I have Lauletta as solid #7. I can't see him jumping either of those two in my rankings in the coming weeks because their positives still keep them enough ahead. I see the major bust potential in them but I am not so blind that I can't see the positives, even if it takes time.
I don’t know man. Obviously Darnold has bust “potential “. QB is clearly the hardest position of any to get right. Any guy in this class could bust. But I say to everyone, go watch Darnold vs. Washington 2016. If you sit through that whole tape and don’t think he’s what teams look for in a prospect, you can come back and dub him Geno Smith 2.0 That tape blew me away. Take that tape away and I’d have him ranked #2 or #3 behind Rosen and Mayfield. Because he’s good on all the games I saw. But I just see everything you want on that tape. Poise, escapability, toughness, arm, anticipation. Sorry, I’m fawning like a school girl...
Yeah, but no one has won with him. Curtis Painter stayed in the league a couple more years after being awful with the Colts too
That brings up a different interesting conversation though: good backup QBs vs. bad backup QBs (how are they ever in the league for a 3rd season?)
Then you have the QBs who haven't played a snap or barely any in years getting multiple lucrative contracts. I'm looking at you Chase Daniel.
Evidently they love what they see in those pre-season games....Dude makes a ton of money considering the lack of actual production.
Ravens and Packers are both past due. I'm not dealing with it now. Hopefully Will comes in the morning. If you are OTC and no one has been autoed ahead of you yet then just make our pick.
After the Ravens pick or they are Autoed... this is the rest of the draft to finish things up... 7-22(240). 49ers (<-KC) 7-23(241). Redskins (<-LAR) 7-24(242). Panthers 7-25(243). Chiefs (<-TEN) 7-26(244). Falcons 7-27(245). Saints 7-28(246). Steelers 7-29(247). Jaguars 7-30(248). Seahawks (<-MIN) 7-31(249). Patriots (CIN <-NE) 7-32(250). Eagles (<-SEA<-PHI<-SEA<-NE) 7-33(251). Chargers (Comp) 7-34(252). Patriots (CIN) (Comp) 7-35(253). Bengals (Comp) 7-36(254). Cardinals (Comp) 7-37(255). Buccaneers (Comp) 7-38(256). Colts (ATL) (Comp)
I realise that I'm a little late for the QB conversation (went to bed straight after making my pick) but I thought I'd give my take on some of this class. I don't have the expertise of you guys who have been doing this for years but I've been learning a lot from your analysis and trying to take a closer look at the areas which you have been giving emphasis. I'm not expecting to be perfect on the finer details so constructive feedback would be super appreciated! Without further ado... TIER 1 a. SAM DARNOLD (1st Round Grade) - With my knowledge generally limited to the last 5 years or so, this guy reminds me a lot of Jameis Winston coming out of college. I'm not sure he's the same kind of leader as Jameis but he's probably a little more mature and professional for his age. Seems to be a genuinely good guy with a love for football (Side note - the media keeps referring to him as "blue collar" but I'm pretty sure this is just a subtle jab at Rosen) . Has the arm strength and ability to make every throw on the field and good mobility to extend plays. Mechanics aren't as good as Rosen's but are still better than most rookie quarterbacks, particularly at throwing on the run. Probably wasn't helped too much by his o-line in college and, it seems like a weird thing to say, but I think it could be difficult for him to transfer from a bad offensive line to a good one. Having a bad o-line makes you rely on certain bad habits and it can be hard to forget these at the pro-level. Has the capacity to read the field correctly but is inconsistent with his decision making, resulting in a lot of interceptions. Winston has not quite fixed this issue at the NFL level so it might not be as simple as something that can be changed over time. I think Darnold can step in straight away but it's debatable whether he should. Probably would have a rookie season similar to Winston where he would throw a lot of touchdowns but throws a lot of interceptions too. b. JOSH ROSEN (1st Round Grade) - I know he gets a lot of shit, but I really like Rosen's personality. Calm and professional but gets motivated when it's needed. I personally don't think that his intelligence should be treated as a weakness, as long as it is coupled with a good work ethic (which