so I was playing around this evening, and searching youtube for some QBs in the upcoming draft. Some thoughts.
FIRST ROUND TALENT-
not sure anyone I saw really really fits in here, but If I had to pick one guy it would be Mitch Trubisky.
-first of all I hate putting him here because he does not have enough experience, I really dislike drafting guys or even talking about them with less then 20 starts.
-however, he has the best throwing motion, best arm and best pocket awareness of the guys I saw.
-If we were bringing in a WCO or some sort of WCO derivative he'd be my no.1 option. The kid has great feet and form, fast release and an accurate, strong arm
-in a normal year i'd peg him for a pick 15-40 guy, however in a draft with almost no QB talent this kid is going to get a huge payday and end up in the top 5 of the draft unless NFL executives take a break from their job for a few hours.
SECOND & THIRD ROUND TALENT-
ugh... some of these guys probably will con an NFL team into snagging them in the first round of the NFL draft, these guys are basically seriously flawed in some way
-Deshawn Watson: worse eyes in the draft. This kid is a pure spread offense QB, he is probably RG3 version 2.0. Someone will take him because they'll love his body and arm, and they'll have memories of his huge games. The kid has experience, but I don't think he's really an NFL starter. Maybe after a few years on a bench.
-Brad Kaaya: take Mitch Trubisky and remove his pocket awareness and mobility and you have Brad Kaaya. He has a good arm, good throwing motion, a strong arm and good eyes. I just never liked seeing him in the pocket. He'll struggle against an NFL passrush. but man does he have a nice arm. In another age he'd be a prototypical pocket passer, however he played his college career in a spread offense and never developed that feel for the pocket that typical pocket passers develop. He did impress me a bit with his command and anticipation of his offense. I never felt like he didn't know where EVERY player was on the field at any time. This guy looks like he could squeeze into the first round. I just wish he had a better feel for the pocket. In a normal year he'd be a pick 50+ guy, without any real talent in this draft he'll might just slide into the first round. Much like Trubisky, unless NFL GMs take a vacation and don't bother to evaluate this draft, he should be gone by the end of day 2. If I had a vote, I'd be willing to take a flier on him in round two. There is a lot to like with this kid, just don't expect him to get it immediately. Only three QBs in my lifetime ever "developed" pocket awareness in the nfl, Drew Brees, Steve Young and Aaron Rogers. Which is to say immensely gifted people with HOF level talent. So while it's possible he could find some pocket awareness somewhere, it might be too late for him.
-Deshone Kizer: he's probably going to be the EJ or Tebow of this draft. Someone is going to fall in love with his physical tools and potential, and they're going to take him in round one. When he has a clean pocket he'll do good. But his mechanics are a mess, and he's no where near as fast as he thinks he is. His throwing mechanics are a mess, he has a tebowesque windup which will kill him in the nfl. On the bright side he's much more accurate then Tebow. Much more accurate, when he has that clean pocket he looks like a 1st round draft pick. The problem is what he does with that clean pocket, he double clutches worse then Drew Bledsoe, double and triple hops gives that huge windup and delivers perfect strikes. You see the problem? It won't work in the NFL. It takes too long, way too long to throw. Every year there is that one or two college QBs who absolutely light it up who everyone thinks is the next big thing but who flames out in the league. Kizer has that look to him.
4th through 7th round talent
Chad Kelly - good arm, he's definately not a coward with the ball. However he's not a very developed or sophisticated QB. He has a low release point that just doesn't look right to me, and in many ways he looked like the discount version of Matt Stafford. When I watch him I just think "If only he was a freshman, 2 more years would REALLY help polish him up, as he's rough as all heck." What he really needs is a D-league like NFL Europe or the Arena League and another 2 years of development as a QB to develop that sophistication he's lacking. His name and the lack of talent in this draft will probably help him get picked higher then round 4, but the fact he's blown an ACL and won't be able to work out before the draft will probably hurt him in the end. Biggest character issues of the QBs in the draft.
