With Jordan Ta’amu Gone, Who Will Be The Starting BattleHawks QB?

Jordan Ta’amu was brilliant as the quarterback for the St. Louis BattleHawks. He wasn’t the human highlight reel that PJ Walker was, but he was third in the league in passing yards with 1050 and QBR at 101.3. He was also seventh in the league with 217 rushing yards. 

Ta’amu signed on with the Kansas City Chiefs after the league shut down and will be in competition to backup Patrick Mahomes in the coming season. Every BattleHawks fan wishes he could come back in the 2021 season, but the reality is they must find a new quarterback before they take another snap.

The good news for the BattleHawks is that they had two other quarterbacks on the roster in Taylor Heinicke and Nick Fitzgerald. The bad news is neither one of them threw a pass during the regular season. The only stats between either of them was two rushing attempts for Taylor for ten yards. 

Taylor Heinicke does have some NFL experience. He has played in 7 games overall between Carolina and Houston. In 2018 he completed 35 of 57 attempts and threw for 1 TD and 3 INTs.

Nick Fitzgerald was signed as an undrafted free agent after the 2019 draft by the Buccaneers, but was eventually released in October of last year. At Mississippi State, Nick had very good stats each year and finished his senior year completing 145 of 281 passing attempts for 1,767 yards. He had 16 touchdowns and 9 interceptions and have an overall QB rating of 116.8.

Comparing those stats is difficult to say who should run the offense. The edge for professional experience goes with Taylor Heinicke, but, like Ta’amu, Nick Fitzgerald could be a young successful QB in this league with minimal professional experience. Both have the ability to lead an offense and both have found success at the collegiate level. It would be too difficult to call without additional exposure.

There is also the wildcard factor for the 2021 season. There is no guarantee both Fitzgerald and Heinickie will be back. There is also a chance for some new blood to be infused by selecting a different quarterback. Matt Leinart raised some eyebrows with his tweet asking The Rock to play in the XFL in 2021.

Brogan Roback was with the BattleHawks throughout the entire preseason until he was let go on the final cut day. There is always a chance another QB could be cut from an NFL squad and be looking for work as well. 

In the end it will all come down to what the team offensive identity is going to be in 2021. Will they stick with the run heavy approach that was so successful in their first season, or will they opt for a more aerial approach? The good news for the BattleHawks, and the rest of the league, it looks like there will be future seasons to sort it out.