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http://www.palmbeachpost.com/dolphins/content/sports/epaper/2008/03/17/0317dolphinsforweb.html

Beck's mind never far from football

By TIM GRAHAM
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Monday, March 17, 2008

At a television studio in Hollywood on Monday night, Dolphins defensive end Jason Taylor was doing the fox trot. He probably was wearing makeup, too.

About an hour south down Interstate-5, quarterback John Beck was on the verge of lining up his chicken nuggets in a shotgun formation.

Beck couldn't possibly have been surrounded by more distractions while spending the day at Disneyland with his wife and 11-month-old son. Yet he couldn't quit thinking about football no matter how hard he tried.

"Football never leaves my mind," Beck said as he strolled the park. "Shoot, I was just sitting down at lunch and thinking about football stuff."

Beck will fly back to Davie today to resume training after a disastrous rookie campaign.

There will plenty of new material to digest in the coming months. He'll need to learn another system from another offensive coordinator and another quarterback coach. He'll also be competing against another veteran.

The Dolphins declined to retain Trent Green or Cleo Lemon but signed Josh McCown, who has played 44 games over six NFL seasons.

McCown declared he was gunning to be the starter, but Beck isn't willing to concede. Beck said the Dolphins have given him no indication how they're penciling their depth chart.

"I know they brought Josh McCown in to compete, and my plan is to compete also," Beck said. "As a professional athlete, you always want to be the guy. You want to be the guy with the football. Nobody's in it to say 'I'm shooting to be the backup.' ''

Beck insisted he's not bothered the Dolphins would add McCown or even consider selecting Boston College star Matt Ryan with the first pick of next month's draft, their consolation prize for going 1-15.

"Because of all that change, the situation is they're trying to make a decision of who they want to be the guy," Beck said. "That's just part of how it is now.

"It's not like we're coming off any type of success last year, where they can say 'OK, this guy showed this.' Nothing was shown. We lost a lot of football games. This is how it goes. This is the way it has to be."

Beck and McCown have been working out with new quarterbacks coach David Lee, but offensive coordinator Dan Henning hasn't installed anything of substance yet.

Beck endured a rocky rookie season under first-time NFL head coach Cam Cameron.

The 40th pick in last year's draft opened the regular season as the third quarterback.

When Green suffered a season-ending concussion in Week 5, the Dolphins declined to sign another quarterback for another two games, leaving Beck to run the scout team until the Dolphins went to London to play the New York Giants in Week 8.

"I never looked at it as fair or unfair," Beck said. "The situation we were in as a team was a tough one. But I don't question my effort. I was trying to give it everything I got."

Cameron, with the nose-diving Dolphins at 0-9, named Beck the starter in hopes of a spark.

Beck started the next four games, but failed to generate an offensive touchdown. Beck mercifully was pulled 5:25 into an ugly 38-17 loss in Buffalo. In only eight snaps, he was sacked three times and comically lost a fumble the Bills returned for a touchdown.

He was able to enter the off-season with a sliver of satisfaction. He came off the bench in the season finale to complete 13 of 21 passes for 135 yards and a touchdown. He also ran for a touchdown in a 38-25 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.

"That sent me into this upcoming season with a little more of that belief that I know how to get the ball into the end zone," Beck said. "That felt good."

I'd be willing to bet that his performance against Cincy was the deciding factor in Parcells keeping him around. 

Tommy you must really be drunk if you are happy that Beck is staying around now.  ;D

Beck can think about football all he wants as long as it's on the bench where he belongs.

how can you judge him after a rookie year? i mean he wasn't impressive but still there were some positives... and matt ryan is not going to be picked! so its it's mcCown or Beck!

Some people are quite happy in their own little world where Brady Quinn and/or Matt Ryan will be the savior of the Dolphins.  The rest of us know better.  ;)

Did I say I was happy?  Hell no.  I still don't think he's the answer.  But if he had played the entire game against Cincy the way he did against Buffalo and the Jets, I don't think he'd be a Dolphin at this point. 

His TD pass and TD run against Cincy saved his Dolphins career. 

Multiple choice response to this one...

A) I think the chicken nuggets would look less frightened in the pocket than Beck.
B) Next season, Beck hopes to graduate from poultry to receivers.
C) Beck blamed all the drops in practice today on the fact that chicken nuggets have no hands.
D) Beck avoided lining up his dinner in a cover-2 scheme, as he realized that the chicken nuggets could play better defense than the Bengals.

Sigh....look, there's no doubt John Beck played miserably last year. But he did show talent and heart at BYU, and he has some skills, and it's not like Dan Marino or Johnny Unitas is on the team roster ready to assume the starters role. Let's see what Beck can do this year,  before the cries to cast him aside like a worthless old shoe get any louder.

C'mon, Doc...the dude is playing football with his chicken nuggets. If folks can't crack a joke or two about that, they need a sense of humor recalibration.

In Doc's line of work, you can't afford to have a sense of humor.  Go watch Law and Order SVU.  B.D. Wong's character is what Doc does in real life.

Ahh, Tommy, with all the crazy and evil things I see every day as a forensic psychiatrist, a sense of dark humor does exist and serves as a powerful and hopefully healthy defense mechanism.

And I still think John Beck should get another shot this year to see if he can cut it as an NFL quarterback. But diagramming plays with chicken nuggets does seem a bit absurd, when you reflect on it. A point well taken, Stroke.

I'm also going to throw this out..I'm curious to see what Beck does with the SAME playbook,as the other QB on the roster. (Listening to Ken and Forsty and bitchin and the shed dog on fins Radio) this was brought up a couple of times last week, according to Cam Cameron,Beck wasn't supposed to take a snap last year,he was intending for him to ride the pine the first year and learn behind Trent Green.

I understand Strokes joke,and thought it was funny...Watching Beck last year,reminded me a lot like watching Marino under Jimmy Johnson....He didn't seem to have any audibles,he was running shitty plays,(and was stuck with them),and had inferior talent around him....(I'M NOT SAYING BECK IS MARINO)

Beck is getting pressured right up the middle against Buffalo, Cleo comes in the first play we roll him out of the pocket...

I feel it will be a good training camp battle between McCowen,and Beck...With McCowens experience edging Beck...
Just my 2 cents...(ok cent and half...)

Shit!  There is a psychiatrist on this board?  I am never opening up my mouth ever again.


(John Beck for President)

You do have a dark sense of humor saying that no damage was done to "my delicate skin" when we almost torched Gators Dockside in Lake Mary that afternoon. 

I'd gravedig the post but it got lost in the site crash. 

BTW, what did Ms Doc say regarding a draft party?

The wife says okay.

Central Florida TDMMC draft day party is at Doc's house. A 62 inch TV and steaks on the grille.  All loyal TDMMC members may join in the festivities.

I wish I could be there.  :(

i don't think that dan marino in his prime coulda done squat last year behind that o-line,much less a rookie like beck.let's see what a new season will bring.

I just thought of something here....

Remember those microwave dinners that used to have a cover-3 scheme? The meat, the veggies, the potatoes ... and you had to expose the dessert after torching the whole thing.