The take on TT coming out of college

[mdcas22]

QB15

TYROD TAYLOR

QB VIRGINIA TECH


http://static.nfl.com/static/content/static/img/combine/headshots/2495240.jpg


http://i.nflcdn.com/static/site/7.4/img/share-bar/fb-like.png
http://i.nflcdn.com/static/site/7.4/img/share-bar/share-button.png






GRADE


5.64
? (http://www.nfl.com/combine/profiles/tyrod-taylor?id=2495240#)

4.51 SEC

Top Performer
37.5 INCH

Top Performer
126.0 INCH

Top Performer
6.78 SEC

Top Performer
4.09 SEC

Top Performer


BLUE STAR = TOP PERFORMER


6'1"HEIGHT
32 1/4"ARM LENGTH
217LBS.WEIGHT
10"HANDS



<section style="margin-bottom: 1.6em;">OVERVIEW

Taylor is a hard working kid that has improved every year, but it is unclear if he can play quarterback at the next level. He has a quick release and a strong arm, but he is somewhat erratic as a passer. He also does not show the consistent sound decision making to be an efficient quarterback. His greatest asset is his athleticism and he should be able to contribute immediately as a running back, receiver or return man. A terrific senior season, where he completed nearly 60% of his passes, has helped his draft stock and he could sneak into the third round.
</section><section style="margin-bottom: 1.6em;">ANALYSIS

<article style="margin-bottom: 0.8em;">STRENGTHS

Taylor is an excellent athlete with a thick muscular build. Has excellent mobility and continually evades the rush while keeping his eyes downfield. Has above average arm strength and flashes the ability to fit the ball into tight windows on short to intermediate routes. Team leader and fierce competitor.</article><article style="margin-bottom: 0.8em;">WEAKNESSES

Does not possess adequate height and too many of his passes are knocked down at the line. Sloppy footwork prevents him from stepping into throws making him an erratic passer. Locks onto receivers and often telegraphs his throws. Struggles breaking down coverage and makes too many ill-advised throws.</article></section>

[Mace]

He's still really not a "bad" qb, he's just not a good one either.

What stands out to me as that he's the same as his draft scouting report after this many years in the league.

[BillsImpossible]

For what it's worth, I just had a dream that the Bills won the Super Bowl and I was at the game but couldn't find my seat.

[The Jokeman]

Here's another one courtesy of https://tommeltonscouting.wordpress.com/2011/03/22/tyrod-taylor-qb-virgina-tech-scouting-report/ which is remarkable accurate.


Tyrod Taylor, QB, Virgina Tech Scouting Report
Filed under: NFL Draft Prospect Scouting Reports — 1 Comment March 22, 201

Positives: Taylor is tall enough to play quarterback in the NFL even if he doesn’t have good size for the position. He has very impressive mobility and he is incredibly elusive for a quarterback. He buys time very well with his legs whether it is inside or outside of the pocket and he has extended a lot of drives with his ability to scramble and pick up yardage. He really is a fluid athlete, especially for the QB position. He has a very strong arm, he can flick his wrist and ball just flies off of his hand. He has shown considerable improvement in each of his seasons as a starter at Virginia Tech and his accuracy has really developed a lot over his four years as a Hokie. He throws a great deep ball even if it has some air under it at times, but he places the passes very well in game situations. His accuracy has come a long way on other throws as well, plus he has shown more willingness to scan the field, step up in the pocket to buy more time to find a throwing lane, and his decision making has really matured thanks to his vast amount of starting experience. His pocket poise has developed a lot and overall he is a much more fundamentally sound player now that he has been starting for so long. I do think he has become a leader on the Hokies but I don’t know if he is a team leader that can rally the whole team to victory.

Negatives: While Taylor’s accuracy and pocket poise have really developed over his time at Virginia Tech they are still not on the level of a quality NFL starter in my opinion. Taylor’s size also hinders him as a QB because he will struggle to see over his offensive line in the NFL if he ever becomes a starter, and he doesn’t have a great feel for the pocket to move within it to find throwing lanes. His accuracy was much better this season but he will still miss throws that he should make pretty routinely. His accuracy is just not very consistent on short/intermediate levels. His anticipation isn’t very good either and I have rarely seen him “throw a receiver open” and he doesn’t go through his progressions very well. Instead he will regularly drop his eyes and look at the rush to try to escape the pocket and improvise. That really hurts him because in the NFL he won’t be able to scramble after looking at his first or maybe second read and have a lot of success. Defenses are too fast and he will be bottled up very quickly if he tries to do that. His pocket poise isn’t very good either because while he has definitely learned to stay in the pocket more and wait for routes to develop, etc. his first instinct is still to run when he is in trouble, not to step up to find a throwing lane and deliver the ball downfield. His instincts tell him to scramble, hold onto the ball longer than he should and to try to either get outside the pocket to improvise or to run and pick up yardage with his feet.

