If Frans Steyn had been born in North Carolina instead of Aliwal North, would he have grown up to be a big-bodied NFL quarterback like Ben Roethlisberger?
Steyn is renowned for wielding a siege-gun boot and, if his arm-strength is of a similar calibre, he’d immediately get the attention of NFL scouts.
Having an arm big enough to hit a blazing receiver with a 60-yard strike would get Steyn into the discussion, then he’d have to prove he’s got the smarts.
There’s a difference between smart and good instincts. Steyn might have struggled to fully grasp some football concepts, but maybe that’s because he doesn’t need intell – he’s proven time and again that he has A+ instincts.
Tom Brady and Peyton Manning are elite quarterbacks with an unparalleled understanding of the game, but Roethlisberger (and Brett Favre and John Elway before him) often improvises and throws where and when his gut tells him to.
These kind of cowboy quarterbacks are called gun-slingers because of their tendency to go off-plan and squeeze passes into tight windows on the fly.
Steyn has great instincts and, more than that, he’s a clutch player. The Boks are down by two points against the All Blacks, the siren’s sounded and they win a penalty 5m inside their half. Who are you giving that ball to?
A large frame also projects that Steyn would be strong and tough in the pocket, able to hold onto the ball until the last possible moment, powerful enough to overpower a blitzing safety to keep the play alive, and athletic enough to escape the pocket and pick up yards as a runner.
Conclusion: Steyn would throw a lot of interceptions on the way to setting team records for passing yards and touchdowns. He’s a winner who knows how to get the job done and, even though he might never get to page two in the playbook, Steyn is a powerful athlete and an instinctive competitor who would find ways to win games with his arm.
