What does Ian Book’s first NFL offseason forecast for his first pro start?
The New Orleans Saints continue to face unprecedented turnover following Drew Brees’ retirement as rookie Ian Book is set to start against the Miami Dolphins on Monday night. The team placed both starting quarterback Taysom Hill and his backup Trevor Siemian on the COVID-reserve list, leaving the fourth-round draft pick as the sole quarterback on the roster.
It’s a stark contrast through this point in the season, with Book previously remaining inactive with the exception of Week 9 (against the Atlanta Falcons) and Week 10 (with the Tennessee Titans). While fans have clamored for a glimpse at the Saints rookie all season, his repeated inactive designation implied Book wasn’t quite NFL ready; this doesn’t translate to the team not liking what they’ve seen in their prospect. Putting an inexperienced rookie not expected to start behind an injury-riddled offensive line in a flailing, ineffective offense could only hinder their development – most of the time. There are always exceptions. Isn’t that exactly what we thought about Paulson Adebo over training camp?
It’s hard to spin this situation into overwhelming positives. To turn a developmental prospect into a functioning starter in such a complex offensive system, with four days’ notice and no head coach in the building, is a tall task at best. There’s still room for excitement within tempered expectations. Particularly for a first-year player who was purportedly raw and chaotic, who came into training camp surprisingly composed and with poise.
Prior to attending training camp this summer, I watched Ian Book’s Senior Bowl highlights – nearly devoid of pass attempts, and almost exclusively scrambles out of the pocket. On the first day of outdoor practice in New Orleans, Book surprised with a sense of patience and restraint in the pocket under pressure. Meanwhile, the quarterback competition between Jameis Winston and Taysom Hill lasted concerningly long into the preseason – until it starkly didn’t. There was a two- or three-week stretch where neither quarterback was separating at all. It was frankly boring and unimpressive. In the absence of an interesting battle at the top, the tertiary competition between Ian Book and Trevor Siemian took precedent some days; the reps Book got under center grew closer to the two potential starters. It was hard to say Book did anything but outperform Siemian given his comparative pro experience.
As the competition dragged on, I somewhat jokingly posed the question of there being a dark horse quarterback in the mix. That was on Aug. 4 when rookie Payton Turner made his imposing presence known by sacking Ian Book twice – once so hard that Book flew feet backwards into the ground. Much like in his Senior Bowl highlights, the biggest criticism of Book at Notre Dame was how flighty he was at the first sign of a collapsing pocket. His continued pocket presence that stood out immediately only got reinforced by the practice session. An insightful feature of camp is when both quarterbacks throw simultaneously; it’s a useful tool to compare fundamentals side-by-side. When Book threw against Siemian, he had notably cleaner footwork, quicker reads, and more timely releases.
As it was my first summer at training camp, I didn’t have much method to my madness. A lot of chicken scratch and illegible code splayed across my notepad. One thing I did was tally “good” and “bad” passes per quarterback per day. The tally of “good” Book passes often beat out how any quarterback had performed by far. That’s not to say he didn’t have his missteps. Nor that the limited sample size in a camp-setting translates to the NFL in Week 15. The potential with Book, and what stood out most all summer, is in the intangibles.
Sean Payton provided an illuminating answer to the qualities New Orleans covets in a quarterback successor prior to training camp. When asked which traits he considers unfixable in quarterbacks, his response was simple: intangibles. Sound reminiscent of a particular signal caller? One criticized for his downfield arm strength and height in the pre-draft scouting process? Drew Brees’ greatness was never going to come from physical traits or athleticism. It was his mind, meticulous approach to the game, and unmatched poise and composure. That all incurs a chip-on-the-shoulder attitude – one Book has deemed, “the story my whole entire life.”
In fact, an intervention by his quarterbacks coach Tommy Rees in 2018 had a telling message: “Before the season, I told him, ‘Tell me why you can’t be Drew Brees? You don’t miss. You’re athletic. Why can’t you be Drew Brees?’” Two years later in a story by the Athletic, Book caught the eye of Sage Rosenfels as he watched the Notre Dame quarterback lead a decisive 33-9 win over Iowa State. In attendance was also Book’s quarterback coach since high school, Will Hewlett; he recognized his limitations in teaching transferrable skills and wanted Book to get a different perspective.
So, Book flew to Omaha back in March 2020 and stayed at Rosenfels’ home while they watched hours of NFL film on quarterback traits to emulate. Specifically, Drew Brees, Tom Brady, Russell Wilson, Jimmy Garoppolo and Kirk Cousins. Rosenfels watched Book throw for a few hours, but focused valuable time on footwork under center – a weakness of Book at Notre Dame. Then they watched some of his senior year games; Rosenfels pointed out areas for incremental improvements:
“The thing that can be worked more is disciplined footwork, timing routes, basically more work on timing where he can let it go,” Rosenfels said. “We talked about some pocket movements, moving around the pocket to throw instead of moving around the pocket to run.”
It’s a body of valiant effort to tame somewhat of a stallion with a lot of potential and drive. A lot of fundamentals, behind-the-scenes work, and pointed training and development. Traits you can’t teach in a quarterback. Traits of a leader, and traits you want under center. As noted earlier, there were a lot of “good” Book passes that brought excitement. Maneuvers in the pocket with poise. Nifty plays like a pump fake in the last team session that elicited audible reaction on the sidelines and led to a wide-open completion by a rookie back.
What excited me most was everything that happened after the plays and off the field. For example, a play in Aug. 11’s training camp session that didn’t pan out for whatever reason between Book and rookie receiver Kawaan Baker. I noticed Book wanting to run it again after the drill died down; he threw a quick solo pass to Baker as intended initially. A similar poor pass to Tommylee Lewis that fell flat saw Book track Lewis down across the field, break down the play, and end with a quick fist bump. In the midst of my disappointment watching Hill and Winston, I saw the promise in Book. Perhaps they’d developed the rapport with quarterback coach Ronald Curry and grasped the playbook enough to forgo mental or additional reps.
In that absence, I saw Book almost obsessively fuse himself to Curry’s hip to go over every play and drill ad nauseum. Just as he tracked down receivers – both after positive and negative plays. Just as he re-ran drills on his own volition when everyone else had moved on elsewhere. The practice habits displayed by Book, recalling those we saw from Brees for so long, all throughout training camp were hard to ignore.
Book and Brees’ matching birthmarks are eerie. The Notre Dame connection compounds the weirdness on a surface level. But there was one quarterback who seized the opportunities in front of him this summer through a combination of play and determination. It’s the one who is now the impromptu fourth starter for the Saints this year. There’s only so much to expect in the circumstances; the absence of starting tackles Terron Armstead and Ryan Ramczyk, and leading receiver Deonte Harris, would be painful.
Book’s preseason was cut short by the final game’s cancellation, and we only saw him throw 16 passes a result – of which he completed nine and threw an interception. He’ll have a similar caliber of weapons around him in Week 16 as he did with third stringers in the preseason – again, not exactly a positive. But there was a lot to like about Book all summer, and if he can channel any of those memorable characteristics from August, he has a chance at a strong opening chapter.
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