QB Coach: NFL Draft's J.J. McCarthy 'Seems to Throw the Ball at One Speed: Very Hard'

In the eyes of one private QB coach, former Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy would benefit from taking a little bit off some of his throws.

"He seems to throw the ball at one speed: very hard," the coach told The Athletic's Ted Nguyen. "Although he has a playmaking style when presented, he needs to have a little more variation in his base throws in terms of pace and velocity."

Bleacher Report NFL scout Derrik Klassen cited the same problem in his scouting report for the Wolverines star: "One-speed thrower with average arm talent. Often fails to add arc and touch when necessary, especially outside the numbers."

McCarthy was supremely efficient as a junior, completing 72.3 percent of his passes and finishing with a 167.4 quarterback rating. However, Pro Football Focus' Nick Akridge noted he had an uncatchable throw rate of 27.1 percent when he was throwing outside of the numbers, which was only 48th-best out of 105 qualified quarterbacks.

Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh built an offense that didn't put too much on McCarthy's plate, relatively speaking, and accentuated his strengths. He won't have the same luxury in the NFL.

No QB is ever the finished product when they move on to the pros. Even Patrick Mahomes spent an entire year riding the bench before he became a full-time starter.

It sounds like McCarthy has some work ahead in terms of improving his throwing mechanics. That's not going to stop him from being a first-round and perhaps even a Top-10 pick in the 2024 NFL draft, but it will undoubtedly be a consideration for whatever teams are targeting him.