The Sooner the Better
By Matthew Gagnon
49ersnews.com Staff Writer
Let me first congratulate Mike Nolan and the 49ers for starting the year off on the right foot.
Now, on to more important things.
The first job I ever had was mowing lawns for my next door neighbor when I was ten years old. There was a
Nintendo game that I was desperate to have, and my parents refused to buy it for me, thus leading down the path of physical labor. I had never worked before, and cutting grass taught me some valuable lessons about life – working hard, keeping your word and doing a job to the best of your ability. Those who know me understand just how stubborn I am, and as such these were lessons I did not learn easily. But, I was desperate for my video game, so I stuck with it and eventually I became rather good at landscaping. I learned by doing.
When I was twelve, my middle school social studies teacher offered me some summer work raking blueberries (big business here in Maine) for three dollars per barrel. Now I wanted a 25' television, and needed a good chunk of cash, so I happily said yes. I had absolutely no idea what I was getting into – the immense physical toile bending over for 8 hours and sweeping up blueberries 5 days a week all summer is incredible. Raking blueberries made cutting my neighbor’s lawn look like a relaxing trip to the beach.
Full Story...
In fact, when I started raking, I was terrible at it. I had the basic tools my first job gave me, but I had to learn the best way to rake blueberries, I had to learn how to conserve my energy so I could work for 8 hours, I had to learn how to deal with a boss. Again, it was a tad rough at first, but after a while (while my mind was on that huge TV in my bedroom), I got used to how things ran and what was expected – and I excelled, making roughly 2000 dollars that summer. I learned by doing.
At the age of fifteen, with a car, girlfriends, movies and other teenage experiences looming on the horizon, it became apparent I needed to get an actual job year round. Maine being what it is, I had only a few options – McDonalds, supermarkets, construction or working at the newly constructed town pool as a lifeguard. I chose lifeguarding.
As before, I thought I knew what to expect, but was completely blown away by what I found.
Working while going to school was much harder than I thought, and to add to that, my image of lifeguarding was much different than reality. I found that the skills I needed to learn were incredibly complex and difficult (especially for a fifteen year old), and more than that the incredible responsibility of being accountable for the health and safety of hundreds of people was staggering. However, I was motivated and dedicated enough – to this day I still possess certifications in lifeguarding and CPR. I learned by doing.
I apologize for going into such excruciating detail about my own life, but I promise it was for dramatic effect. I trust by now it is becoming apparent where I am going with all of this. Alex Smith has just started his new job. He got the employee handbook and watched all the corporate videos (training camp) but his first day was Saturday. As we all saw, first days can be rough.
Yet, they are necessary. When we start a new job, or in Alex’s case start the first day of a promotion to a faster, more complex level, it is most times rough. I’d like you to think back to a time in your life when you started a new job – one that was far over your head (at least to start). You were unsure, you were uneasy, you were nervous and worst of all you lacked confidence in your ability to do your job. And why not – it was completely different from anything you had done before.
Alex Smith has played football all his life, but make no mistake, he has never played pro football until Saturday. The college game is slower, simpler, with shorter practices, less skilled players and more gimmicks. It is a far different game than the NFL. Alex Smith just got a promotion, and right now, he’s feeling unsure, uneasy, nervous and not at all confident.
And frankly, on Saturday he did not even perform very poorly. He threw no interceptions, made some plays outside the pocket with his feet (which he was forced to do because of his Swiss cheese offensive line), did not look confused with the 'deer in the headlights' look that so many rookie
quarterbacks have, and overall was showing some real effort.
Make no mistake, he did not exactly look good. The 49ers under Smith were beat in time of possession by fifteen minutes, did not have a first down until late in the second quarter, and had an overall anemic offense. Sometimes, however, not looking awful (a la 2004 Eli Manning) can be just as encouraging as looking good.
But lets get back to the point. This week, people everywhere are arguing the theory of the rookie quarterback, and even here at 49ersnews, we have tossed the question out - to start, or not to start? Should we toss the rookie quarterback to the wolves and let him learn, or should we let him watch a veteran and 'learn'? To me, this is not even a question.
