Some things may be too good to last. Jordan Ta’amu is that for the St. Louis BattleHawks. Today, Ta’amu was signed by the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs with a chance to be in the same quarterback room as Patrick Mahomes.
In my opinion, Jordan Ta’amu has proven himself as a professional QB with his consistently high level of play through his 5-week stint in the XFL. With only 2 interceptions and a league-leading 72% completion rate, he has also shown an ability to put the ball through the air without a turnover. Keep in mind one of those interceptions was a “free play” that was on a missed offside call.
Ta’amu also showed that he is made from the mold of the new prototypical quarterback the NFL is starting to lean toward. He’s a stocky 5’11 and 214 pounds but still possesses the ability to extend plays and pick up crucial first downs with his feet when protection breaks down. Look no further than his 5.3 yards per carry and the fact that he was ranked 7th in the XFL as a rusher before the remainder of the season was canceled.
Put that in a system like Kansas City’s which puts a lot of emphasis on Patrick Mahomes doing a lot of freelancing in the backfield and delivering an accurate ball. Ta’amu checks the boxes. If given the reps and opportunities, which by all means are not promised, and I would venture to say that the BattleHawks QB could definitely find himself on the KC roster if not the direct backup to the best quarterback in football. Not a bad career move for a guy who was undrafted and couldn’t crack an NFL roster less than a year ago.
But what does this mean for St. Louis? Could we see Taylor Heinicke and Nick Fitzgerald battle for the starting job come springtime next year? Or could the BattleHawks try to make another splash at the game’s most important position? Only time will tell and there are a lot more dominoes to fall before then. But until those answers reveal themselves all STL can do now is cheer on the guy that put on a show for the fans every week.
Best of luck Jordan. Hopefully, we get to see you make plays like this on Sundays… But in the fall of course.
UPDATE
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