[Mick]

I didn't follow Trent Edwards' career that closely, but I agree that after that shot he was much more tentative, much more of a short throw, dump off QB.  And you just can't survive in the NFL being such a "horizontal" QB.

BTW, that player would be ejected (or should be) for a hit like that today:  helmet to helmet, AND spearing slamming to he ground.

But if you're asking me for the turning point in the professional fortunes of Trent Edwards, I would say it was the unrelenting beat downs he took behind Stanford's OL and inept coaching in the Dark Ages.  That, more than anything, undermined his physical and mental wherewithal to be a good NFL QB - and he had all the tools to be just that.  As I've long said, Stanford was lucky that Trent's parents didn't sue the university for child endangerment.

Couple of thoughts.

First, I agree, the player would be ejected today, and you can distinctly hear the announcer say that it was a "good clean hit, nothing wrong with that hit."  Even then, that was BS.

Second, I recall seeing Trent play for Los Gatos high school against Paly, and I remember that a Paly LB and DE took him out on one play.  Trent was gone for a while, and I remember thinking "make the DE and LB 25 to 50 pounds heavier and much faster and Trent's going to have problems at the next level" or rather at the level after that.

[Mick]

I didn't follow Trent Edwards' career that closely, but I agree that after that shot he was much more tentative, much more of a short throw, dump off QB.  And you just can't survive in the NFL being such a "horizontal" QB.

BTW, that player would be ejected (or should be) for a hit like that today:  helmet to helmet, AND spearing slamming to he ground.

But if you're asking me for the turning point in the professional fortunes of Trent Edwards, I would say it was the unrelenting beat downs he took behind Stanford's OL and inept coaching in the Dark Ages.  That, more than anything, undermined his physical and mental wherewithal to be a good NFL QB - and he had all the tools to be just that.  As I've long said, Stanford was lucky that Trent's parents didn't sue the university for child endangerment.

Couple of thoughts.

First, I agree, the player would be ejected today, and you can distinctly hear the announcer say that it was a "good clean hit, nothing wrong with that hit."  Even then, that was BS.

Second, I recall seeing Trent play for Los Gatos high school against Paly, and I remember that a Paly LB and DE took him out on one play.  Trent was gone for a while, and I remember thinking "make the DE and LB 25 to 50 pounds heavier and much faster and Trent's going to have problems at the next level" or rather at the level after that.