The QB Is Important, But It's Not The Only Thing

A quarterback's success isn't simply assured because of who he is.

Every NFL fan knows the quarterback is the most important position in the game. Every NFL fan knows about the importance of coaching. And most NFL fans would want an owner and general manager who let the coaches do their jobs and simply evaluate their performances.

But the question that I saw raised on Twitter was which one is most important.

This question was posed to Denver Broncos fans, given that the Broncos are up for sale, are looking for a new head coach and are in need of a quarterback.

All of these people are important to a team's success, but which one is more important?

If you are looking for a veteran quarterback who has established himself as one of the best in the game, then it's not hard to say that the QB is most important.

However, a rule of thumb to remember about elite QBs is this: They were not elite from the day they were drafted -- they became elite through things the QBs themselves did and the things that other people with the team did.

Let's consider Tom Brady, for example. There's no question he's one of the best QBs to ever play the game. However, imagine if, instead of going to the New England Patriots, he was taken No. 1 overall in 2000.

Brady then winds up with the Cleveland Browns -- the expansion team version that came along in 1999. How likely is it that Brady still follows that path to elite QB play?

Look at the coaching situation the Browns had at the time. Head coach Chris Palmer was gone after two seasons. Butch Davis, who took over in 2001, had a winning season in 2002, but that was his only one. The Browns did have Bruce Arians as their offensive coordinator, but he was gone in 2003.

It does beg this question: Given what we know about the work Arians has done, would he have been able to get the most out of Brady?

One point to consider, though, is 2001 was the first time Arians served as an NFL offensive coordinator. He had a couple of offensive coordinator stints in college, but mostly served as a positional coach in the NFL, having coached running backs, tight ends and quarterbacks.

It's possible Arians might have been able to coach up Brady and get him to become an elite QB. However, it's also possible that things don't work out because Arians, in his first NFL offensive coordinator stint, is learning how to handle the job in the NFL.

We can see that Arians fared better in his next offensive coordinator stint. He joined the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2004 as a wide receiver coach, then was named offensive coordinator in 2007. The Steelers would win the Super Bowl in his second year as Steelers offensive coordinator.

Getting back to the quarterbacks subject, there are people who act as though Josh Allen was always going to be successful wherever he went. However, my argument is that Allen became successful because the Bills identified him as their guy and invested in developing him.

It also helped that Allen had the right coaches who would get him developed. Head coach Sean McDermott may be a former defensive coordinator, but he still needs to identify coordinators and positional coaches who can help with a QB's development. Brian Daboll has been with the Bills since 2018, the year Allen was drafted. Then there's Ken Dorsey, the quarterbacks coach who joined the Bills in 2019, Allen's second year with the team.

Imagine if Allen had gone to the New York Jets instead. The Jets don't have a good owner and were going through repeated changes at the head coaching and general manager positions. The Jets' biggest issue was likely that they would change one position, but not the other, and the end result is you would have two people who didn't see eye to eye. When that happens, there's no way to ensure a team is properly built or that a QB is properly developed.

While elite QB play can hide subpar coaching, it can only do it for so long. At some point, the issues with the head coach and offensive coordinator become obvious and you have to make a change.

And when it comes to ownership, an owner who meddles in team affairs too much can do more harm than good. Owners who hire people to do their jobs and simply evaluate their overall performances are going to have more success than those who act like they can't trust the people they hire do to the jobs.

Certainly, a team cannot ignore the QB position, but addressing the position is not enough by itself. If you want to ensure you have a team that makes the playoffs on a regular basis, you need more than a QB.

Here's what you should look for when it comes to having a successful NFL franchise.

An owner who trusts the people he hires to do the jobs: Good owners who want to hire a general manager to oversee the team will allow the GM to do that and evaluate the GM's performances in doing so. If an owner tries to dictate every decision to a GM, no trust can be built and you won't be able to sustain success.

Owners who serve as GM, such as Jerry Jones and Paul Brown, need to allow the coaches to do their jobs and evaluate how well they do them. Jones and Brown are not without their faults, but I've seen no evidence that they dictate coaching decisions. An owner who behaves as if he or she is the coach is going to run into the same problem with building trust.

A general manager who takes input before making a decision: Good general managers understand that they need to listen to coaches and scouting staff for input about personnel, then make the best possible decision.

You often hear about GMs who have the final say, but that doesn't mean you overrule everybody when it comes to making a decision. For example: If everyone in the room believes a player is worth drafting, the GM should draft that player, but if people are divided, the GM should determine who has the most compelling case and make a decision based on that.

When it comes to signing free agents, a GM does need to keep in mind issues such as cap space and cash on hand. However, he needs to balance that with what the coaches are looking for. If he is unable to get one free agent, he shouldn't be too quick to settle for the next available free agent if that player doesn't fit what coaches want.

An NFL head coach who maximizes the talent in the players they have: Whether it's developing a QB so he has the chance to become elite or taking an average QB who has been in the league for years and make him look good, a quality head coach gets the most out of the talent he has.

Some of that comes through player development, while some of it comes from putting the right coordinators and positional coaches on the staff who can either call plays to the team's strengths or find ways to get the most out of the talent the player has.

Good coaches should certainly be able to manage the game and understand when to challenge and when to utilize a time out. But when it comes to talent, a head coach isn't always going to have an elite player at every position, even at QB. Therefore, head coaches who can get a lot out of QBs who aren't elite are desirable, because once they do get or develop an elite QB, a Super Bowl win is likely to come your way.

A quarterback who elevates the team, but isn't expected to solve every problem: You can certainly talk about a QB's potential for greatness, but that potential won't become reality unless he enters a good situation. Nor should you hold out hopes for acquiring an elite QB via free agency or trade when your team is lacking in more areas than the QB.

An elite QB certainly gives you the best shot at a Super Bowl, but ignoring other areas means you put too much weight on the QB's shoulders.

If you want an honest assessment of how this works, ask yourself about the QBs who were part of Super Bowl dynasties and what they had in common, and then ask about the elite QBs who have just one Super Bowl win but never made it back. The ones who headed dynasties had quality coaches, general managers and owners. The ones who never made it back had something missing that might have allowed them to keep going back.