It was a Saturday afternoon in early September of last year. I was working on a project in my den and decided to put on a little college football in the background. Notre Dame happened to be playing Florida State. I wasn’t paying particularly close attention to the game, but this quarterback for the Fighting Irish kept catching my eye. I knew that their star signal caller of recent years, Ian Book, had moved on to the NFL, and I had wondered what they would do without him.
Well, this new guy was putting on quite a show. Scrambling away from pressure, throwing on the run with pinpoint accuracy down the field, making great decisions. I thought the announcers were calling him “Cohen”. Every time I glanced up from my work, he was making a play. Eventually, I happened to be looking when they put his picture and name up on a graphic. I was stunned to see it was actually former Wisconsin Badger quarterback Jack Coan. I had forgotten he had transferred to South Bend.
Coan threw for 366 yards and four touchdowns that day, leading the Irish to a thrilling 31-28 victory in overtime. He made it look as though Wisconsin made a very bad decision when they decided to stick with young Graham Mertz over Coan, after the latter missed a full season with an injury. Seeing the handwriting on the wall, Coan shipped out.
I bring this up because the NFL draft is just weeks away, and I believe the Green Bay Packers need to spend a day three draft pick on a project quarterback. A player that has the potential, if not the resume’, to be groomed to be a competent back-up. I believe the Packers are going to need a solid back-up signal caller within the next two or three years. The way Aaron Rodgers’ contract is set up, the team either has to part with him after one more year, or ride him out for the long term.
If he departs after the coming season, Jordan Love moves up to start. Who, then, is your back-up? Kurt Benkert? A fun guy to watch, really loves to get out there and crank the ball all over the field. But is he talented enough to actually win a real game if called upon in an emergency? Benkert went undrafted in 2018, spent two years on the Atlanta Falcons practice squad, and one season on injured reserve. He got cut in February of 2021, and then was signed by Green Bay as little more than a training camp arm. He’s the kind of underdog story you love to pull for, but all indications are he’s just not good enough. He played most of the Packers’ second preseason game last August, throwing for 151 yards and one touchdown, with one interception. The Packers can, and should, do better.
If Rodgers stays for the long term, Jordan Love only remains a cheap back-up for two more seasons. Picking up his fifth year option is projected to cost as much as $18 million, according to si.com. Certainly way too much for a back-up. So the team would likely trade him prior to the 2024 season to get some value. There again, who would be the back-up? This is why the Packers should spend a late round selection on a young prospect whom they can start grooming immediately.
Which brings me back to Jack Coan. He finished that senior season at Notre Dame spinning it for 3,150 yards and 25 touchdowns. Pro scouts like his leadership, coachability, and ball security, calling him a classic drop back quarterback. Like most young signal callers, he needs work on consistent accuracy, and reading defenses. In other words, he’s a project. He’s been on watch lists for national awards, leading the Irish to an 11-2 record in 2021. He’s played in cold weather. He’s from New York.
Various draft gurus have him going anywhere from round six to undrafted. Chances are he’s going to be there late in day three. No doubt, the Packers have many more urgent needs to address early on in the coming draft. But after securing the necessary prospects at receiver, linebacker, offensive line and tight end, when they get to the point where you’re just looking for potential, they should give Coan a serious look.
As a former Badger, he’d be a popular player amongst the cheesehead faithful, and one day, he may develop into another in a long line of successful former Packer back-ups that includes Mark Brunell, Matt Hasselbeck, Aaron Brooks and Matt Flynn. It’s a flyer worth taking.
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