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Trent Green is in St. Louis because of his 6 years of NFL maturity. He is not a "kid" any more. He is not a "project". He is not a "prodigy". He has seen rain and he's seen fire. And he's not impressed by either. He is what he said he is. A man who loves what he's doing. Physically, this isn't a Walsh arm guy by any stretch of the imagination. He is in fact the penultimate "wiry" kinda guy. By that I mean he has a high ratio of ligament/tendon to muscle. And while its true he doesn't have the disproportionately long arms of a TB or Randle Cunningham; neither are his arms disproportionately short as pro athletes go.
Frankly I can't think of a good comparison for his arm type among present day hurlers, although I'm sure there are some, maybe Chandler. But the prototype for his physical make up is, to my eye, Roger Staubach. Now before you hurl that brunch let me hasten to add, I'm not talking between the ears or below the belt. But from waist to neck you couldn't tell these guys apart.
And what this means to me is that Green will be physically capable, and relatively tough to boot. I don't see his elbow breaking down ala Walsh, or his shoulder succumbing to the kind of injury the muscle bound types like Leaf recently incurred. You will be able to break those bones, but the soft tissues will be tough.
I haven't yet seen enough of him in action to determine if he has enough Staubach in him to make him a true "Dodger", but the potential is definitely there. At this point I can only say that he will be very very close to giving DV exactly what he got from Jaworski in Philly with the added plus of more speed and quickness than Jaws had.
Now, The Myth.
After all is said and done. I think there are two reason's for the Myth of the "weak arm". The first is simply frame of reference. For coaches, reporters and fans who are used to seeing Tony Tiger's whip of an arm, the first thing that comes to mind when you see a normal arm at work is "weak". Well if you are used to getting top line performance out of a QB's arm, all else is "weak" by comparison. But weakness is relative.
But when the coaches or Jack Snow are talking about only wanting a QB that's "a little above average" I think they must be referring ONLY to arm strength and not "performance". Which brings me to reason two.
TG will throw the occasional floater, all QBs do. But in his case, it will be due to some distraction, indecision, or mental lapse that 'causes an error in mechanics. There will be tons of distractions for him to deal with, and when you rely upon mechanics for your arm strength, rather than a natural, instinctive whip, there will be times when the technique slips and the natural throwing motion kicks in. As his number of game starts increase these "floater" instances will decrease. But it will have to come from experience dealing with the pressures while maintaining the proper techniques to get the most out of his arm.
When I see FE and others talking about Martz and his offensive approach, I keep thinking of the results that Reilly's "surprise" plays got with the out gunned Brooks offensive players, but even more significant is the old NFL Films' clip of Sid Gillman on the sidelines of the AFL Chargers talking to his QB about throwing 'em where they ain't, and how they can't "cover everything". This is going to be complicated. And Green only has 13 starts. There will be lapses in mechanics.
The Martz offense sounds to me as though its going to depend on this same complex, open option, hit the weak spot, take what they give you style. It will require the QB to get it there; but it WON'T require the QB to drop seven and bombs away down after down. This offense isn't going to need a Mad Bomber. Nor will it need a "whip" at QB. It is not going to bludgeon anyone either with the run of the pass. Its going to be designed to slice and dice.
The 5 to 20 yard range up the field is going to be the critical zone. That's the area in which the Rams will create the mismatches and exploit the weaknesses. But its also the region wherein the "Fog of War" muddles a QBs perceptions the most. RAMS victories will depend as much on that as on the personnel they send to the plate. Better weapons? Yes TG will have a more potent group than TB did. But they will also be employed differently.
I wish we could play the Vikings again this year. The difference would be obvious. Last year with IB and Hill we slugged it out with them in their Bombs away style of play. It might have worked if we'd had as many weapons as they do. But if we played them again THIS YEAR, the boom or bust reliance on the big strike would simply not be there when we had the ball. This year it would be Search and Destroy. Probe, distract, camouflage; that will be the style this year. When the deep post presents itself you'll see it. But it will come when it is time. When the safeties are cheating up and after the CBs have been burned short for gain after gain. Maybe it will be the RB who runs the pattern, rather than a Wide Out, ...with an LB gasping at air and eating dust. (Tee Hee:-:) Think of the play calling in last year's Jets game. That's what we will see every week with Martz.
So when someone says "all we need is a little above average" they aren't talking performance. IMHO, I think they just mean this is an offense that Jaws would be comfortable in. It doesn't require a Steve McNair or Peyton Manning. The QB won't have to carry the team on his back. It requires some one who can both see and play the percentages. It will require very good "performance" from the QB, but no more so than any of the other pieces. It will be a real system for a change. And not a trick play, slight of hand system.
And this is what TG is doing. Working a system in which the deep ball is just a means to an end. Not a necessity of life