Cris Collinsworth: 'A lot of backup quarterbacks are fat'

Unfortunately for us back home, a ton of starting quarterbacks have gotten hurt this season in the NFL. On Saturday alone, three backups were playing a huge role for their team. The Los Angeles Chargers have trotted Easton Stick out there against the Buffalo Bills, with Justin Herbert being out for the season.

NBC’s Cris Collinsworth was trying to explain why backup quarterbacks may need some time to adjust when getting a long-term shot in games. However, his reasoning was a bit odd, saying the players can sometimes be “fat” due to not getting a ton of reps in practice.

“When you’re the backup quarterback, you can go months without even taking a single play in practice,” Collinsworth said. “That’s the reason a lot of backup quarterbacks are fat. They don’t do anything.”

Collinsworth might have been onto something about the backups not getting any serious reps while in practice. Stick has talked about it in the past, saying Herbert takes a majority, if not all, of the practice reps.

“Sometimes, he doesn’t let me take reps at practice,” Stick said. “Sometimes, I end up watching a little bit more than I would like at practice.”

Now, Stick made those comments while appearing on Hot Ones’ Truth or Dab and was attempting to avoid eating another hot wing. The question posed to Stick was about Herbert’s worst trait as a quarterback and took a semi-easy route to avoid it. He already already taken a couple of bites as well and was fighting through some heat while answering a question from Sean Evans.

However, starting quarterbacks want to get as much work as possible throughout the week to make sure they are ready for Sundays. Having good chemistry with your receivers at the right time can be the difference between a win and a loss in the NFL.

As for the comments about the backups being fat, there is not too much data out there to suggest Collinsworth is correct. Even NBC play-by-play commentator Mike Tirico was taken aback by the comments, making sure he was not involved with them.

If Stick did have a couple of pounds on him, they surely have been worn off by now. Not only has he been taking first-team reps in practice but Stick is the Chargers’ starting quarterback for the rest of the season.

Playoff hopes are technically still alive in Los Angeles despite the recent weeks going horribly wrong. Hopefully, Stick can get into shape from Collisnworth’s perspective and lead the Chargers to a few wins.