Overall: Taylor has really come a long way and has given people a lot of pause when watching tape because at first glance you think “wow, he isn’t a running quarterback anymore, he’s a passer first.” While that may be true, he still has some tendencies of a running quarterback and they hinder him as a prototypical drop-back passing prospect. He doesn’t have great anticipation on his throws, his accuracy is inconsistent and his pocket poise leaves something to be desired because he regularly leaves the pocket prematurely when he senses pressure. However, I definitely think Taylor has talent that is worth developing at QB in the NFL and I think he will at least get a shot to stick as a #3 developmental guy on a NFL roster. He has great arm strength, his accuracy has improved steadily every year at Virginia Tech and his athletic ability makes him an intriguing talent at the position. I think he can eventually be a solid back-up and potentially he could end up being a starter for a couple seasons. I don’t think he will ever be a pro-bowler, but I think he could be a solid game-manager that could extend drives with his legs and maybe make a playoff run if he has a good enough supporting cast and defense.

Projection: 5th or 6th round. This is a very weak quarterback class so Taylor might go a little higher than this, but his ceiling isn’t very high as a NFL QB and he will probably be a career back-up. I think his career could mimic that of Troy Smith from Ohio State. He will flash some ability as a starter but overall he will be viewed as a back-up in the NFL. That limits his draft stock obviously, so I think he will be a later pick.

SKILLS:
1-poor, 2-weak, 3-above average, 4-very good, 5-elite
Arm Strength: 4.0
Accuracy: 2.5
Mobility: 4.0
Decision Making: 3.0
Mechanics: 3.0
Pocket Awareness: 2.0
Intangibles: 3.0

[Mace]

For what it's worth, I just had a dream that the Bills won the Super Bowl and I was at the game but couldn't find my seat.

Yeah, that happens to me a lot. Sometimes I can't find my ticket, and I can hear people yelling with joy while the guards throw me into a swamp where alligators eat off my legs as I find my ticket. The people I was there with stand around laughing at me watching the game on their iPods.

[stuckincincy]

[QUOTE=The Jokeman;4280111]Here's another one courtesy of https://tommeltonscouting.wordpress.com/2011/03/22/tyrod-taylor-qb-virgina-tech-scouting-report/ which is remarkably accurate.


[/QUOTE

Yes - that really says it all...

[Joe Fo Sho]

It's hard to justify people thinking that Tyrod will get better when he has had the same issues that were brought up 6 years ago when he was coming out of college, along with his regression this year compared to last.

[jamze132]

You can only teach accuracy and anticipation as far as mechanics are concerned. You either were born with it or you weren't.

[The Jokeman]

You can only teach accuracy and anticipation as far as mechanics are concerned. You either were born with it or you weren't.

The more and more I watch the NFL the less I think anticipation can be taught as seems like the one's that struggle with it never recover see Rob Johnson, David Carr, EJ and now Tyrod.

[DraftBoy]

You can only teach accuracy and anticipation as far as mechanics are concerned. You either were born with it or you weren't.

Accuracy yes, anticipation absolutely can be a learned trait.

If you don't have that ability naturally, you can improve it by having a full understanding of your offensive system and spending as much time as humanly possible trying to studying opposing defenses on film.

[Mr. Pink]

As DB said, you can learn anticipation through time and effort. The more you see situations, the more you'll understand them and if you can process that information then you'll be better off.

However when it's the same issue you've had for about a decade now and you're not improving on it, you likely never will.

[DynaPaul]

For what it's worth, I just had a dream that the Bills won the Super Bowl and I was at the game but couldn't find my seat.

I had the same one but it was my helmet.

[BillsFanCupp38]

For what it's worth, I just had a dream that the Bills won the Super Bowl and I was at the game but couldn't find my seat.

I've had the same exact dream! Lol the stadium never looks the same in my dreams

[WagonCircler]

I've had the same exact dream! Lol the stadium never looks the same in my dreams

That's because there are Jetsons-style flying cars buzzing around and the players are all robots. That's how far in the future it is.