From being drafted number one overall, to being on the street begging for a backup job. This is the life of Tim Couch. College superstar, and so far, a professional bust. Sure its pretty easy to second guess now, but look at the talent that the Cleveland Browns passed on in that 1999 draft. The likes of Champ Bailey, Ricky Williams, Donovan McNabb, and Tory Holt just to name a few. Is it completely Couch’s fault? No. It’s not his fault that the Cleveland Browns saw him as a franchise QB that could take them to the promised land. Its not his fault that he never had a true go-to-guy on offense.
Many people feel that Couch is extremely inconsistent which is true. Couch is what I like to call a “confidence player.” When he on, he’s lights out. The crowd is behined him and he begins to show flashes of a first round QB. But when he makes a bad play or two and the crowd begins to groan, his confidence is shaken. I don’t need to remind Browns fans of a certain game against the Baltimore Ravens in which Couch was crying during a national interview. And after that interview in 2002, it finally hit me. You cannot be thin-skinned and be a successful quarterback in the national football league. Even the best quarterbacks have to endure criticism (don’t believe me? Ask Brett Favre about a certain throw he made in Philadelphia during the 2003 playoffs). Until Tim Couch learns how to be thick-skinned and take criticism with a grain of salt, he will remain in “The Dawg Pound”.