2019 Draft: Top 5 QBs
2019 Draft: Top 5 QBs
1) Kyler Murray- While Kyler may have some questions as to how he will succeed in the NFL he does appear to show the most upside. Many look at the dual sport athlete as somebody who is just fast and surrounded by talent, but there are many parts to his game that are underrated. While he may be a very strong runner, he has a strong arm, an accurate passer, and the ability to move around the pocket without panicking. He shows a very strong comparison to Russell Wilson and while he may never own up to being as great as the 5x Pro Bowler, even playing like a knock-off Russell Wilson could lead to a solid career.
2) Dwayne Haskins- Haskins perhaps could have the highest floor among the QB prospects. With elite level accuracy, a strong arm, and a high IQ Haskins has the potential to be a great pocket passer at the next level. He has good enough mobility that he can navigate the pocket and run for small amounts of yardage, however, should not be expected to run for his life. He does have questions including a lack of experience however that didn’t stop one-year starter Mitch Trubisky from being selected 2nd overall in the draft. If drafted into the right situation Haskins could become a Pro Bowl caliber player (if it was actually about talent and production).
3) Drew Lock- Lock may be the player with the highest ceiling, but also with the lowest floor. In many ways, he is a trait pick. While he showed the ability to be successful in college especially in the game against Florida, he failed against many other good teams and struggled with his accuracy and footwork. If Lock gets the chance to learn behind a veteran (COUGH Joe Flacco COUGH) then he may be a Hall of Fame type player, however, if he fails to develop, he could be completely forgotten and be a highly drafted backup.
4) Will Grier- I feel like this one will really shock some people. While some doubt Grier’s arm strength I feel that is an attribute that gets far more attention than it should. Besides that, another big knock on the West Virginia QB is that he did not throw hardly “NFL” passes. By that, I mean commonly run routes such as slants, ins, and other plays across the middle of the field. In fact, while Grier led the nation in big-time passes per PFF he failed to complete any of those on “NFL routes”. Grier was the best in the nation at over the shoulder, and basket catch passes. Grier has also proven to be shifty, a high IQ player, and a fiery leader. He could be one of the biggest dark horse players to come out of this draft.
5) Daniel Jones- I almost considered putting Jarrett Stidham here over even Daniel Jones. In fact, one of the biggest comparisons I have heard for Jones is an Eli Manning without the football IQ. Of course, there is always the chance that the Duke product turns into a decent NFL starter. He has shown a lot of toughness and has shown to be a true dual threat QB. He displayed solid accuracy and was raved about by his coach. One of the things both going for and against him is the lack of talent he had around him both not helping him display his ability, but also allowing for evaluators to look deeper and factor in for the mistakes of his teammates.
The thing to remember is all of these guys have the potential to become good to great players otherwise they would not be mentioned as NFL draft prospects and especially first-round prospects. While some of the QBs taken in the 1st round maybe 2nd round prospects inflated due to their position, they are still prospects in the top of the draft and all we can do is predict how both their game will translate to the next level, and how much they will develop when they get there.
-By: Austin Bronstad