Penny's Plan Leaves Pat White Out
If Pat White only gets a year after being picked up in the second round, that's a huge strike against the Parcells regime.
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ATLANTA - SEPTEMBER 13: Backup quarterback Pat White #6 of the Miami Dolphins against the Atlanta Falcons at Georgia Dome on September 13, 2009 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
Chad Pennington just signed a one-year, $2.5 million dollar contract with the Dolphins, but he's got more than just one last season in mind. Turns out ol' CP wants to be the next Kurt Warner, and got an hour's worth of advice from The Bagboy on how best to scratch out another five years on the field.
The answer: enter training camp as the Dolphins' no. 3 guy behind Chad Henne and Tyler Thigpen, allowing Pennington time to make a proper recovery while the Dolphins throw enough reps at Thigpen to determine if he's a long-term guy or trade bait.
That's all well and good, but what about Pat White?
Part of Pennington's plan, obviously, is to heal up with the Dolphins and then go elsewhere. Miami will get something out of Penny, whether through mentoring or trade or actual play -- but if that causes the Dolphins to waste Pat White after just one season, it seems an awfully big shame.
Should the Dolphins keep both Thigpen and Penny -- and let's get real, no one sees them going with Thigpen over a healthy Pennington if The Robot gets injured -- it's White who'll be out. Jeff Darlington says White has to prove worthy of a niche role by the end of training camp, a deadline that seems awfully forced for a regime that thought he was developable enough for a second-round draft pick.
White's rookie year was obviously disappointing; he didn't complete a single pass, the "Wildpat" usually went nowhere, and he's working on fixing the Tebow-esque horrorshow of a throwing motion he rode in with. Be that as it may, one year isn't enough to judge any rookie quarterback (except Jamarcus Russell, who was and is and always will be terrible).
Can't they give the kid a little more time?
Janie Campbell wants Pat White to get time to develop, but also hopes Tim Tebow gets cut in camp. Hypocrital? Nah, just discerning. Her work has appeared in irreverant sites around the Internet.
Posted Tuesday, Mar 9, 2010 - 3:17 PM EST