I think he has) he can be a great quarterback. I'm a little worried about his leadership qualities and arrogance (I read somewhere that he always thinks he's the smartest guy in the room - big red flag for me) but I think, alongside the right head coach/quarterback coach he can be molded to improve both aspects. I really like him at the Jets as I think Josh McCown can take him under his wing and make him both a better football player and a better person. Already has great mechanics and decent arm strength. Pretty close to his full potential but can fit into a NFL offense straight away and be a top-15 QB. Can be a little skittish in the pocket but I don't think to a worrying degree, should be able to learn to control the pocket for the NFL level. Great pocket passer but inefficient when play breaks down. Imperfect frame could cause injury concerns. Reminds me of Matt Ryan. TIER 2 (big gap between tier 1 and tier 2) a. JOSH ALLEN (2nd Round Grade) - Josh Allen's tape vs Iowa haunts my dreams. I've never seen a player that is expected to be drafted in the top-5 make that many stupid mistakes in a college game. I'm really just not convinced that Allen has the football IQ or mechanics to perform well at the NFL level. Everyone knows that drafting Allen is a huge risk. The guy has all the physical characteristics you want and seems to have the mental characteristics that impress NFL head coaches (hard working, motivated, disciplined). BUT he needs to take a big step up to the NFL level. Relies on his arm too much and struggles reading the field correctly. When Allen gets things right he gets them RIGHT (see his pro day, combine, senior bowl) but this means absolutely nothing unless you can find some form of consistency with it. Under the right coach, Allen obviously has all the ability to be something special but I think if he goes early to a team that has already been struggling to find their quarterback, he's destined for failure. Pro comparison would be somewhere in between Christian Hackenburg and Ryan Mallett. b. BAKER MAYFIELD (2nd Round Grade) - After all the shit I just talked about Allen, you're probably wondering why I have Baker Mayfield, the guy who played the best college football in the entire class, rated behind him. There are two major reasons why I don't think Mayfield will become a franchise quarterback, the first is personality. To talk about red flags in NFL prospects, running away from cops is a pretty big one. I genuinely don't understand how stupid (or intoxicated) you have to be to make that decision. Add on to this Mayfield's antics vs Kansas and his poor control of emotions, you've got all the ingredients of someone too immature to be a franchise quarterback. I think Mayfield's cocky attitude translates to the field too, he often holds on to the ball too long attempting to make a hero play, is careless with the ball which leads to fumbles and is lazy when reading defenses pre-snap. The second obvious concern is size. Mayfield is often compared to Russell Wilson or Drew Brees but these players are always the exception - not the rule. I don't expect NFL scouts to suddenly change their minds about the height they are looking for just because there have been a couple of examples that have worked out well in recent history. Mayfield's height is an objective deficiency at the pro level that will cause him difficulties. I've not said anything about the positives of Mayfield because I'm sure you already know them; great improvisation and scrambling ability, mental toughness (loves big games) and solid arm strength and mechanics. He could be the next Russell Wilson, but I wouldn't count on it... BEST OF THE REST: 5. Lamar Jackson (2nd Round Grade) 6. Mason Rudolph (2nd Round Grade) 7. Kyle Lauletta (3rd Round Grade) 8. Mike White (4th Round Grade) 9. Luke Falk (4th Round Grade) 10. Logan Woodside (5th Round Grade) You can probably tell that I place a high importance on personality and intangibles. I genuinely only believe there are two quarterbacks who have the combination of physical, technical and mental ability required to deserve drafting in the first round. That's obviously not to say that I think only two quarterbacks will go in the first round. However, I do think there will only be two in the top-5 and 4 in the round overall. I'm too lazy to give a second look to this write-up so sorry if there's been any spelling mistakes or grammatical errors.
