At QB, Three's a Crowd?

Portis seems underutilized to me. The major weapon he brings to the table is the ability to hit the long ball.

I wonder if Portis truly was given the greenlight to pass and he chose to pass that up.

If Friedgen chooses to start Steffy this week, I have lost faith in this coaching staff's commitment to winning.

I really think Steffy injured his thumb on the WR screen to I.Williams. His next throw was well behind Heyward-Bey and as he left the field on 3rd down he seemed to be looking at his hand.

First, about the polling, as we all know much of polling results has to do with the question that was asked. If Franklin asked players if they had a problem with Steffy starting and got big positive response, I am not surprised. If they asked which QB do you think should start, I do find it surprising that any QB would be a clear leader.

Second, the Portis issue is a complete mystery to me. We were told that he would have a package of plays to run. Going in for one play at a time is not a package as far as I am concerned. Every person in the stadium knows that the D is going to key of him when he comes in so why would you only use him for one play. Run the sweep on the first play and then fake the run on the second and go deep. We seem to have all the speed we could ever need but don't take advantage of it. Maybe it is because if Chris or Josh show that they can throw long you can never justify playing Steffy again.

I doubt if this mysterious thumb injury adversely affected Steffy's performance. He threw one interception right at a linebacker.

He can't read defenses and he cannot handle pressure.

Yep, this looks like the same Steffy we saw last year.

When should we expect an announcement for the starting quarterback for this week?

I have the sense that RF would start Steffy over Peyton Manning if he had him on his roster.

My thoughts, from high up in Section 24 at Byrd:
1. What happened to the so-called "West Coast Offense?" I think it took the last train to the coast, to be replaced by the same old conservative play calling. Perhaps Coach Franklin parachuted into the wrong stadium last Saturday.
2. Kudos to our defensive secondary. They looked sharp to me! Stay frosty, guys!
3. The QB issue: Coach F must know something the rest of we Terp fans don't know. We need sparkle at QB, not doe-eyes -in-the-headlights. I think we need some sunshine from California, and I don't mean the team we play on the 13th.
4. Was there anyone in Byrd Stadium who did not know what Portis was going to do on his last snap from center? Talk about under-used talent...
5. D Scott was wonderful at RB - keep it up, guy! But I think freshman D Meggett is a diamond in the rough who will be All- ACC someday soon.
6. J Navarre has been eating his Wheaties, hasn't he? He has some Randy White genes, I think.
7. Get the ball to DHB.
8. Get the ball to DHB.

Fridge's decision-making, the process and the explanation have lacked sense...and this is not just the QB issue. Hirings have been suspect, game day decisions have been suspect. Him showing favoritism and rolling certain players under the bus are also bad indicators. This has been going on for 4 years and it's a poor reflection of his value at $2M per year. so the question begs: Will he continue to make the same bad decision and ignore the reality and data in front of him? Will he continue to offer up non-sensical explanations that rise to the level of insulting fans. Word around the $$$ seats is that he's walking a thin line because the confidence in his decisions and explanations is quickly eroding. He talks of credibility yet he's stripping it.

As far as the polling, I agree 100% with PACO. To begin, the revealing of the polling was a desperate act and quite simply silly...and your question is exactly why the staff should never have discussed it. Secondly, it appears the Ralph and Franklin did so to support their decision...otherwise, why did they even do it or reveal it? when has QB decisions become a democratic process? Lastly, if indeed they had that motive to conduct the poll, it's possible if not likely they framed the questions. For all we know, 80% of the rest of the team favored Turner's play. The poll was worthless let alone suspect in accuracy and purpose.

PLEASE name me another coach who takes the teams FEELINGS at QB into his thinking?? What coach takes a poll? What is next - a team huddle and vote before every play? YOU are the HEAD COACH - make a decision already and stick with it! Stop trying to appease everyone. You want to make people happy - WIN. You don't need a National Championship - just show improvement and win 8-9 games a year

I agree with those saying that it is very strange how much RF and Franklin have tried to justify their QB selection. The poll is absurd and to release results to public is even stranger. The announcers on TV for the game even stated that RF showed them detailed stats on how much better Steffy was in practice. It is as if they are really trying to convince themselves that they made the right call. If Steffy is starting this Saturday and he does his usual 10-18 for 85 yards and an interception then imagine the booing at the next home game. Not booing Steffy but booing RF for wasting the rest of the talent on the team by keeping with a 5th year senior who is at best a 2nd stringer and even that may be kind.

Did I miss something or did the young freshman Meggett do pretty good filling in for Scott? No rush for Green to come back based on his performances thorughout camp and in this first game. In factr he probaly should take some carries away from Scott because I don't think Scott can handle 20-25 a game.

Back to Green he hasn't proven anything except he can't stay on the field.

I thought Portis should have been given more opportunities. To me it seems like he feels like he has to hit a big play everytime he gets into the game. That one play where he lost yards, had he just stuck with the original play and ran to where the play was designed, he would have picked up 10 yards (looking at the replay on tivo, the hole developed late), but instead he reversed and lost yards. Give portis more touches!

FP is a loyal guy. Steffy has been there for seemingly 15 years, so my guess is Fridge felt like it was a toss up with his three QBs, decided to reward the 5th year senior and did so in a game where we should have been able to absorb it even if he was atrocious. When he needed to, he brought in the QB he was 2nd most comfortable with, and Turner was so-so at best.

Some fans focus way too much on potential and not enough on actual performance. Turner has the best long ball arm on the team, not Portis. Portis' accuracy is not as good, hence he is not seen as the best throwing option. He also evidently can't run the offense, botching one play call.

Portis is valuable if nothing else than as a decoy. Forcing other teams to prepare for him is valuable in throwing off their defensive schemes. A poster above is right though, that we should put Portis in a throw on the first play, it'd absolutely catch many DBs off guard.

LOL Chris...potential versus performance? Have you seen the the games in which Steffy's played over the past 5 years. I think you've confused the two terms.