Thanks for the link. I agree with Goessling's conclusion that Bridgewater should have to prove he's the best man for the job and that Zimmer shouldn't feel he has to rush the rookie into the lineup but overall, Goessling continued to promote some ideas in that article that I can't buy into, or at least that I think paint a view of events that's too QB-centric.
I'm still baffled as to why Matt Cassel, who didn't solve much last year, is now somehow the "perfect custodian" for Bridgewater or how his presence, along with Ponder's, leads to the conclusion that "Zimmer won't make a rash decision with Bridgewater, not when the Vikings are set up so well to avoid one". Are they
really set up so well?
With two of the same 3 QBs on the roster this year, how are things any more stable unless one of them steps up and performs much more consistently or unless it's Bridgewater who ultimately stabilizes the position? I don't see how the conclusion logically follows from the premise here. Sure, Cassel could play well enough for Zimmer to just take his sweet time before playing Bridgewater but article after article this offseason implies that's something the Vikes can count on, that it's a given, and I don't see why. Cassel hasn't been a good, consistent,
reliable QB for years.
The idea that "Quarterback instability ultimately doomed Frazier", as Goessling stated, seems like a gross oversimplification, though typical of this QB-centric era. Too many losses cost Frazier his job (I know, that's simple too) and there were a number of reasons for those losses. QB instability was one of them but that instability was a direct result of the inability of any of the QBs to establish themselves as a reliable, consistent starter. If Zimmer can't get a QB to do that, he's going to face the exact same instability issues at the position Frazier and Childress faced.
In the end, poor defense had as much to do with Frazier losing his job as QB performance, perhaps even more. As far as Zimmer and the QB situation: I think he knows Bridgewater needs to be his QB solution so he'll do what he can to make sure it works out that way.
