Pat White or Tyler Thigpen?
The Great Debate!
The sad thing about this article, is the debate isn't even about the starting QB position. Its not even really about the 2nd QB position. Its about which one of these guys is who we should keep on the roster as the 3rd and final quarterback this season.
Ever since the Trifecta drafted Pat White with the 2nd overall pick, Dolphins fans everywhere (myself included) have either moaned and groaned OR celebrated insanely. The Pat White pick was a luxury pick, we had two second round picks, and we used one on an athlete who played very well in college, however, was going to take some time to modify to the NFL game. That is IF, he can be acclimated to the NFL game. Put me on the list of people that say NO.
Tyler Thigpen on the other hand, was acquired for only a 5th round pick from the Kansas City Chiefs. He would never be on the roster if it weren't for Chad Pennington and his not-so-bionic shoulder. When Pennington went down and onto IR last season, we needed a 3rd QB, and Thigpen was our guy. He's been a starter in this league, his mobile, he's won games, and he has proven to sustain drives. He just played on a very bad team.
When Pat White was drafted, he brought with him a pretty decent resume, and some attributes like being shifty, able to extend plays, & being mobile). He was also supposed to be very accurate. However, when he got onto the field last season, he was not accurate at all. In preseason he completed 6 of 16, for 31 yards and an INT. His passer rating? 37.5%. In the Regular season, he went an abysmal 0 for 5, and had a low 3.9 yard per carry average. Pat White was anything but special.
By comparison, in Thigpen's only action in Miami's final game last season against Pittsburg he went 4 for 8 for 83 yards, 1 TD, and 2 INT. He also drove the team down, on another TD drive when Brian Hartline took a reverse into the endzone.
In Week 1 of the preseason, Thigpen saw almost 3 whole quarters of play, once again sustaining some scoring drives, and looking pretty efficient. Nothing flashy, but efficient. Pat White meanwhile, saw 3 snaps, two of which were kneel downs. Pat White just doesn't seem to have earned the office's trust yet, as evidenced by his lack of playing time, and only 5 passes in last year's regular season.
So here is my thoughts on what will happen
- If Pat White gets close to 3 quarters of play in the 2nd preseason game of the year, then the front office is undecided, and Pat White has a shot.
- If Tyler Thigpen gets more than a quarter of play against the Jags, then Pat White might as well pull out his baseball glove, as we are cutting him.
- If they both see the same amount of time on the field. There is a slim chance, Thigpen gets traded, and White stays on the roster as a project.
As I type this however, I'm reminded that a certain quarterback has reentered the league. Why do I bring this up? Well, because now the Vikings have a quarterback that is expendable. Sage Rosenfels. Before Brett came back it was likely that Sage stayed on the roster, and that would have given Thigpen a little more trade value.... however, I think Rosenfels has more value currently, and if the Vikings consider trading him....that could make our offers for Thigpen few and far between......thus sealing Pat White's fate to Baseball and a ton of "I coulda been a contender" speeches.
I'd be much happier with Thigpen on the roster. If Henne goes down, I'm not 100% comfortable with Pennington's shoulder holding up for a season. And does anyone trust the team in Pat White's hands? At least if Thigpen is there, we have someone who has shown that he can leading a scoring drive, has started in the league, and instills a lot more confidence in the team that the under performing and underwhelming Pat White.
If Pat White gets cut, the only tear I'll shed is the realization of the players we passed up to get him (L. McCoy, Shonn Greene,etc) Good bye Pat White. Best of luck to you in your future endeavor.
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