If Fernando Mendoza is the lock of the draft and Ty Simpson remains the first round\u2019s greatest mystery, the rest of the quarterback class could be in store for an unpredictable weekend.<\/p>\n
No, this has not been a top-billed QB class, so the later wave of prospects hasn\u2019t generated much buzz, either. There are known names, for sure, such as Miami\u2019s Carson Beck, LSU\u2019s Garrett Nussmeier and Penn State\u2019s Drew Allar, but their spotlights faded with performance woes.<\/p>\n
Naturally, general managers all dream of the possibility of finding a Tom Brady in the sixth round or even a Brock Purdy in the seventh, but the vast majority of mid- to late-round QBs never become viable long-term starters. Of the 123 quarterbacks taken in the third round or later from 2000 to 2020, 82 (66.7 percent) made 10 or fewer starts, 30 of those 82 never made a start, and just 14 (11.4 percent) of the overall group made at least 50 starts.<\/p>\n
Keep expectations in check.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a tough class, to be honest,\u201d a team scout said. \u201cThere\u2019s nobody who really jumps out at you.\u201d<\/p>\n
To be clear, there are elements to like about each player, but they\u2019re not as consistent with high-end talent like many first-rounders. If any pan out, it\u2019ll require a patient developmental plan with an organization that supports him.<\/p>\n
Among the later wave of QBs, Beck\u2019s name came up most often among team executives and scouts. He arrived at Georgia with a high profile and was Stetson Bennett\u2019s backup for two national championships, but Beck\u2019s two-year starting tenure ended with elbow surgery. He led Miami to the national title game last season.<\/p>\n
At 6 feet 4 and 233 pounds, Beck looks the part, has impressed with his football IQ and boasts a pretty good arm. But he threw 24 interceptions over the past two seasons and fumbled 17 times over the past three.<\/p>\n
There are also questions about his ability to lead an NFL locker room.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverybody is sleeping on him,\u201d another scout said. \u201cHe\u2019s big. He\u2019s won a lot of games. He\u2019s got the arm. He\u2019s got the most translatable skill set of all of them outside (Mendoza and Simpson). He feels like more of a pro QB than the other (mid- to late-round options).\u201d<\/p>\n
A year ago, league executives viewed Nussmeier and Allar as candidates to grow into prospects worthy of a top-10 pick. Both dealt with injuries last season, but they\u2019ve also been inconsistent, which will require elements of significant refinement to blossom in the NFL. The league loves talented reclamation projects, though, so the pair will have their fans among front offices.<\/p>\n
Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green is another favorite among teams. The 6-5, 227-pounder ran a 4.36-second 40-yard dash at the combine and has a big arm to match.<\/p>\n
\u201cTaylen Green is the traits guy (of the draft),\u201d an executive said. \u201cIf you can develop him, that\u2019s the dude.\u201d<\/p>\n
Green is the type of quarterback who could shine in the preseason to stoke fan optimism for the future, but there\u2019s plenty to polish with his game, notably the 37 turnovers (20 interceptions, 17 fumbles) over the past two seasons.<\/p>\n
He\u2019ll need to improve his mechanics, pocket presence and accuracy, but there\u2019s some translatable value from offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino\u2019s system to the NFL. And Green is as physically gifted as any player in the draft class.<\/p>\n
\u201cGreen is a freak show,\u201d the second scout said.<\/p>\n
At quarterback, the person matters, too. And it takes a unique outlook for a young quarterback to improve his game while working as a willing backup. Multiple executives praised Georgia Tech\u2019s Haynes King, Clemson\u2019s Cade Klubnik, North Dakota State\u2019s Cole Payton and Kansas Jalon Daniels for their work ethic and demeanor off the field.<\/p>\n
\u201cHaynes King is an absolute stud, tough, gritty, has everything you want,\u201d an executive said. \u201cKing has every intangible that you could possibly want in the position \u2014 leadership, toughness, will be a coach when it\u2019s all said and done.\u201d<\/p>\n
After the first couple of rounds, quarterbacks face extremely long odds to grow into a starter, and this class doesn\u2019t figure to be an exception. But as teams cling to some of their favorite characteristics with these QBs, they\u2019ve been able to narrow their focus on the prospect pool.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If Fernando Mendoza is the lock of the draft and Ty Simpson remains the first round\u2019s greatest mystery,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":556669,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[462],"tags":[916,4813,2078,2077,4443,13109,14332,1558,6832,20142,2079,5045,5,17255,32281,13107,2075,17351,40216,17990,10548,5046,4814,40449,7908,920,1812,4,465,466,2076,14758,18710,17256,10654,6127,919],"class_list":{"0":"post-556668","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nhl-draft","8":"tag-arizona-cardinals","9":"tag-atlanta-falcons","10":"tag-baltimore-ravens","11":"tag-buffalo-bills","12":"tag-carolina-panthers","13":"tag-chicago-bears","14":"tag-cincinnati-bengals","15":"tag-cleveland-browns","16":"tag-dallas-cowboys","17":"tag-denver-broncos","18":"tag-detroit-lions","19":"tag-green-bay-packers","20":"tag-hockey","21":"tag-houston-texans","22":"tag-indianapolis-colts","23":"tag-jacksonville-jaguars","24":"tag-kansas-city-chiefs","25":"tag-las-vegas-raiders","26":"tag-los-angeles-chargers","27":"tag-los-angeles-rams","28":"tag-miami-dolphins","29":"tag-minnesota-vikings","30":"tag-new-england-patriots","31":"tag-new-orleans-saints","32":"tag-new-york-giants","33":"tag-new-york-jets","34":"tag-nfl","35":"tag-nhl","36":"tag-nhl-draft","37":"tag-nhl-entry-draft","38":"tag-philadelphia-eagles","39":"tag-pittsburgh-steelers","40":"tag-san-francisco-49ers","41":"tag-seattle-seahawks","42":"tag-tampa-bay-buccaneers","43":"tag-tennessee-titans","44":"tag-washington-commanders"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":"Validation failed: Text character limit of 500 exceeded"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/556668","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=556668"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/556668\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/556669"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=556668"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=556668"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=556668"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}