Mark Dominik: Mike Glennon has chance to be like Joe Flacco
One former NFL general manager thinks Chicago Bears quarterback Mike Glennon can be better than Super Bowl XLVII MVP Joe Flacco.
Appearing on ESPN 1000’s “Waddle and Silvy Show” on Monday, ESPN NFL Front Office Insider Mark Dominik said that as long as Chicago surrounds Glennon with enough talent, the 6-foot-6 quarterback has a chance to outperform Flacco, who’s led Baltimore to six postseason berths and one Super Bowl championship.
“I believe Glennon is one of those quarterbacks like a Joe Flacco,” Dominik said. “There will be moments when he can play really well, and sometimes maybe it’s an 8-8 season. I mean, until you can watch Mike play in this new system for a year or two, it’s hard to say, but I look at his talent and his skill set, and I think he can be Joe Flacco-esque or better.”
As Tampa Bay's general manager in 2013, Mark Dominik drafted Mike Glennon in the third round. Paul Spinelli/AP Images
As Tampa Bay’s general manager in 2013, Dominik drafted Glennon in the third round (73rd overall) out of NC State. Glennon started 13 games that year as a rookie, passing for 2,608 yards, 19 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Glennon started five games the following season before the Bucs installed former No. 1 pick Jameis Winston as their permanent starter beginning in 2015.
“A couple things I would tell Bears fans about Mike Glennon; No. 1: You will not outwork him,” Dominik said. “I know that’s a cliché but he’ll be in there early and stay late. It’s real with Mike. He’s a real hard, hard worker. He has more athleticism than people realize. He’s a taller, lankier guy, but he has enough poise and enough athleticism to be able to be mobile enough in the pocket. And he has really good arm strength in terms of being able to spin the football. I think there’s a lot of potential in front of Mike Glennon. I think Mike has the potential to surprise a lot of people in the NFL in terms of how effective he can be as a starter.”
Dominik was also drawn to Glennon’s leadership skills. Chicago clearly feels the same way. Bears general manager Ryan Pace raved about Glennon’s eagerness to connect with teammates and people inside the building immediately after signing a three-year deal that guarantees him $16 million in 2017.
“What I liked about him coming out of NC State is that I thought he was smart and incredibly poised for a college football player,” Dominik said. “A lot of people looked at his completion percentage and said, ‘eh, I’m not so sure about it.’ But when you actually did the research, he had a tremendous amount of dropped passes for a quarterback. When you added in all the drops he had, I think he was a much more accurate passer than people realized.
When you sat down and talked to him for a long time, you realized how important the game was to him. I also liked talking to him. You enjoyed being around him. I could talk to this guy all day about football because he’s a good guy to be around. That’s what prompted me to say, ‘you know what, in the third round, we’re going to take this guy.’”