Ex-UCLA coach says Rosen good fit for Miami

Former UCLA offensive coordinator and interim head coach Jedd Fisch has always had an outstanding connection with his former quarterback, Josh Rosen.

Fisch told the Palm Beach Post on Thursday morning he believes Miami Dolphins offensive coordinator Chad O'Shea, quarterbacks coach Jim Caldwell and an offensive scheme similar to the Patriots' will all benefit Rosen.

"I think Josh is going to benefit from a cerebral game plan," Fisch said. "Josh is going to benefit from the willingness to each week go through the plan, and from Year 1 to Year 2 he's got a little bit more you can ask him to do. It's almost impossible to ask a rookie quarterback to do more than just go out and execute the plays that are called. That's just the way it works.

"Now it's a second-year player. Maybe there are a few more things they can ask him to do. A few more after that. And the offense that they run in New England, I've never coached in that system, but they adapt often and they ask the quarterback to do a lot of different things."

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Fisch is now assistant offensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams, where quarterback Jared Goff's career has taken off after rookie struggles.

"Most rookie quarterbacks, almost 90 percent or more, have not had success in their first year," Fisch said. "It doesn't traditionally happen. You can kind of go back and look at the stats since 2010 and 80 percent or more had coaching changes after their rookie season. And you'll find their offenses are ranked between 29 and 32.

"Someone like Josh should have a better second year. And that's what we'll see from Josh. Because now he's seen more. If you look at the great ones — from (Tom) Brady to (Aaron) Rodgers, (Drew) Brees, (Philip) Rivers, (Ben) Roethlisberger — those five guys have so much experience under their belt that every year they've seen it already. And that's the benefit that Josh will have — you're talking about 780 plays he's had in the NFL."

Fisch knows O'Shea, the former Patriots receivers coach, and Caldwell, the wily and calm NFL veteran. Fisch believes Rosen will respond positively to their coaching acumen and approaches.

"The best thing with Josh is he makes the coaches around him better," Fisch said. "Because he's able to consume so much information and then process it quickly. That is the best thing that Jim and Chad on the offense will experience. There is nothing they're going to tell him that he's not going to be able to understand.

"And he is very willing to learn … to hear different perspectives, to hear a way to coach something, and he'll take it all in. And then when he goes out on the practice field and game day, he'll be able to execute what you ask him to execute, just like all of us, as long as there's the infrastructure around him to be successful. He's going to be able to really be challenged by those guys. And he'll be willing to accept all challenges and process it all. And I think he'll enjoy that opportunity."

In a recent news conference, Rosen did not appear to have lost much confidence after being dealt from the Arizona Cardinals after only one season. Fisch believes Rosen will channel motivation positively.

"Knowing Josh, from working with him on a daily basis, I believe he will react and respond as he does in everything," Fisch said. "He's very self-aware. He recognizes his skill set. He recognizes his ability in comparison to others. And I think in his mind he'll just go out there and show the Miami Dolphins they made the right decision. And do everything he can to perform at the highest level, recognizing he has all the skills in the world.

"And I don't think he'll be set back. I don't think he'll feel that he needs to prove someone wrong as much as he would like to prove someone right."

Rosen has exhibited outstanding mechanics, arm talent and accuracy from a young age. Fisch's coaching resume includes college stops at Florida, Miami and Michigan (where he coached current Dolphins quarterback Jake Rudock of Weston) and in the NFL with Jacksonville, and he believes Rosen's NFL ceiling is high.

"His poise," Fisch said. "He's able to move on from one play to the next. His physical talent. He's really an incredible thrower. He can make every pass you could ever ask a quarterback to make. And he can make them accurately. And he can make them consistently."

Fisch reveals just how much he believes in Rosen's talent when asked how Rosen's career will look when it's over.

"I'm hoping that he's able to put on a gold jacket," Fisch said, referring to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. "When you coach a kid at 19, 20 years old, got to know his parents, got to know him personally, got to be a part of the mentoring, one would hope that he would have the most successful career that his skill set permits. And his skill set permits him to be one of the best quarterbacks.

"There are so many aspects to it that you just don't know. But in terms of his ability to throw a football, to process the game, I hope his career ends up the best possible way."

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jschad@pbpost.com

@schadjoe