Halfway through the NFL Europe season, Rohan Davey just may turn out to be the best player the league has ever seen. At least that's how former Boston College coach Jack Bicknell sees it.
"He's certainly up there among the best quarterbacks we've ever seen play over here," said Bicknell, who currently is the head coach of the Scottish Claymores and has worked in the league for its entire 11-year existence. "If he gets the opportunity to play in the NFL he's sure to prosper."
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Bicknell's remarks were posted on NFL.com a week ago, before Davey ripped through yet another opponent with four touchdown passes while adding another on the ground. Davey's Berlin Thunder is the class of the league with a 5-0 mark, and the Patriots backup has been the central reason for that success.
Davey earned NFLE Player of the Week honors three times in the first five weeks, most recently when he completed 10-of-17 passes for 149 yards and four touchdowns, plus the aforementioned rushing score in a 33-29 win over Amsterdam. For the season, Davey has completed 66-of-102 passes for 896 yards with 11 touchdowns and just three interceptions. His passer rating of 116.3 is tops in the league.
"Rohan Davey is becoming the real leader of our football team," Thunder head coach Rick Lantz said. "He is doing things extremely well and is making clutch plays. He has been well coached in college and in the NFL. He just needed playing time."
That's obviously why Bill Belichick and the rest of the Patriots coaching staff decided to ship the youngster off to Europe. After two seasons of inactivity, Belichick felt it was important for Davey to simply get back to managing the game and running the team – in other words, being a quarterback again.
"He has gotten a lot of game experience, which is what we felt would be most beneficial to him," Belichick said. "I think he has handled it well. He has been in a number of situations – the team has been ahead, behind, he's managed the clock … you just can't orchestrate [those situations].
"You want them to blitz. You want them to drop back and play coverage. You want the running game to be going so you run play action. You want them to be in third-and-long, third-and-short. Every time the ball is snapped can be a learning experience for him over there."
Davey's success in Europe won't guarantee him the role of Tom Brady's top backup, but the coaching staff has to feel better about that possibility. With last year's No. 2 man Damon Huard still unsigned, Davey and second-year man Kliff Kingsbury, who spent his rookie year on injured reserve with a shoulder injury, are the only remaining options should Brady go down.
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Neither Davey nor Kingsbury has much playing experience so the work across the pond has been invaluable for the former LSU Tiger. However, that performance won't affect whether or not the team brings in a veteran as insurance.
"I don't think so because [Davey] would be in the same position for us whether was here or there," Belichick said. "Whereas if he was here and hadn't completed a pass, he would have the same opportunity that he would have going over there and throwing 200 of them. What he does with it, we will all see. But it won't affect him at all. If there is an opportunity for us to improve our team, then we will always consider it."
Davey's performance in Europe thus far has been as good or better than any other passer in league history. Kurt Warner, Jake Delhomme, Brad Johnson and Jon Kitna all apprenticed in Europe but none did so with the production Davey had in the first half of the season.
"He is a very gifted guy in terms of his ability and especially physically," Bicknell said. "He has big, strong arms, he's aggressive, and when he tucks the ball and runs he's a formidable opponent. He reminds me of Daunte Culpepper in size and ability."
With just a couple of months remaining until training camp is set to open, those words have to make Patriots fans feel a little better if they're forced to deal with life without Brady.
Patriots notes
The Patriots officially announced they will be visiting the White House on Monday, May 10. It will be the team's second trip to Washington in the last three years, where President George W. Bush will once again greet them and congratulate them on their victory in Super Bowl XXXVIII.
Halfway through the NFL Europe season, Rohan Davey just may turn out to be the best player the league has ever seen. At least that's how former Boston College coach Jack Bicknell sees it.
"He's certainly up there among the best quarterbacks we've ever seen play over here," said Bicknell, who currently is the head coach of the Scottish Claymores and has worked in the league for its entire 11-year existence. "If he gets the opportunity to play in the NFL he's sure to prosper."
[
]()
Bicknell's remarks were posted on NFL.com a week ago, before Davey ripped through yet another opponent with four touchdown passes while adding another on the ground. Davey's Berlin Thunder is the class of the league with a 5-0 mark, and the Patriots backup has been the central reason for that success.
Davey earned NFLE Player of the Week honors three times in the first five weeks, most recently when he completed 10-of-17 passes for 149 yards and four touchdowns, plus the aforementioned rushing score in a 33-29 win over Amsterdam. For the season, Davey has completed 66-of-102 passes for 896 yards with 11 touchdowns and just three interceptions. His passer rating of 116.3 is tops in the league.
"Rohan Davey is becoming the real leader of our football team," Thunder head coach Rick Lantz said. "He is doing things extremely well and is making clutch plays. He has been well coached in college and in the NFL. He just needed playing time."
That's obviously why Bill Belichick and the rest of the Patriots coaching staff decided to ship the youngster off to Europe. After two seasons of inactivity, Belichick felt it was important for Davey to simply get back to managing the game and running the team – in other words, being a quarterback again.
"He has gotten a lot of game experience, which is what we felt would be most beneficial to him," Belichick said. "I think he has handled it well. He has been in a number of situations – the team has been ahead, behind, he's managed the clock … you just can't orchestrate [those situations].
"You want them to blitz. You want them to drop back and play coverage. You want the running game to be going so you run play action. You want them to be in third-and-long, third-and-short. Every time the ball is snapped can be a learning experience for him over there."
Davey's success in Europe won't guarantee him the role of Tom Brady's top backup, but the coaching staff has to feel better about that possibility. With last year's No. 2 man Damon Huard still unsigned, Davey and second-year man Kliff Kingsbury, who spent his rookie year on injured reserve with a shoulder injury, are the only remaining options should Brady go down.
[
]()
Neither Davey nor Kingsbury has much playing experience so the work across the pond has been invaluable for the former LSU Tiger. However, that performance won't affect whether or not the team brings in a veteran as insurance.
"I don't think so because [Davey] would be in the same position for us whether was here or there," Belichick said. "Whereas if he was here and hadn't completed a pass, he would have the same opportunity that he would have going over there and throwing 200 of them. What he does with it, we will all see. But it won't affect him at all. If there is an opportunity for us to improve our team, then we will always consider it."
Davey's performance in Europe thus far has been as good or better than any other passer in league history. Kurt Warner, Jake Delhomme, Brad Johnson and Jon Kitna all apprenticed in Europe but none did so with the production Davey had in the first half of the season.
"He is a very gifted guy in terms of his ability and especially physically," Bicknell said. "He has big, strong arms, he's aggressive, and when he tucks the ball and runs he's a formidable opponent. He reminds me of Daunte Culpepper in size and ability."
With just a couple of months remaining until training camp is set to open, those words have to make Patriots fans feel a little better if they're forced to deal with life without Brady.
Patriots notes
The Patriots officially announced they will be visiting the White House on Monday, May 10. It will be the team's second trip to Washington in the last three years, where President George W. Bush will once again greet them and congratulate them on their victory in Super Bowl XXXVIII.
