Josh Woodrum deserves a chance to beat out Ryan Mallett

Josh Woodrum has looked sharp in the preseason action. Ryan Mallett has looked beyond horrible. Woodrum has earned a start in week three of the preseason, but he probably won’t get it:

Josh Woodrum has only played in two preseason games. Woodrum has only played against players as unproven as he is himself. It’s not something we can overreact to, but he has earned a shot to play with the first team. The Ravens will probably stick with Mallett as their backup quarterback. It’s the easy choice, but it’s not the right choice.

Before we get to Woodrum’s impressive showing, we need to discuss how poorly Ryan Mallett played. The highlight of Mallett’s night was a touchdown pass to Larry Donnell. Donnell was wide open, Mallett took forever to release the football. When he finally chucked the ball in the area of Donnell, Donnell had to drop his butt to the ground to catch it. Mallett simply made everything difficult.

Mallett went 13-22 for 113 yards, that awkward touchdown and two horrible interceptions. This was somewhat better than last weeks game. It has been absolutely brutal to watch the offense with Mallett under center.

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Josh Woodrum completed eight of his 10 passes for 110 yards. Woodrum scored two running touchdowns. Mallett is so stationary that he makes Joe Flacco look like Usain Bolt. Woodrum has completed 12 of his 14 passes this preseason. It’s safe to say that the Liberty product is ready for the preseason stage.

The moral of the story is that Woodrum has played better than Mallett and that should mean something. Woodrum is an unknown. Mallett is horribly known. Woodrum could end up being something. Mallett will never be anything other than what he has always been. The Ravens can’t depend on Mallett and they know that. Steering into the potential of Woodrum may not workout, but he is a more exciting understudy.

Tom Brady was a sixth round pick who ended up being the greatest quarterback of all time (it’s annoying but true). I am not comparing Woodrum to Brady. For all we know his career could resemble that of Brady Quinn. He has played well, but he was supposed to be only a camp arm. Did he slip through the cracks or is he just taking advantage of poor competition? All the Ravens need is a competent and semi-functional back up quarterback. They need to give Woodrum a chance to be the number two quarterback.

The Bottom Line:

The third preseason game is the dress rehearsal game. It’s the game that gives us the best look at what the Ravens are going to look like when the regular season begins. The Ravens are expecting to have Joe Flacco for the season opener, but now the Ravens need to get through more preseason football. Does anyone think Mallett can help the offense work out the kinks better than Woodrum?

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Mallett had every chance to prove that he could get the job done with the Ravens. It’s worth noting that the Ravens are Mallet’s third NFL team. Two teams have given up on him already. The backup quarterback position has never been this important. In this case we know one option is definitively bad. The other option is fresh, exciting and energizing.

The Ravens should give Woodrum the start in the third preseason game. What can it hurt. He can’t be worse than Mallett.

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