Jimmy G getting hurt would solve two issues. 1. The Texans would have a high draft pick to get their QB in 2024. 2. Before Jimmy G gets hurt you will be able to see how the young guys are developing.
If you like 3-4 QB's in the 2024 draft as much as you like any QB in this draft then this isn't an issue.
The consequences are the same regardless. Liking a player has not proven to be a good indicator of whether they pan out or not.
Drafting a player you don't think will be a franchise QB is if you're a GM. I should have been more clear.
When have the Texans done that other than their first draft? To be fair, Carr may have been that guy if he didn’t get killed every play of every game he played for the Texans.
https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.c...l-combine-bryce-young-cj-stroud-jalen-carter/ The Combine/early draft headlines: It’s not a great draft for sure things. So it’s not a great draft at the top. “It doesn’t have maybe what we’ve had in years past, in terms of the elite, high-end players,” Jeremiah said. “I love Jalen Carter. I love Will Anderson. Those are my top two players. After that, I think there’s holes and questions on just about everybody.” The question is, will that make teams less desperate to move up? The answer has two months to develop, but I doubt it. Teams usually fall in love with players the closer we get to the draft. The quarterbacks will take a lot of study. Jeremiah: “Five of them, I think, are gonna end up being starters. But they all have flaws. They all have holes. There’s not a Trevor Lawrence. There’s not a Joe Burrow. There’s not an Andrew Luck. But while there’s risk involved, I think these guys have really, really high upside across the board.” The four likely to go in round one: Bryce Young, 21, 6-0, 195, Alabama. Jeremiah thinks he’ll probably measure under 6-feet, and he hears he weighs about 198 now. Granted no one is totally scared off by lightish 6-footers after the success of Drew Brees and Russell Wilson, but it is a negative. Young completed 66 percent of his passes with 80 TDs and 12 picks in 34 games at ‘Bama. “In terms of what do you like about him, it’s almost like, what do you not like about him?” Jeremiah said. “He’s got poise, he’s got excellent accuracy, he’s a really good decision-maker. Alabama coaches would have a scouting report on for the next week’s game on a Sunday. They said Bryce would show up Monday morning having already studied the entire opponent tape and would come in with corrections and ideas on the game plan saying, ‘I actually like this protection against this one better.’” How much will his size affect decision-makers, starting with Houston? Excellent question. C.J. Stroud, 21, 6-4, 220, Ohio State. Absurd numbers, like Young: 69-percent passer, 81-12 TD-to-pick ratio in 28 games. Watching a YouTube video of him, what’s impressive is how he throws downfield and across the field; he’s not afraid to make any throw, and unlike some quarterbacks who can’t justify such quiet bravado, Stroud has, consistently. “He’s a pure thrower,” Jeremiah said. “He’s not real dynamic or urgent or explosive in terms of his movements. I wanted to see him play a little bit more off schedule. In other words, when he got moved off of his spot … I thought when you could move him and get him uncomfortable, I thought his play suffered. Then of course he goes into the playoff game against Georgia and it’s the best I’ve ever seen him play.” Stroud put up 41 points with four TDs and no interceptions against Georgia’s top-rated defense. Will Levis, 23, 6-3, 232, Kentucky. Levis transferred from Penn State after two seasons mostly on the bench, then became the starter early in 2021 at Kentucky. He might be more famous for putting mayonnaise in his coffee than for playing football. (True factoid.) Battled through shoulder and toe injuries in 2022 at Kentucky and the team didn’t develop a weapon around him as dangerous as the departed Wan’Dale Robinson, so Levis wasn’t as good in 2022 as in ’21 in Lexington. A coach like Josh McDaniels, who is big in QB-development and drilling down on the little things, might be a good match for Levis, with the Raiders picking seventh. That’s where Jeremiah has him. “Will’s a tough evaluation,” Jeremiah said. “When I watched him over the summer, I liked a lot of things that I saw from him. But when you watch him, you still see every type of throw you can make. He can do it. He’s got a really strong arm. You know when he’s healthy he’s a good athlete. The two things that you gotta navigate around are the turnovers, the combination