Let's break this down and see if we can't have a rational conversation.
Taylor
--Flawed throwing mechanics - It's a no brainer that the kid is an athlete playing quarterback. Why wasn't he recruited by anyone else as a QB? He doesn't step into his throws which causes him to only use his upper body and that's why he shorts most of the deeper passes. His throwing motion is awful. Anyone who watches him throw can see it. The thing that scares me is that he continues to play this way after starting for an entire year (banged up or not) + the first 5 this year. Like Herbstreit said, he has a 3 second timer in his head when he is in the pocket. Whether the pocket is collapsing or not, after 3 seconds or so, he panics, scrambling outside and just flings up an meatball (See INT # 1).
--Poor decision-making in the passing department - It's not like the Badger defenders made spectacular plays to pick Taylor off, they didn't even make great plays. They simply caught the ball when Taylor threw at them. It's not like the receivers ran bad routes or couldn't catch the ball when it came their way. The WRs have stepped up so far this year and are no longer an excuse for Taylor's awful throws. Each of Taylor's 3 INTs last Saturday came from poor decision-making and for him not to learn from the INT #1 OR INT #2 really sends a message to me that the kid just isn't getting it. For those of you saying he's only a sophomore, find a different excuse. He's been in Lincoln for 3 years. He's a glorified junior starting his 2nd season at Nebraska. The biggest strides QBs make in their college careers TYPICALLY come between their 1st and 2nd season as the starter. The final season(s) are when they have the mechanics down and are just fine tuning themselves at that point. Taylor is not even close to this point.
--Lacks ball security when running the football/scrambling in the pocket - This is a big one. It takes almost zero skill to hold onto the football. Everyone wants to point out that Taylor is a running quarterback and shouldn't be compared to the many Pro-style QBs around the country. This is true, Taylor isn't a Pro-style QB, he's a runner, and as a running QB, you NEED, not should, NEED to be able to hold onto the football. Again, he hasn't progressed in this category at all since he stepped onto the turf against Western Kentucky over a year ago. This is a MAJOR concern with how many times he carries the ball each game. The fact that he carries the ball as much as Rex is beyond ridiculous, but that's beside the point, and not entirely his fault, but if he claims to be a running QB, you'd figure that ball security shouldn't be a concern, but it definitely is.
--One-dimensional runner- I know many posters have touched on this already so I won't go into much detail, but again, he is a straightforward runner and not too much more. He can't juke anyone and he doesn't break many tackles. He obviously can accelerate as well as anyone in the country (minus the SEC), but he just doesn't have enough of the necessary running qualities when you have to get past ALL 3 LAYERS of the defense. If he was at a different position, then maybe his acceleration and 'beat-you-to-the-corner' speed would come in handy, but lining up under center, limited to only those two attributes, doesn't produce (at least against teams with quality defenses). He has yet to put a successful game together on the ground against a quality opponent, weak ankle or not weak ankle (See 2010 Texas).
--Zero leadership qualities -- Obviously this one is more of an opinion that a fact, but it needs to be addressed. Everyone has seen the pressers. He is awkward, to put it lightly, in front of the media and never says what he needs to say as the leader of a top-notch football team. The emotional aspect of being a QB is almost as important as the physical aspect. You need to know how to address your players when times are tough and battle through adversity. This is my biggest problem with Taylor. HE HAS NO RESILIENCE AS A PLAYER. When he does something wrong, he has not once, NOT ONCE, came back from it in the same game and proved everyone wrong. When he throws an INT in a game, he never improves after he does so. His best games, that really mattered, in his career overall as a QB are 10 WASH, 10 KSU, and 10 OKST. All three were not only less-than-stellar defenses, but Taylor did not throw an INT in any of those games. His best games unfold when he never screws up in the passing game. When he does, he has yet to show any sort of resilience. When he falls, he falls hard and can't seem to pick himself up: a MAJOR issue when you're the leader of the offense. As the leader of the team, you need to take responsibilities for your teams offensive performance and put the blame on your shoulders, even if it's not completely your fault. It shows that you're unselfish and thinking of your teammates before yourself. He has yet to show that in his pressers, or at least the one's I've seen.
The bottom line is that Taylor should not be the future of Nebraska football. He has made little, if any progress in the very reasonable amount of time he's seen over the last few years. I realize that Brion hasn't proven himself in practice to challenge Martinez for the starting role, but with what I've just explained, he needs to become a more prevalent part of the offense every week. He needs to see time nearly every week in order to improve and develop chemistry with his teammates. Whether he has challenged Taylor for the starting role or not, Bo needs to at least implement him into the offense in order to develop him as a player and perhaps light a fire under Taylor's rear end. The fact that he did not see any snaps during the second half last weekend was mind boggling. I think we have to stick with Taylor for now given the extreme shortage of able QBs behind him, but anyone who truly believes that Martinez is the right man for the job is delusional.
