Sleeper QB Prospects Flying Under the Radar Ahead of 2019 NFL Draft
Quarterback is the most scrutinized position in professional sports, yet a few quality performers still fall through the cracks during the NFL draft.
Eleven of the league's projected 32 starters didn't hear their names called in the first round. Five of those weren't even acquired until the fourth round or later.
Finding the next Tom Brady (199th pick), Kirk Cousins (102nd pick) or Dak Prescott (135th pick) is no small feat, though. It's nearly impossible. The best quarterback options almost always come off the board during the opening frame. From that point, teams basically throw darts in hopes a Day 3 quarterback selection can turn into a quality backup, let alone a starter.
That's the goal. Yet, opportunities arise and prospects with enough skill can eventually develop.
This year, five quarterbacks—Oklahoma's Kyler Murray, Ohio State's Dwayne Haskins, Missouri's Drew Lock, Duke's Daniel Jones and West Virginia's Will Grier—are potential first-round targets. North Carolina State's Ryan Finley and Buffalo's Tyree Jackson are Day 2 options.
Six prospects projected as fourth-round picks or later present intriguing traits to entice teams and possibly be inserted into lineups if properly managed.
Jarrett Stidham, Auburn
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Auburn's Jarrett Stidham is exactly what teams want in a quarterback prospect. He has the physical tools to develop, flashes of excellence to portend a higher level of play and the right attitude for the position. Consistency in fundamentals, decision-making and accuracy are lacking, though.
When Stidham is comfortable and throws in rhythm, he spins the ball exceptionally well. But he's rarely been in that position.
"That was a really dysfunctional offense this year," an NFC scout told NFL.com's Lance Zierlein. "The offensive line was bad, the receivers couldn't get open and the coaching was a big problem, I thought. He didn't play well, but he didn't get much help either."
Stidham regressed during his second season as the Tigers' starter. His completion percentage, passing yards and yards per attempt were worse in 2018 than the '17 campaign. Yet, Stidham isn't a lost cause. According to Pro Football Focus, a deeper look shows he finished among the top 20 (of 50 available quarterback prospects) with a 73.7 adjusted completion percentage and 66.2 passer rating under pressure.
The 2017 first-team All-SEC performer left college with an impressive 48-to-13 touchdown-to-interception ratio, and he's willing to drive the ball down the field into tight windows.
The 6'2", 218-pound quarterback crushed the predraft process. Scouts named Stidham the Senior Bowl's Offensive Practice Player of the Week, per executive director Jim Nagy. He followed that with an outstanding pro-day performance.
"Today was an A-plus day for him, for sure," Los Angeles Rams general manager Les Snead told Auburn Undercover's Brandon Marcello. "I was not dialed in at the (NFL) combine on QBs as much, and I heard it was a very similar day. But I think this day definitely helped him."
Projection: Fourth-Round Selection
Easton Stick, North Dakota State
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The level of success Easton Stick experienced at North Dakota State cannot be replicated in this year's quarterback class.
Stick is a four-time national champion and served as a major contributor or starter during three of those campaigns, including the 2015 season when the redshirt freshman started eight games for an injured Carson Wentz.
The three-time team captain earned first-team All-American honors from the Associated Press, became a finalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy (the Academic Heisman) and earned the 2018 NCAA Division I Championship Game's Most Outstanding Player during the 2018 calendar year.
But traits, not resumes, translate to the next level. Wentz's combination of size, arm talent, athleticism and intellect made him the second overall pick out of the FCS ranks.
The 6'1", 224-pound Stick doesn't have Wentz's size or raw arm strength, but the Bison's all-time leader in passing presents two outstanding qualities: First, he's an exceptional athlete. Stick finished among the 93rd percentile in SPARQ (speed, power, agility, reaction and quickness) among NFL quarterbacks, per Three Sigma Athlete's Zach Whitman. Second, Wentz's successor is ultra-competitive and continued to make plays for a run-first offense to keep the Bison from falling behind the chains.
Stick isn't going to drive the ball outside the numbers or into tight windows on a regular basis, but he is an ideal fit in an offense with pocket movement, run-pass options and a rhythm passing attack.
Projection: Fifth- or Sixth-Round Selection
Gardner Minshew II, Washington State
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Washington State's Gardner Minshew II wasn't supposed to be an FBS starting quarterback last season, let alone an NFL draft prospect. Yet, here he is.
After starting at Northwest Mississippi Community College and two years at East Carolina, Minshew planned to become a graduate assistant with the Alabama Crimson Tide before Washington State head coach Mike Leach persuaded him to join the Cougars program.
During his lone season in the Pac-12, the transfer finished second overall with 4,779 passing yards and a 70.7 completion percentage. Minshew finished with a 38-to-9 touchdown-to-interception ratio.