of fumbles and interceptions, and then taking a ton of sacks.” Anthony Richardson, 21, 6-4, 232, Florida. Over the weekend, talking with one NFL evaluator for a team that likely will not take a quarterback in this draft, I asked which quarterback he liked the most. “Richardson,” he said. “Clearly the best upside, but you’re gonna have to be patient.” Richardson is a dual-threat player, and had TD runs of 80 and 81 yards at Florida. But he won just six football games in his short career, and may be a classic case of a player who might be the 15th pick this year but could be the top pick in 2024 with more experience. “If you’re on an alien spaceship and you land and you only watch Richardson’s Utah game, you think he’s the best football player on the planet,” Jeremiah said. He was 17-of-24 with 106 yards rushing and three rushing TDs in the upset of the Utes. “But the consistency is just not there. It’s a roller coaster ride that you go on. But there’s a ton of talent in there.” The “exceptions in scouting” Combine. There are coaches who, when speaking to scouts in their organizations, specify minimum heights and weights for each position. This year, that could be challenged. “This year, there are exceptions,” Jeremiah said. “In every position in this draft, you can find an undersized player who’s one of the highest-ranked players. For instance, my top corner is [Devon] Witherspoon of Illinois. He’s listed at 180 pounds—and he might be less than that. Obviously Bryce Young at quarterback. You go to the defensive tackles. One of the more fascinating players, Calijah Kancey from Pitt, same school as Aaron Donald – he’s listed at 6-foot, 280 pounds. He might come in at 5-11. But he’s a great player. It’s one position after another where you’ve gotta try and decide like, gosh, I don’t want a team of little guys but these guys are really, really good football players. Fascinating storyline.” Good year for tight ends. “The best tight end group I’ve seen in the last 10 years,” Jeremiah said. He’ll release his second list of Top 50 players on NFL.com. Tight ends in Jeremiah’s top 25: three. Wide receivers in Jeremiah’s top 25: two. Jeremiah has Utah TE Dalton Kincaid the top-rated tight end or wideout on his board, at number 10. No wonder: In October, with defenders hanging off him, Kincaid caught 16 passes against USC for 234 yards. The top two talents. Jalen Carter has been talked about for two years by scouts—even with all the talent at Georgia last year, there was a wait-till-Carter-comes-out vibe. Had three sacks and 31 QB hits this year, which is pedestrian. “But his change of direction, his strength, how he creates havoc, he’s just a complete disruptor,” Jeremiah said. Carter’s the top-rated player for Jeremiah, and Will Anderson is two. At Alabama, Anderson had 34.5 sacks and 58.5 tackles for loss in three seasons. At 6-4 and just 235 pounds, he’ll likely grow into a bigger NFL body. “He’s not a Von Miller-type athlete in terms of his ability to really bend and kind of wrap around,” Jeremiah said. “But he’s got so much twitch and so much power in such a short area, you know, that makes him a nightmare to deal with in the passing game. One of the stories I thought was interesting was if you watch these guys at training facilities, they’ll do a lot of drills where you’ve got a band wrapped around a player and you’ve got a coach that’s attached to him. So Anderson is running and the coach is resisting and his trainer’s been doing this for a very long time and he said [Anderson] had more horsepower than anybody I’ve ever done that with. When he takes off and goes, you can feel that jolt.” Jeremiah loves Texas RB Bijan Robinson. He rated Robinson fourth overall in this draft class, even though he knows it’s highly unlikely a back will go that high these days. “The grade I gave him is the same grade I gave to Christian McCaffrey. It’s the same grade that I gave to Saquon Barkley.” The debate about how high to take backs will likely push Robinson down, but Jeremiah doesn’t apologize for ranking him fourth overall. Texans fans, rejoice … maybe. Houston has the second and 12th picks as of this morning. In Jeremiah’s latest mock, done without trades (he’s sure, as I am, that there will be some high in the draft), he gave Houston the best QB in the draft, Young, at two, and the best wideout in the draft, USC’s Jordan Addison, at 12. Imagine that. “Even though the warts are where they are on the defensive side of the ball,” Jeremiah said, “I’m trying to give my young quarterback as much help as I can possibly give him.” Thus Addison at 12.
