It's a shame we won't see promising Jake Rudock after preseason
'He’s like a younger Stafford;' Lions 2nd-year backup QB continues to look better, but we likely won't see him after the preseason ends
Carlos Monarrez
One of the first things they teach you in column-writing school — after torture-endurance training and a survival course in the desert armed with just a Marriott Silver Elite rewards card — is to never cede your opinion to someone else. Speak for yourself loudly, clearly and boldly.
But I’m breaking that rule right now. I’m allowing TJ Jones to voice an opinion for me because the veteran Detroit Lions receiver said something recently about quarterback Jake Rudock that was a little shocking and should be heard.
After Rudock’s impressive debut in the exhibition opener at Indianapolis, I asked Jones what Matthew Stafford’s second-year backup was like in the huddle.
“He tells you what to do. He’s like a younger Stafford,” Jones said. “He gets in it, he says the play with confidence, he lets you know what you have.
“He’ll tell you what you need to see. If he has to point something out, he points it out and you go with the play. You don’t miss a beat.”
Thanks, TJ. I’ll take it from here.
Jones’ key phrases that jumped out to me: “He’s like a younger Stafford,” and “You don’t miss a beat.”
Say what you will about Stafford. But at the very least, he’s a capable starting quarterback who has helped lead his team to three playoff appearances and he’s on the brink of signing a $100-million contract. And Jones is comparing Rudock’s capability to Stafford’s. That is not a small statement.
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Before we go any further, let’s get this straight: Jones was not trying to stir any kind of quarterback controversy, and neither am I.
What I am trying to stir is a little thought here. Stafford has had every advantage built into his career, whereas Rudock has had to overcome several obstacles. He had to learn three offensive systems in three years, he was a sixth-round draft pick and was relegated to the practice squad. Yet, he has clawed his way to becoming a proficient NFL quarterback.
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Maybe you already realize that about Rudock. I probably don’t have to tell you he was the Lions’ best quarterback during the 2016 exhibition season, as a rookie. I’m sure you saw for yourself that he was even more impressive against the Indianapolis Colts in last week’s game.
And all the hype about Kenny Golladay’s two-touchdown debut? Well, Golladay didn’t throw those passes to himself. Rudock threw both of those TD passes en route to a 113.6 passer rating — fourth-best among QBs who attempted at least 20 passes last week.
“I think just having gone through the season before,” Rudock said, “having heard this offense a couple times now, having it installed a number of times, it makes you think a little bit less about what do I have to do, as opposed to hey, what’s the defense trying to do to you?”
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The NFL exhibition season is a strange animal, and it’s stranger still for backup QBs. When the NFL regular season starts, the backup quarterback attends meetings, runs the opponents’ offense against the first-team defense and holds a clipboard during games. For that reason, playing in actual games — OK, facsimiles of real games — in the exhibition season are vital opportunities for a backup.
“Game reps, game speeds, are very different than obviously in practice, and we practice at a very high tempo,” Rudock said. “You can’t replicate a game exactly like it is.
“Obviously I’m getting hit in a game and not so much in practice. So, reps everywhere are always valuable. Definitely being able to go out there and feel kind of the heat of being able to get hit and slammed here and there is good.”
If there is one position in the NFL that’s maddening, it’s the quarterback. The position defies all logic in its disproportionate importance. Yet, the backup for this position is treated like a spare tire, a necessary instrument you’d prefer to never think about or use.
But Rudock appears to be progressing at a rapid rate.
“Just the amount of growth he’s had from Year 1 to Year 2,” Jones said, “not being a wide-eyed rookie, really getting to sit into the playbook for a year, really getting to take the second-team reps and he’s getting a lot more reps, whereas last year Dan (Orlovsky) was taking them.
“So he was learning more from a playbook aspect, whereas now he can take the playbook to the field. And I think coming from OTAs and all the off-season work we did together as a team, it’s helped him tremendously.”
But after the fourth exhibition game, that will end. If the Lions get their wish, Stafford will start 16 games and no one outside the team’s facility will see Rudock throw another pass until next year.
I’m not wishing for Stafford to get hurt. But I always find it laughably ironic the way fate sometimes saves coaches and general managers from themselves. If Drew Bledsoe hadn’t gotten hurt, Tom Brady probably wouldn’t have won five Super Bowls. If Trent Green hadn’t gotten hurt, Kurt Warner wouldn’t be in the Hall of Fame. If Tony Romo hadn’t gotten hurt, no one would know who Dak Prescott is.
It’s a shame it takes such a catastrophic blow to unveil the talented potential of promising understudies. But hey, what else are spare tires for?
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Contact Carlos Monarrez: cmonarrez@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @cmonarrez.