Nope. He has a tremendous arm, but I've seen a ton of those types over the decades who couldn't consistently read a defense, hit the open receiver, manage the game in crunch time, etc. He's shown flashes here and there. Granted, he finished last season on a high note, but let's see how he does over a long, tough SEC schedule. Doubts are one thing, but I'm certainly hoping he's the second coming at QB for UT this year.
When it comes to his lack of desire for contact, look at last year's runs, not the year before. Last year he realized he is bigger than most of the people trying to tackle him and planted several would be tacklers. In reality, I would prefer he limit hard contact as much as possible unless it is needed to score or get a critical first down. Living to throw another pass is a very important thing next year as we are a bit limited on scholarship QBs.
I think the thing that JM has to do well is get rid of the ball. He can’t hold it too long and take sacks. Nobody ever wants to be behind the chains, but I feel our offense doesn’t function well at all with a negative play on first or second down. That can be said for most offenses, but it really takes away from us getting into a rhythm and our tempo.
Joe does have speed, he’s probably faster than Hendon, but I don’t think he’s as quick footed as Hendon. He definitely lowered the shoulder a few times last season, which actually made me as happy, if not happier than throwing a 60 yard bomb. That’s a mindset that changed from 2021 to 2022. He really seemed to avoid contact his first year on campus.
