Dose anyone know the backstory of how/why Schoen signed TommyD

[BluesCruz]

I know someone from the Giants training staff recommended him to Victor Cruz 7 years ago
to be a training partner one summer.

Beyond that I have no idea what sparked Schoen's interest or if Schoen even knows Cruz very well

I do know Belichick wanted Tommy to sign with his team but Tommy was all about the Giants.

Another quirk is Daboll reviews film with DeVito every Thursday morning.  I wonder when that started

Daboll has said Tommy comes to the sideline and explains in detail what he was seeing out there.  very in depth detail
Who's shoulder is pointed in which direction etc

Also Tommy is 25, one year younger than Jones....whats he been doing for all these years?  Tommy came out of Don Bosco Prep the 8th ranked QB recruit in the nation

TommyD- The International Man of Mystery

[ralphpal1]

Well we all don bosco
So they must have sheets of players who went to elite programs

[Jaime]

Tommy D. turned down significantly more $ from the Commanders
As to what he's been doing the last few years?
He Red-Shirted his Freshman year at Syracuse. Then played four years before transferring to Illinois.
Tommy D got denied for a request to play another season at Illinois.
In 2022 Tommy D. played his last College season of Ball at Illinois.
He went Undrafted in 2023 then caught on with the Jints Roster. He was waived a month later, and was assigned to the Jints Practice Squad.
Tommy D. was no secret coming out of a high profile H.S. like Don Bosco, especially after winning a State Championship.
He was the 8th ranked QB Prospect out of H.S
Some high profile sports prospects get left back on purpose in Grade School.  So when they leave college, they'll be 23 years of age.,
Also, many College Football players Red-Shirt (DNP) their Freshman year, so they actually play during their 5th year in College.

[DaveBrown74]

Tommy D. turned down significantly more $ from the Commanders
As to what he's been doing the last few years?
He Red-Shirted his Freshman year at Syracuse. Then played four years before transferring to Illinois.
Tommy D got denied for a request to play another season at Illinois.
In 2022 Tommy D. played his last College season of Ball at Illinois.
He went Undrafted in 2023 then caught on with the Jints Roster. He was waived a month later, and was assigned to the Jints Practice Squad.
Tommy D. was no secret coming out of a high profile H.S. like Don Bosco, especially after winning a State Championship.
He was the 8th ranked QB Prospect out of H.S
Some high profile sports prospects get left back on purpose in Grade School.  So when they leave college, they'll be 23 years of age.,
Also, many College Football players Red-Shirt (DNP) their Freshman year, so they actually play during their 5th year in College.

Great write-up. Certainly answered the OP.

What Tommy D has managed to do is impressive. Obviously, it took injuries to two QBs on one team for him to get this opportunity, but the fact that he is 2-1 on a team that is 2-7 without him, and the way he has at least game-managed on a bad offense and avoided turnovers despite getting sacked a ton is impressive. People need to at least give him that. I know many like to say he's "terrible", but he has played better than what we got from our backups in that brutal 2021 year after Dimes got the first of his two neck injuries. Will he ever be a long term starter in the NFL? In my opinion no, but as a QB3 on a bad offense I'd say he's done a very nice job so far. He is beating out Matt Barkley, who has a decent amount of NFL experience as a backup, has familiarity with Dabs' system, and was a mid rounds pick coming out of USC. That alone is worth of commendation.

[TDToomer]

Some high profile sports prospects get left back on purpose in Grade School.  So when they leave college, they'll be 23 years of age.,
Also, many College Football players Red-Shirt (DNP) their Freshman year, so they actually play during their 5th year in College.

It starts earlier than you think. Some parents hold their kids back in Kindergarten which means they are willing to pay an extra year of pre-school because they feel that their kids will be groomed to excel sports and being one year older from day 1 will give them a size advantage. I have a friend who did this with both their kids. The first one, a girl was born in late August and made the cutoff to be a 5 year old in Kindergarten but they held her back. The next, a boy, was born 22 months later and they still held him back so he was 6 years, 2 months old to start Kindergarten.
 
The problem I see is the .001% chance your kid will be a scholarship athlete and then go pro. But holding them back they are graduating college at 23 losing a year of earning potential in their lives.

[DaveBrown74]

It starts earlier than you think. Some parents hold their kids back in Kindergarten which means they are willing to pay an extra year of pre-school because they feel that their kids will be groomed to excel sports and being one year older from day 1 will give them a size advantage. I have a friend who did this with both their kids. The first one, a girl was born in late August and made the cutoff to be a 5 year old in Kindergarten but they held her back. The next, a boy, was born 22 months later and they still held him back so he was 6 years, 2 months old to start Kindergarten.
 
The problem I see is the .001% chance your kid will be a scholarship athlete and then go pro. But holding them back they are graduating college at 23 losing a year of earning potential in their lives.

This phenomenon goes on outside of sports too. Many parents want their kids to be old in their class, even for just general academic/developmental/social reasons. I am an October birthday and while I wasn't held back, I was on the older side in my class growing up. Was it an advantage? I don't know, maybe. It certainly wasn't a disadvantage. When you're really young, the difference of six to eight months in age definitely matters. I don't think it makes a huge difference beyond pre-school and early grade school years, but I'm no expert in this topic. Clearly it makes a difference for college athletes though.

[TDToomer]

This phenomenon goes on outside of sports too. Many parents want their kids to be old in their class, even for just general academic/developmental/social reasons. I am an October birthday and while I wasn't held back, I was on the older side in my class growing up. Was it an advantage? I don't know, maybe. It certainly wasn't a disadvantage. When you're really young, the difference of six to eight months in age definitely matters. I don't think it makes a huge difference beyond pre-school and early grade school years, but I'm no expert in this topic. Clearly it makes a difference for college athletes though.

Oddly in Canada the opposite happens. Their age cut off for Kindergarten is later in the year and Hockey parents want them done with school and draft eligible as soon as possible. But the draft cut off is age 18 by Sept. 30th meaning many top prospects who miss the draft cut off but are done with High School will take a NCAA scholarship for their Freshman year turning 18 sometime later in fall and then build up their game for the following year draft.

That being said College Hockey is also filled with late bloomers who are as old as 25 by the time they are done. The difference is those guys tend to not make it to the NHL.