 162-965 6.0 ypc
2011: 188-874 4.6 ypc

total 350-1839 5.3 ypc

[Pop Corn]

Let's not forget he switched offenses yet again last year and had to deal first and foremost with that...Beck admitted they had no time to work on anything else. Plus, he was being asked to aidible and actually MAKE reads last year, whereas Watson either didnt allow him, want him, or trust him to..even in the zone-read game, it was often pre-determined. Despite that, he made incremental progress in many areas last year...especially leadership. Per the reports he is going above and beyond to work on footwork and mechanics this off-season on his own. That's leadership and commitment, and it will definitely pay off. He's never going to be Peyton Manning, but he doesnt need to be. Give him the benefit of the doubt and let him progress.

Regardless of experience, circumstances or statistical comparisons, Martinez will be viewed by many on this board as a mediocre to poor quarterback and I am not sure why. If he is like most football players, his best football is ahead of him and he has made every effort to do what he can do to get better.

One poster cited a couple of games that TM had horrible statistical performances but I am not sure that those stats are more indicative of a general failure for the team (including TM as their leader on offense) than it is as a singular downfall of one individual --- the losses were due to poor performances from both the defense and the offense, not simply the singular failure of Martinez.

Rodney Dangerfield = Taylor Martinez

[huskrthill]

Let's not forget he switched offenses yet again last year and had to deal first and foremost with that...Beck admitted they had no time to work on anything else. Plus, he was being asked to aidible and actually MAKE reads last year, whereas Watson either didnt allow him, want him, or trust him to..even in the zone-read game, it was often pre-determined. Despite that, he made incremental progress in many areas last year...especially leadership. Per the reports he is going above and beyond to work on footwork and mechanics this off-season on his own. That's leadership and commitment, and it will definitely pay off. He's never going to be Peyton Manning, but he doesnt need to be. Give him the benefit of the doubt and let him progress.

I'm still in his corner, even if my posts seem critical. He's got my support, and I'm encouraged by what I've read this offseason. He definitely is doing the work necessary to make himself a better player.

[ColoREDo]

I'm still in his corner, even if my posts seem critical. He's got my support, and I'm encouraged by what I've read this offseason. He definitely is doing the work necessary to make himself a better player.

I think we all are in his corner but that doesn't mean we have to ignore his shortcomings. Everyone wants Martinez to be better and to play at a high level. He will improve but will it be enough?

[bilsker]

You are correct, TMart has a ceiling for how good he can be as a passer...he's never going to be a consistent deep threat. But if he can limit mistakes and keep the chains moving...we can win with him. He was a big part of our wins vs. Ohio St. and Penn St.

It's not his passing that makes him ineffective. It's his poor running skills.

[BubbaGene]

It's not his passing that makes him ineffective. It's his poor running skills.

yup

[BubbaGene]

Does Doug Flutie run a QB Scrambling Camp? .....where qb's work on their footwork in a pocket that is collapsing or when an oncoming blitzer is charging.

[Train]

Decision making is always a matter of experience and being savey with your playbook. Some people can't wrap their minds around the fact that Martinez was an underclassman learning a new offense every season. He never had the advantages that most Nebraska quarterbacks had in the past. Having the same offense and being nurtured in it until he was ready to master it on the field. The many transitions that the offense and the staff endured was like a ball and chain to a young man never settling in.

I have seen many a quarterback in both college ball and in the show take hold after a couple of learning seasons. They laughed at both Namath and Bradshaw when they made poor decisions in their first two seasons in the NFL. It turned out pretty good for them. I can recall the critics hammering Frost with his form and decision making and it turned out pretty good as I remember. I look for bigger and better things for this offense and Martinez in particular. He will be more comfortable in the second year of this offense. He is addressing his weaknesses and is finally getting to refine his game. He was thrust into the spotlight before he was ready. Now he's maturing and facing his problems. I look for big things in the next two seasons.

[Greatest Fan of All]

Decision making is always a matter of experience and being savey with your playbook. Some people can't wrap their minds around the fact that Martinez was an underclassman learning a new offense every season. He never had the advantages that most Nebraska quarterbacks had in the past. Having the same offense and being nurtured in it until he was ready to master it on the field. The many transitions that the offense and the staff endured was like a ball and chain to a young man never settling in.

I have seen many a quarterback in both college ball and in the show take hold after a couple of learning seasons. They laughed at both Namath and Bradshaw when they made poor decisions in their first two seasons in the NFL. It turned out pretty good for them. I can recall the critics hammering Frost with his form and decision making and it turned out pretty good as I remember. I look for bigger and better things for this offense and Martinez in particular. He will be more comfortable in the second year of this offense. He is addressing his weaknesses and is finally getting to refine his game. He was thrust into the spotlight before he was ready. Now he's maturing and facing his problems. I look for big things in the next two seasons.

Good post, I agree with all of it and believe there is even a little more to it.