NFL Draft 2017 - The Quarterbacks
In the last of our positional breakdowns, we're covering the quarterback position. This list is not intended to be exhaustive, so please share analysis, commentary and gifs of your favorite prospects in the comments section.
In the rest of this series, I only shared gifs of good plays by most of the players discussed. However, to mix things up, today we're going to feature some negative plays instead.
Jets Needs: Quarterback
Once again, this is an obvious need area for the Jets, but could the fact that this draft seems not to include any "sure things" mean that they will address the position next year instead?
With the offseason signing of veteran Josh McCown, they have a potential stop-gap in place and this also gives them one more year to give Bryce Petty and/or Christian Hackenberg a chance to compete for the job. Should they falter, the Jets will likely end up with a high pick to use on a quarterback next year, when the class should be a lot stronger.
That's essentially what we said 12 months ago though...
First round prospects
North Carolina's Mitch Trubisky, who also goes by "Mitchell", is likely to be the first quarterback selected. He's been linked with the Browns, who own the first pick, but are considered more likely to package the 12th pick with other picks to move up for him a little later. The Jets and their sixth pick might even be their preferred trade target.
Could the Jets consider taking him there though? Trubisky is accurate, has good efficiency on downfield throws and didn't throw an interception in eight of the first nine games last year.
He's not immune to throwing bad passes though, as this play shows. It's hard to see how he couldn't have seen that defender and his throw to the flat was late and off his back foot.
Deshaun Watson won a national title and came up with the goods in the clutch to rescue Clemson from the jaws of defeat several times over the past couple of seasons. While he's a good athlete, he's more of a pocket passer than a dual threat.
His 17 interceptions are a concern and he also gets a lot of passes batted down at the line. However, he always bounced back and ultimately put up decent numbers. In 2015 and 2016 he didn't have a single game where he had more interceptions than touchdowns.
On this play you can see how he wrongly anticipates that the defender will be fooled into vacating the area near the back pylon and fails to get enough air under the pass to give his receiver a chance:
DeShone Kizer from Notre Dame is a bit of an enigma and may fall out of the first round. He doesn't get rid of the ball as quickly as some other prospects, which might be something he needs to work on.
On TV analysis, Greg McElroy pointed out that Kizer has a somewhat unconventional grip, which sees him have just two fingers on the laces. Whether this will make it even harder for him to adjust to the slightly different dimensions of an NFL ball is unknown, but it clearly affected him in the rain as this throw slipped from his hand:
Texas Tech's Patrick Mahomes has divided scouts. On one hand, his video game numbers are a product of the air-raid offense and his footwork and technique can be sloppy. However, on the other hand, his arm talent is unparalleled and he has a confident attitude.
That lazy footwork was on display on this throw, causing the ball to sail on him:
Cal's Davis Webb has been a late riser that some scouts believe is better than last year's top pick from the same program; Jared Goff. He comes across really well in interviews and Ian Rapaport reported yesterday that his intangibles could get him drafted in the late first.
Despite these intangibles, Webb's film is more inconsistent than the rest of the candidates to go in the first. His numbers aren't bad, but that's largely a product of the fact that Cal's defense was poor and they found themselves in a lot of shoot-outs. Moments like this, where he completely mid-read the coverage, were too common.
Non-first rounders
Quarterbacks with second round grades often get picked up in the late first. This is because teams want to secure the 5th year option which is invariably less expensive than the first year of an extension for a successful quarterback. Therefore, not many of the five potential first rounders noted above are likely to fall to day two. It's not unheard of though - Geno Smith springs to mind.
Pitt's Nathan Peterman has been on the rise, after impressing scouts at the Senior Bowl. He's a player who is considered a good fit for a west coast offense and makes good decisions under pressure.
This late game interception was a forced throw that sailed on him, possibly because, after stepping up in the pocket, he didn't see the dropping linebacker until it was too late:
Miami's Brad Kaaya is a player who is regarded as more polished than most of this year's class. He can make some nice touch throws. However, he didn't have the same level of consistency or big numbers.
The below play saw him fail to anticipate the defender undercutting the route and perhaps could have had more zip and better placement on it. That was one of only seven interceptions on the year, though:
Finally, Tennessee's Joshua Dobbs is a player who could theoretically sneak into the third round. After the success of Dak Prescott last year, scouts will not be so quick to rule out the extremely intelligent Dobbs - a dual threat quarterback - from being a success story.
On this interception, Dobbs was perhaps a little unlucky but the pass was more difficult to catch than it initially looks because it was a knuckleball with no touch on it. You can see Dobbs' mechanics need work - moreso than Prescott's did.
Late round sleepers
One of the higher profile late round prospects is Chad Kelly from Ole Miss. Jim Kelly's nephew fell down the rankings due to some off-field concerns, but that's not the only reason. He had an uneven 2016 campaign.
Tulsa's Dane Evans is a player that will draw some interest due to his ability to throw deep. He's not very big, but is a high-character player who threw five touchdowns in Tulsa's bowl game blow-out of Central Michigan last year.
Trevor Knight from Texas A&M is worth mentioning because the Jets brought him in for a visit. Knight profiles well as a potential back-up because of his running ability that might also make him a useful scout team option.
Finally, East Carolina's Philip Nelson is a late round prospect who some scouts believe could be a potential starter. He looked the part at the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl, easily outshining the other quarterbacks there in a controlled performance.
Let's have your views in the comments! Who is overrated, who is underrated and who did we not mention that interests you?