How good is Taylor Heinicke?
A question being asked around the NFL right now is: how good is Taylor Heinicke?
Unfortunately for the Washington Football Team and fans alike, Ryan Fitzpatrick went down with a hip injury early in the Week 1 game against the Los Angeles Chargers. Fitzpatrick was placed on IR and is likely to miss "extended time." That could mean several things, including the injury being season-ending.
Much like in the playoffs last season, Taylor Heinicke must now step in and fill some big shoes. Many questions are swirling about the younger replacement.
Is Taylor Heinicke the long-term answer for the WFT?
Taylor Heinicke is in his fourth season in the NFL. He has spent time playing for the Houston Texans and Carolina Panthers, and now he has spent the last two seasons with the WFT. Looking deeper at his stats, he has shown some promise in the past two seasons.
Heinicke stepped up in one game in 2020. He threw 12-19 passes, 137 yards and one touchdown, with a passer rating of 102.3. Those are some decent numbers given the task of taking over a team from Alex Smith.
Heinicke also had the even bigger task of playing in the wildcard round of the playoffs in 2020. Against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, no less, who went on to win the Super Bowl. Heinicke threw for 306 yards on 26-44 attempts. His passer rating wasn't the best, 78.4, but what can be expected when playing the 2020 Bucs?
Now that Fitz is out and Heinicke is in, can he step up in a big way and take the Washington Football Team back to the playoffs? The team is certainly talented enough, especially in the NFC East, which is still a mystery.
Taylor Heinicke is enjoying himself. Shovel pass to McLaurin for a nice gain after a penalty https://t.co/1XNuN8L3yd
So far, Heinicke hasn't disappointed. The WFT lost on Sunday to the Los Angeles Chargers with a final score of 20-16. Heinicke ended the day with some much-improved numbers. His 11-15 attempts resulted in 122 yards and one TD. He had a career-high 119.3 passer rating.
That passer rating has landed Heinicke as number 9 in the list of starting quarterbacks. That's not bad. His QBR is currently 70.1, which isn't terrible. Heinicke can definitely build on these numbers.
The Philadelphia Eagles currently lead the division after dismantling the Atlanta Falcons, which doesn't seem too impressive given how the Falcons have played the past two seasons.
The WFT is in the middle of the pack for strength of schedule and has a tough road ahead with the next five opponents being the New York Giants, Buffalo Bills, Atlanta Falcons, New Orleans Saints and Kansas City Chiefs.
Two of those games are very winnable for the WFT. The Giants and Falcons seem to be messes, so it could be time for Heinicke to find his footing with the team and deliver some more convincing production.
Heinicke doesn't seem terrible, and given more time to grow, he could surprise a lot of people. Heinicke might be what Ryan Fitzpatrick was for the Miami Dolphins. A plug-and-play-type gunslinger who could shock people.
"Washington likes Taylor Heinicke. He can do some things that Fitzpatrick can't ... if he's playing really well there could be some interesting conversations to be had even when Fitzpatrick is ready to come back."
- @JasonLaCanfora https://t.co/C3e3idgN6D
At the very least, Heinicke can certainly move his feet in a way that Fitzpatrick cannot. There could be some looks at turning Heinicke into a more mobile QB, throwing defenses off. Heinicke is a bottom-tier QB right now but could jump up the list in the next couple of weeks. The WFT belongs to Heinicke right now and may not return to Fitzpatrick when he returns from injury.