Brandon Doughty NFL Draft 2016: Scouting Report, Grade for Dolphins Rookie

POSITIVES

Brandon Doughty is a super-productive quarterback with NFL size and smarts. He spent his last season at Western Kentucky as a sixth-year senior after two injuries.

Doughty's numbers in the Hilltoppers offense were ridiculous. He threw for 593 yards against Middle Tennessee State (on 66 attempts in 2014) and for eight touchdowns against Marshall (on 50 attempts in 2014). In 2015, he led the nation in passing yards (5,055) and touchdowns (48). (He did the same with 4,830 and 49 in 2014.) And just to rub it in a little, he connected on 71.9 percent of his passes. Doughty did all of this while leading WKU to its first conference championship and a Top 25 ranking.

A 38-game starter in college, Doughty's footwork can be good in a clean pocket. He'll step up to rifle the ball down the field and will challenge defenses. Doughty is smart at the line of scrimmage and will use his experience and his pre-snap reads to key on cover men and find a mismatch. He'll also hold safeties to the middle of the field with his eyes and does not tip his hand with tunnel vision.

Whether it's a go route up the sideline or a comeback against man coverage, Doughty's accuracy and timing are pro-quality. He's not afraid to put some air under the ball and let a streaking receiver run under it, but he can also generate enough pop to throw a rope to the boundary.

NEGATIVES

Doughty lost most of two seasons (2011 and 2012) to knee injuries and will enter the NFL as a 23-year-old prospect and 24-year-old rookie. The knee shouldn't be an issue given that he has played three full seasons since the injuries.

Footwork is an area in which Doughty has to be coached to stop seeing ghosts. When there is traffic around his feet, he'll panic and become off-balance and erratic in his movements. He must learn to step up and out of the pocket to avoid these situations.

Athletically, Doughty is average. He's not going to run past defenders or run over a tackler. He can do the minimum to move on rollouts, but he's much better as a dropback quarterback. This shows up when he's given chances to scramble for yards and doesn't.

From an arm perspective, Doughty's strength is on the low end of what's realistic for an NFL passer. He has to put his whole body into out routes. When he's off-rhythm, this becomes an issue because his feet aren't set and he can't let it rip.

Doughty looks like a solid backup quarterback for a team with a West Coast offense in which he can make timing passes and won't be asked to air it out often.

COMBINE RESULTS

Height: 6'3"

Weight: 213 lbs.

40 Time: 5.22s

Hand Size: 9⅛"

3-Cone: 7.49s

PRO COMPARISON: Matt Barkley, Arizona Cardinals
FINAL GRADE: 5.50/9.00 (Round 6—Backup Caliber)