One of the hardest things to do in any sport is to correctly predict the paths to success for draftable quarterbacks in their transition to the NFL. For every quarterback who becomes a success in the NFL. there are at least two who don’t. Some of those quarterbacks excelled in collegiate offenses that fluffed up their skill sets, but those skill sets just don’t work in the league. Some quarterbacks find themselves with the wrong coaching situation, and the connection required to get things going at the next level just isn’t there.
So, when we look to the 2024 draft, and the major quarterbacks therein, how can we best extrapolate success? In this week’s “Xs and Os with Greg Cosell and Doug Farrar,” the guys get into the universal traits required for NFL success, and specific fits for these specific quarterbacks:
Caleb Williams, USC — Can Williams’ NFL coaches tamp down his more rogue tendencies, without muting the special off-schedule things he can accomplish?
Jayden Daniels, LSU — How can Daniels’ NFL coaches keep the explosive aspects of his college offense going while further developing the nuances Daniels already understands?
Drake Maye, North Carolina — Maye’s NFL coaches will need to temper their enthusiasm for a physical resume that is pro-ready right now, while working to accentuate the things that still need work.
Michael Penix Jr., Washington — With Penix, how much will his injury history and performance against defensive pressure mitigate his ball-winning downfield accuracy?
J.J. McCarthy, Michigan — McCarthy is the most prominent “game manager” in this class, so how will his NFL coaches make the most of his skills, while understanding that he’s just not an explosive play waiting to happen?
If you’re missing Oregon’s Bo Nix here, we didn’t discuss Nix in this episode because we recently talked ball and watched tape with Nix for nearly an hour. You can find that episode right here:
As to this week’s “Xs and Os,” you can watch it (and subscribe to our YouTube channel) right here:
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