When you started your new job, after you were done training, did you spend a great deal of time (lets say, more than a week) watching somebody else do your job? Even if you did – did you really understand the job then, or was it when you began doing your job? I trust you all know the answer. You learned by doing.
People (I don’t care who you are) learn by doing, not by watching. You can understand theories, concepts and procedures, but until you actually actively participate in what you are required to do, you will not learn how to expertly do it. That applies to athletes more than it applies to us.
Carson Palmer is a great example. He sat an entire year and learned behind John Kitna, but that meant nothing once he began starting – he still struggled as he learned how things worked in the NFL on the field in reality. After several games, he caught on, and started to show his potential. That happens to every quarterback in the first games they play, be it in the first year, the second or beyond. They learn by doing.
There are only two concerns a team really needs to have about a rookie playing in his first year. Is he motivated to play and win? Is he mentally tough enough? If the answer to each of these is yes (as I believe it is with Smith) then struggling through the first half of the NFL season should have little effect on them at all. Indeed, it should motivate them to succeed more.
Regardless, the entire reason you draft a quarterback in the first round is to set your organization to succeed for years, and if you truly want that success as early as possible, then you must let that rookie learn as early as possible. That means turning the team over to him. You have to – the sooner he struggles, the sooner he learns, the sooner he progresses into a quality quarterback.
We all know that Tim Rattay would give us a better chance at winning right now, but at what cost? Do you really want to take two steps forward to take one step back next year. No matter what, when Alex Smith takes over the team, his first 6 or so games will be somewhat tough to watch – be it this year or next. He’s going to need those games to truly understand the NFL, even if he watches Rattay for an entire year.
So either way, Smith will have a rough third of a season, so why not get those out of the way as soon as possible. That way we can see if he truly is the 49ers future, and if he is, it will allow us to get to winning consistently all the sooner.
No matter what, the earlier it is done, the better for everyone. Let him start, and continue to start all year.
49ersnews.com Staff Writer
Let me first congratulate Mike Nolan and the 49ers for starting the year off on the right foot.
Now, on to more important things.
The first job I ever had was mowing lawns for my next door neighbor when I was ten years old. There was a
Nintendo game that I was desperate to have, and my parents refused to buy it for me, thus leading down the path of physical labor. I had never worked before, and cutting grass taught me some valuable lessons about life – working hard, keeping your word and doing a job to the best of your ability. Those who know me understand just how stubborn I am, and as such these were lessons I did not learn easily. But, I was desperate for my video game, so I stuck with it and eventually I became rather good at landscaping. I learned by doing.When I was twelve, my middle school social studies teacher offered me some summer work raking blueberries (big business here in Maine) for three dollars per barrel. Now I wanted a 25' television, and needed a good chunk of cash, so I happily said yes. I had absolutely no idea what I was getting into – the immense physical toile bending over for 8 hours and sweeping up blueberries 5 days a week all summer is incredible. Raking blueberries made cutting my neighbor’s lawn look like a relaxing trip to the beach.
Full Story...
In fact, when I started raking, I was terrible at it. I had the basic tools my first job gave me, but I had to learn the best way to rake blueberries, I had to learn how to conserve my energy so I could work for 8 hours, I had to learn how to deal with a boss. Again, it was a tad rough at first, but after a while (while my mind was on that huge TV in my bedroom), I got used to how things ran and what was expected – and I excelled, making roughly 2000 dollars that summer. I learned by doing.
At the age of fifteen, with a car, girlfriends, movies and other teenage experiences looming on the horizon, it became apparent I needed to get an actual job year round. Maine being what it is, I had only a few options – McDonalds, supermarkets, construction or working at the newly constructed town pool as a lifeguard. I chose lifeguarding.
As before, I thought I knew what to expect, but was completely blown away by what I found.