I'll look at some other QBs in the coming days and add to this I think.
FIRST ROUND TALENT-
not sure anyone I saw really really fits in here, but If I had to pick one guy it would be Mitch Trubisky.
-first of all I hate putting him here because he does not have enough experience, I really dislike drafting guys or even talking about them with less then 20 starts.
-however, he has the best throwing motion, best arm and best pocket awareness of the guys I saw.
-If we were bringing in a WCO or some sort of WCO derivative he'd be my no.1 option. The kid has great feet and form, fast release and an accurate, strong arm
-in a normal year i'd peg him for a pick 15-40 guy, however in a draft with almost no QB talent this kid is going to get a huge payday and end up in the top 5 of the draft unless NFL executives take a break from their job for a few hours.
SECOND & THIRD ROUND TALENT-
ugh... some of these guys probably will con an NFL team into snagging them in the first round of the NFL draft, these guys are basically seriously flawed in some way
-Deshawn Watson: worse eyes in the draft. This kid is a pure spread offense QB, he is probably RG3 version 2.0. Someone will take him because they'll love his body and arm, and they'll have memories of his huge games. The kid has experience, but I don't think he's really an NFL starter. Maybe after a few years on a bench.
-Brad Kaaya: take Mitch Trubisky and remove his pocket awareness and mobility and you have Brad Kaaya. He has a good arm, good throwing motion, a strong arm and good eyes. I just never liked seeing him in the pocket. He'll struggle against an NFL passrush. but man does he have a nice arm. In another age he'd be a prototypical pocket passer, however he played his college career in a spread offense and never developed that feel for the pocket that typical pocket passers develop. He did impress me a bit with his command and anticipation of his offense. I never felt like he didn't know where EVERY player was on the field at any time. This guy looks like he could squeeze into the first round. I just wish he had a better feel for the pocket. In a normal year he'd be a pick 50+ guy, without any real talent in this draft he'll might just slide into the first round. Much like Trubisky, unless NFL GMs take a vacation and don't bother to evaluate this draft, he should be gone by the end of day 2. If I had a vote, I'd be willing to take a flier on him in round two. There is a lot to like with this kid, just don't expect him to get it immediately. Only three QBs in my lifetime ever "developed" pocket awareness in the nfl, Drew Brees, Steve Young and Aaron Rogers. Which is to say immensely gifted people with HOF level talent. So while it's possible he could find some pocket awareness somewhere, it might be too late for him.
-Deshone Kizer: he's probably going to be the EJ or Tebow of this draft. Someone is going to fall in love with his physical tools and potential, and they're going to take him in round one. When he has a clean pocket he'll do good. But his mechanics are a mess, and he's no where near as fast as he thinks he is. His throwing mechanics are a mess, he has a tebowesque windup which will kill him in the nfl. On the bright side he's much more accurate then Tebow. Much more accurate, when he has that clean pocket he looks like a 1st round draft pick. The problem is what he does with that clean pocket, he double clutches worse then Drew Bledsoe, double and triple hops gives that huge windup and delivers perfect strikes. You see the problem? It won't work in the NFL. It takes too long, way too long to throw. Every year there is that one or two college QBs who absolutely light it up who everyone thinks is the next big thing but who flames out in the league. Kizer has that look to him.
4th through 7th round talent
Chad Kelly - good arm, he's definately not a coward with the ball. However he's not a very developed or sophisticated QB. He has a low release point that just doesn't look right to me, and in many ways he looked like the discount version of Matt Stafford. When I watch him I just think "If only he was a freshman, 2 more years would REALLY help polish him up, as he's rough as all heck." What he really needs is a D-league like NFL Europe or the Arena League and another 2 years of development as a QB to develop that sophistication he's lacking. His name and the lack of talent in this draft will probably help him get picked higher then round 4, but the fact he's blown an ACL and won't be able to work out before the draft will probably hurt him in the end. Biggest character issues of the QBs in the draft.
I'll look at some other QBs in the coming days and add to this I think.
Comment