More importantly, Minshew graded as college football's most accurate passer with an 80.7 adjusted completion percentage, according to Pro Football Focus.
Once upon a time, Leach's protege's weren't viewed as serious NFL prospects. The Air Raid didn't produce translatable talent. Times have changed, and one of those proteges (Kliff Kingsbury) is now an NFL head coach. The game continues to adapt to the collegiate spread. The reigning Johnny Unitas Golden Arm winner and Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Year is therefore better suited to play at the next level than most who previously played under Leach.
Minshew won't impress with his raw throwing ability and suspect pocket awareness, but his anticipation, timing and overall ball placement make up for any limitations he presents.
Projection: Sixth- or Seventh-Round Selection
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Brett Rypien, Boise State
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More often than not, quarterbacks available late in the process don't have the physical tools teams prefer. Certain baseline thresholds must be met to play the position at the professional level.
Like North Dakota State's Easton Stick and Washington State's Gardner Minshew II, Boise State's signal-caller isn't an imposing presence behind center (6'2", 210 lbs) and he struggles to create velocity on extended throws—though he did tie for first among quarterbacks at the NFL combine in ball speed, per The Athletic's Dane Brugler.
Other traits Rypien presents are quite valuable, though.
The Mountain West Conference's all-time leader in passing yards (13,578) is comfortable working from the pocket. He manipulates defenses with his eyes and throws with anticipation and touch. Rypien displays good footwork and a compact delivery for a quick release. Most importantly, he excelled in crucial situations. Rypien held the highest grade among draft-eligible quarterback on third and fourth down with a 12-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio, according to Pro Football Focus.
However, he becomes rattled under defensive pressure, struggles to work from a muddied pocket and isn't going to evade oncoming defenders. Rypien lacks the natural gifts to consistently work off-platform or the raw arm strength to complete throws when his lower half isn't aligned with his upper body.
Even so, a more polished and experienced option can't be found in this year's class.
Projection: Sixth- or Seventh-Round Selection
Jordan Ta'amu, Ole Miss
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Ole Miss' Jordan Ta'amu falls on the opposite side of the spectrum from the three most recently mentioned quarterbacks. Ta'amu has the natural ability a team will want to cultivate as the quarterback's understanding of the game continues to grow.
The native Hawaiian landed in the SEC after a one-year stop at the New Mexico Military Institute and wasn't afraid to challenge those defenses. Unfortunately, his fearlessness cuts both ways.
Ta'amu throws beautiful deep passes down the sidelines with touch and accuracy. Yet, his overall accuracy struggled against the best he faced—which is a primary reason why scouts aren't so high on him despite his potential.
The senior finished his final season with a 63.6 completion percentage, 3,918 passing yards, 19 touchdowns and eight interceptions. According to Pro Football Focus' Steve Palazzolo, Ta'amu ranked as the third-most accurate quarterback in this year's class with a 72.3 completion percentage on passes between one and nine yards.
His ball location failed him against Mississippi State, LSU and Alabama, though. Ta'amu completed a woeful 44.2 percent against the best defenses he faced. The 21-year-old signal-caller needs to develop a better understanding of pre- and post-snap reads as well as speeding up his process of delivering the football.
Still, a 6'3", 221-pound quarterback with the ability to throw the ball anywhere on the field will keep teams intrigued.
Projection: Sixth- or Seventh-Round Selection
Jacob Dolegala, Central Connecticut State
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The NFL will go anywhere to find talent. This will be proven true once again when Central Connecticut State's Jacob Dolegala is drafted.
The FCS program found the 6'6", 235-pound prospect after he suffered a tear in his throwing shoulder during his senior year in high school and spent another year at Milford Academy in Berlin, New York.
"From being a Division I scholarship guy to being overlooked by D-III schools, it was devastating," Dolegala told Hartford Courant's Dom Amore after attending the Buffalo Bulls' pro day. "But I didn't let that stop me. Central gave me a chance."
The program's all-time leading passer (8,129 yards) isn't flying under the radar anymore. Numerous scouts attended the pro day to watch Dolegala throw. The quarterback impressed and may have worked himself into Day 3 consideration, according to NFL.com's Gil Brandt.
"My footwork, they liked," Dolegala said. "My arm strength, they were really impressed with. As far as my knowledge, they only touched on bits and pieces of things, but they were impressed with that, too."
The allure is obvious: Dolegala is a big, strapping pocket passer with the natural ability to mold. Those options aren't normally available late in the process, even though the FCS passer posted a career 57.6 completion percentage and 48-to-29 touchdown-to-interception ratio.
Projection: Seventh-Round Selection or Undrafted
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