Working while going to school was much harder than I thought, and to add to that, my image of lifeguarding was much different than reality. I found that the skills I needed to learn were incredibly complex and difficult (especially for a fifteen year old), and more than that the incredible responsibility of being accountable for the health and safety of hundreds of people was staggering. However, I was motivated and dedicated enough – to this day I still possess certifications in lifeguarding and CPR. I learned by doing.I apologize for going into such excruciating detail about my own life, but I promise it was for dramatic effect. I trust by now it is becoming apparent where I am going with all of this. Alex Smith has just started his new job. He got the employee handbook and watched all the corporate videos (training camp) but his first day was Saturday. As we all saw, first days can be rough.
Yet, they are necessary. When we start a new job, or in Alex’s case start the first day of a promotion to a faster, more complex level, it is most times rough. I’d like you to think back to a time in your life when you started a new job – one that was far over your head (at least to start). You were unsure, you were uneasy, you were nervous and worst of all you lacked confidence in your ability to do your job. And why not – it was completely different from anything you had done before.
Alex Smith has played football all his life, but make no mistake, he has never played pro football until Saturday. The college game is slower, simpler, with shorter practices, less skilled players and more gimmicks. It is a far different game than the NFL. Alex Smith just got a promotion, and right now, he’s feeling unsure, uneasy, nervous and not at all confident.
And frankly, on Saturday he did not even perform very poorly. He threw no interceptions, made some plays outside the pocket with his feet (which he was forced to do because of his Swiss cheese offensive line), did not look confused with the 'deer in the headlights' look that so many rookie
quarterbacks have, and overall was showing some real effort.Make no mistake, he did not exactly look good. The 49ers under Smith were beat in time of possession by fifteen minutes, did not have a first down until late in the second quarter, and had an overall anemic offense. Sometimes, however, not looking awful (a la 2004 Eli Manning) can be just as encouraging as looking good.
But lets get back to the point. This week, people everywhere are arguing the theory of the rookie quarterback, and even here at 49ersnews, we have tossed the question out - to start, or not to start? Should we toss the rookie quarterback to the wolves and let him learn, or should we let him watch a veteran and 'learn'? To me, this is not even a question.
When you started your new job, after you were done training, did you spend a great deal of time (lets say, more than a week) watching somebody else do your job? Even if you did – did you really understand the job then, or was it when you began doing your job? I trust you all know the answer. You learned by doing.
People (I don’t care who you are) learn by doing, not by watching. You can understand theories, concepts and procedures, but until you actually actively participate in what you are required to do, you will not learn how to expertly do it. That applies to athletes more than it applies to us.
Carson Palmer is a great example. He sat an entire year and learned behind John Kitna, but that meant nothing once he began starting – he still struggled as he learned how things worked in the NFL on the field in reality. After several games, he caught on, and started to show his potential. That happens to every quarterback in the first games they play, be it in the first year, the second or beyond. They learn by doing.
There are only two concerns a team really needs to have about a rookie playing in his first year. Is he motivated to play and win? Is he mentally tough enough? If the answer to each of these is yes (as I believe it is with Smith) then struggling through the first half of the NFL season should have little effect on them at all. Indeed, it should motivate them to succeed more.
Regardless, the entire reason you draft a quarterback in the first round is to set your organization to succeed for years, and if you truly want that success as early as possible, then you must let that rookie learn as early as possible. That means turning the team over to him. You have to – the sooner he struggles, the sooner he learns, the sooner he progresses into a quality quarterback.
We all know that Tim Rattay would give us a better chance at winning right now, but at what cost? Do you really want to take two steps forward to take one step back next year. No matter what, when Alex Smith takes over the team, his first 6 or so games will be somewhat tough to watch – be it this year or next. He’s going to need those games to truly understand the NFL, even if he watches Rattay for an entire year.
So either way, Smith will have a rough third of a season, so why not get those out of the way as soon as possible. That way we can see if he truly is the 49ers future, and if he is, it will allow us to get to winning consistently all the sooner.
No matter what, the earlier it is done, the better for everyone. Let him start, and continue to start all year.
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