After failing to land Caleb Williams, Graham Mertz is going to be the Wisconsin Badgers’ quarterback in 2022 for better or worse. For fans clamoring to bring another quarterback in, it’s not going to happen! With the hiring of Bobby Engram, I believe Mertz will be in a better situation this season. Face reality people, the Badgers aren’t bringing in anyone else to play quarterback and fans should stop wishing for it to happen. “Fans” should stop wanting Mertz to fail and start rooting for him to succeed because he will be under center this season.
This isn’t a “Protect Graham Mertz” article and I’m not “Joey Blue Sky” because he wasn’t without faults for last season. Graham Mertz no doubt had a brutal season in 2021 and needs to be better. Throwing for just 1,958 yards with 10 touchdowns and 11 interceptions isn’t going to take you to high places. Believe me, I feel just as let down and disappointed as every Badger fan was in 2021 across the state of Wisconsin. After all, he was the highest-rated quarterback the Badgers have ever recruited. He needs to start playing like it in order for the Badgers to be successful.
Last season it was obvious that Paul Chryst took on way too much. He served as the head coach, offensive coordinator, play-caller, and quarterbacks coach last season. The Badgers offense suffered badly because of it specifically Graham Mertz. Many things were clearly neglected due to Chryst trying to do all those responsibilities. Adding to the problems was the uncharacteristic struggles of the Badgers offensive line early in the season. Those problems don’t set up teams for success and we saw it with the Badgers offense.
Paul Chryst realized that he took on too much. Correcting the issue, he hired Bobby Engram away from the Baltimore Ravens to be the new offensive coordinator. Whether he calls plays or not is still unknown. However, the Badgers will have Engram to focus specifically on the offense, have an extra set up eyes on the game plan, someone to bring creativity, and most importantly modernization. Chryst will now be able to focus on being the head coach and coaching up the quarterbacks. People forget that in Mertz’s first year as a starter; the Badgers had a quarterbacks coach. Perhaps having someone to focus more on coaching him up will benefit him like it did in 2020.
There were times last season that Graham Mertz did a good job. During the Badgers seven-game winning streak, he threw seven touchdown passes to just three interceptions. While Mertz wasn’t recruited to be a “game manager quarterback”; it was better than what he was early in the season. I believe had he had someone more focused on him, he might have been able to better build off those performances.
In the Las Vegas Bowl, Mertz made the most of his opportunities despite having a conservative game plan. He finished the game completing 11 of 15 passes for 137 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He also made some big plays, including on the final drive converting a third and 12 by completing a 31-yard pass to Chimere Dike. This ultimately deflated whatever chance Arizona State had of getting the ball back.
Last season, the offensive line got off to an uncharacteristic slow start. For a team that prides itself on offensive line play, that isn’t acceptable. However, as the season went on the offensive line got better. Despite the slow start, this unit only gave up 17 sacks. While that number isn’t the Wisconsin standard, it could have been worse considering how the unit started off the year.
This offensive line unit is in a good place going into the preseason. The Badgers will be returning three starters along with promising talent in the room. Bob Bostad will be moving back to coaching the offensive line as Joe Rudolph departed for Virginia Tech. Bostad once coached the Badgers’ offensive lines to very strong seasons. Wisconsin kept churning many NFL-quality offensive linemen during that time. With the returning players and promising talent in the room; I expect the Badgers to get back to having the offensive line we know and love.
The funny thing about fans is they are very forgetful, fickle, and downright irrational sometimes. This type of behavior is now seen more than ever across social media. From the day Graham Mertz stepped on campus, fans wanted him to be the starter in 2019. However, Mertz backed up Jack Coan that season. Coan had a good year finishing with 2,727 yards passing with 18 touchdowns and five interceptions. Those are pretty good stats from a quarterback who played on a team that primarily runs the ball. The Badgers would finish that season with an overall record of 10-4 and 7-2 in the Big Ten. They would win the Big Ten West division and make appearances in the conference championship and Rose Bowl.
Despite the solid year, fans were still chanting for Mertz to start. Well, they got their wish when Coan subsequently would miss the 2020 season due to a toe injury. He would later transfer to Notre Dame. Mertz would get the starting job that season. He had an inconsistent year, but it’s hard to get a gage on anything when COVID-19 ran wild through the 2020 season. It’s often forgotten the Badgers struggled to run the ball making things much more difficult. This season with a Heisman Trophy candidate in Braelon Allen, the Badgers definitely don’t have to worry about whether or not they can run.
Now that Mertz had a frustrating season, now the fans all want to see someone else. Bringing in a transfer isn’t necessarily the answer either. While it would have been exciting for Caleb Williams to come to Wisconsin, it’s not a simple quick-fix solution. College football doesn’t operate like your boss at your day job where they want a quick solution to everything. No matter where a quarterback transfers from, they must adjust to their new surroundings, learn the offense and fit in with their teammates. For every quarterback transfer success story; there is always one about one where the player doesn’t pan out. Finding the right quarterback isn’t as simple as putting on a band-aid unlike what fans may think. Fortunately, the Badgers don’t take into mind the opinion of the gray-haired Monday morning quarterback. I’m not sure if those people know what they’re talking about anyway.
With lower expectations, a new offensive coordinator, and more people to coach up Mertz; I think he has a real opportunity to shine in 2022. Considering all the Caleb Williams hype, he’ll be more motivated than ever to shut the fans who want him gone up. The pieces are in place for him to be successful and I believe he’ll be able to make it happen. If he’s successful in 2022, then I don’t want to hear or see Graham Mertz slander. I’m not sure how those people can call themselves fans if they want one of their own players to fail.
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