Huard or Green: Good Ole' Fashion QB Controversy?

Phil and I have discussed the Trent Green vs. Damon Huard debate at length. Phil has generally sided toward Trent Green. I have my doubts about Green. Both for this season and next season.

It's really not worth arguing about. Trent Green is the Chiefs' man for Saturday and there's nothing that you or I or John Madden can do about it. Still, we hear interesting reports that Green will be held on a short leash. At least, that's what Herm says. I'll believe it when I see it.
Green has done little to prove that he is capable of pulling the Chiefs through the playoffs. If we can ever get the 2002 or 2003 Trent Green back, then maybe it's possible. I happen to believe that these versions of Trent Green are far better than the 2006 Damon Huard, but how much longer do I have to wait? Is that wait as worthless as waiting all night for the real Easter Bunny to show up at my door?

Granted, I will surround this discussion with a little perspective. I like Damon Huard, but I also think his accomplishment has been overrated.It frustrates me that so many people speak of his electric spark he brought off the bench against Jacksonville. He threw a quick slant pass to Samie Parker, then a deep pass to Kennison. The pass was a good one, but it was also arguably the greatest catch I've seen a Chief make in our modern generation. Aren't we making too big a deal off of two good but not all-world passes? I also don't like the arguments that rely purely on statistics. Sure, Huard's rating and TD/INT ratio are outstanding, but put them into context: Huard won almost all his games against the NFC West, his defense was creating enormous turnovers that were putting the Chiefs in the red zone, and Huard's protection was typically a step above what Green has seen. Green has seen San Diego, Baltimore, Jacksonville, Denver, and Oakland twice--a pretty tough group of defenses to face, no matter who you might be. Huard has had a lot of help. His track record is average at best against the league's better defenses.

Still, something is very wrong with Trent Green, so there's not a lot of positive to be seen in starting him. I don't know if it's unshakeable rust or if he is actually seeing some serious after-effects of his concussion. He's not making the reads as quickly as he should and he's forcing balls into receivers' hands even when they're clearly not open. Worse, these miscues seem to occur late in games and they are bringing teams back into games.

Despite everything, Herm is making the right call. That is, if he truly sticks to his word that Green will be given the hook at the first sign of struggling. Though Green has not been sharp all season, he is more of a known commodity. Do you really trust a backup quarterback to come into a playoff game and dominate from the get-go? What if Huard gets butterflies? What if he has so much rust coming off the bench that he has to be doused in WD-40? If Huard does any of these things, boy will his face be red for having chosen to start a quarterback who wasn't ready for the postseason.

I also think it finalizes some questions about Green and helps the Chiefs create some ultimate closure for 2007. You see, I believe that Green is auditioning for his job. He'll have an enormous cap figure next season and, now, the Chiefs can truly say that they gave Green his fair shake at winning the important football games. Trent Green has been such an important part of the Kansas City organization that I can't even imagine us not at least giving him a shot to flex his playoff muscle.

If Trent Green is the gamer we've always said he was, he will come out against Indianapolis and throw darts all day. If he's not, the Chiefs will have some interesting decisions to make in 2007. But at least no matter what decision we come to, we will know that Green was given his fair shot at being the man in the 2006 season.