Miami Dolphins columnist Omar Kelly begins his 10-part series looking at the top prospects in the upcoming NFL draft (April 29-May 1) with the quarterbacks. This year’s class of quarterbacks isn’t deep, but it does have a couple of prospects that could develop into franchise QBs in time.
Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence
Lawrence is the best quarterback prospect to enter the draft since Andrew Luck in 2012. He’s big (6-6, 220 pounds), athletic, knows how to operate in the pocket, and has a cannon for an arm.
He played on college football’s biggest stage, and won more than he lost, which indicates he’ll be a good quarterback for the Jacksonville Jaguars, who have the No. 1 pick in the draft, to build their franchise around. The only concern about Lawrence is that his ball placement isn’t always top shelf.
BYU’s Zach Wilson
Wilson’s accuracy on difficult throws, and his ability to operate an offense on schedule won over NFL evaluators last season, where he led the Cougars to a 11-1 record while throwing 33 touchdowns and rushing for another 10.
His ability to throw on the move is enticing. The fact he played with a mediocre group of receivers shows that his game will evolve if the right talent is around him.
Ohio State’s Justin Fields
The physical traits indicate that he could become this generation’s Michael Vick because he has a cannon of an arm, and the athleticism and speed (4.4 in the 40-yard dash) to carve up teams with his scrambling.
The fact Fields consistently keeps his eyes downfield means he has the potential to become a legitimate pocket passer. But the long history of Ohio State quarterbacks failing in the NFL, and his uneven play last season might convince some teams to go in a different direction.
North Dakota State’s Trey Lance
Lance comes from the same program that produced Carson Wentz, but he only started one season for the Bisons because of COVID-19 pandemic, which only allowed his school to play one game last year before the season was called off.
During the 2019 season he showed good ball placement, impressive pocket presence, and the scrambling ability to carve up defenses. He gained 1,100 rushing yards and scored 14 touchdowns on 169 carries.
Alabama’s Mac Jones
Jones’ accuracy and quick decision-making allowed him to become an effective distributor of the football for the Crimson tide, who he led to a national championship last season.
Jones throws into tight windows, and has enough athleticism to improvise. But his arm is average, and he benefited from having a ton of talent around him at Alabama. A team looking for a game-manager will make him a top-50 selection.
Best of the rest
Florida’s Kyle Trask is the type of cerebral quarterback who can’t, or shouldn’t be counted out because he has a way of making big plays happen. But his physical limitations will push him into the second or third day of the draft.
But Trask, Stanford’s Davis Mills, Texas A&M’s Kellen Mond and Wake Forest’s Jamie Newman have a shot at becoming NFL starters in time, with a little development. The rest of this quarterback class is filler, mostly practice squad candidates.
Class grade: C
Outside of Lawrence, every quarterback prospect in this draft is a reach, and some team is going to overdraft them based on their potential. In time we’ll see that this draft class is reminiscent of the 2011 crop of quarterbacks.
History has shown that Cam Newton held up that mediocre crop of talent since Jake Locker, Blaine Gabbert and Christian Ponder were all taken in the first round that year. Andy Dalton and Colin Kaepernick, two second rounders that year, were the second- and third-best quarterbacks in that class. Some second- or third-day pick might prove he’s better than most of these early-round candidates.
Teams in need
The San Francisco 49ers traded up to No. 3, admittedly to select a quarterback, which virtually guarantees the top three picks (Jaguars a No. 1, New York Jets at No. 2) will be QBs.
Atlanta (No. 4) needs one to eventually replaced an aging Matt Ryan. Carolina, Denver, Philadelphia, New England, Pittsburgh, New Orleans, Houston and Washington would all benefit from selecting a quarterback at some point this year.
Dolphins’ focus
The hope is that Tua Tagovailoa, who had a 92.5 passer rating as a rookie, which ranked him 23rd in the NFL last season, improves on his decision-making and will operate the offense faster, throwing into tight windows in Year Two. Establishing a better run game, and upgrading the team’s playmakers should help him blossom.
Jacoby Brissett joins Miami after signing a one-year deal this offseason that could pay him $7.5 million. His playing experience (49 career games) provides the Dolphins a decent replacement for Ryan Fitzpatrick, who signed with Washington’s Football Team. Brissett owns a 12-20 record in 32 starts. He has thrown for 6,459 yards with 31 touchdowns and 13 interceptions and has a 59.6 career completion percentage. Jake Rudock and Ryan Sinnett should be viewed only as camp arms, with each battling it out for the role as Miami’s third quarterback.