https://theathletic.com/4251494/2023/02/27/hendon-hooker-nfl-scouting-combine/ Hendon Hooker had surgery on his knee in December to repair a torn ACL, and while the injury may keep the Tennessee quarterback out of the first round of the NFL Draft, it’s not going to diminish his enthusiasm for the process. Hooker has agreed to share his experiences with The Athletic, and this is his first entry — as told to senior writer Vic Tafur — as he prepared to arrive in Indianapolis for the NFL Scouting Combine this week. […] I went and saw my surgeon a couple of days ago and he was telling me how he had never seen someone’s quad strength and quad girth heal so fast, just two months out of surgery. I am up to 74 percent strength already. I am throwing off one knee and I get cleared to stand up and throw next week. I can’t wait to zip it. I started throwing in a chair and we were on the knee for two to three weeks. I was in San Clemente (Calif.) for my rehab, working with Jordan Palmer and Steve Calhoun. My sister, Nile, came with me. She is my manager. We are extremely close and whenever my family had athletic events out of state, that was our vacation destination for the rest of the family. The hardest part of the rehab was trying to get in the shower in the early stages. It was tough. I am an extremely neat guy and I take my hygiene seriously. Not being able to put both feet on the ground in the shower and having a plastic bag around my leg. And just being on the move all the time was also new for me. I was tired of sitting it in the house. I recently got back from Alabama and I had a great time at the Senior Bowl. I got to sit in the quarterback room and give our team an extra set of eyes on the sideline. I was doing some ear hustling, listening and calling out plays. I also talked to a lot of teams and really enjoyed myself. The question I was asked the most was why I transferred from Virginia Tech. I just gave them the straight answer — they were going with Braxton Burmeister and they said they understood if I pursued outside opportunities. Naturally, I was blown away and wanted to end my career there, but I decided to keep it moving, went to Tennessee and the rest is history. I didn’t burn any bridges or hold any grudges. I still check in on those coaches and their families all the time. The other popular question I get is what kind of player will teams be getting if they draft me — an extremely cerebral person and a leader. I am extremely personable with everyone, making sure that I create relationships throughout the whole building and with my teammates on and off the field. I am an extremely hard worker and I will treat the game with respect, because I love it. After my faith and my family, I don’t put anything before the game. And they’re getting a dynamic, athletic guy in the pocket who can make accurate throws and throw the ball deep. Teams want to see me do a lot of board work since we ran a spread at Tennessee and there may be some questions about my readiness to run a pro offense. I’m ready. I have an Expo marker and have these two sliding-door mirrors at the AirBnB that I have been staying at doing my combine prep and pro day prep. I draw plays on the mirror every time I pass by it. I draw all day. I feel like I am Picasso. I have been dreaming about playing in the NFL from the jump … I was told my first word as a baby was “ball.” I used to watch a lot of my dad’s tape (Alan Hooker broke 18 program passing records as North Carolina A&T’s quarterback in the mid-1980s). And I had a VCR tape of the great quarterbacks of that time, Joe Montana, Troy Aikman, Kordell Stewart … and I used to watch that every day. My favorite was Randall Cunningham. He made spectacular plays, made people miss, threw the ball deep and he even punted. He and my dad had a similar body type, and I really loved watching them play. This is the start of a new chapter for me, and I want to build a legacy. I would like to start my career and end my career with the same team. I want to rally a team of men to great things and I am looking to be more than just the face of a franchise. I want to be the face of a dynasty.
https://theathletic.com/4241450/2023/02/27/nfl-scouting-combine-offense-prospects/ This year’s schedule for measurements and on-field workouts (each group’s bench press will take place the following day): Thursday, March 2: Defensive line and linebackers (3 p.m. ET) Friday, March 3: Defensive backs and special teams (3 p.m. ET) Saturday, March 4: Quarterbacks, wide receivers and tight ends (1 p.m. ET) Sunday, March 5: Offensive line and running backs (1 p.m. ET) The tape is — and will always be — the most important part of a player’s evaluation, but the combine helps fill in the gaps. On the offensive side of the ball, here is a position-by-position summary of prospects who should stand out as they audition for NFL teams. Quarterback: Anthony Richardson, Florida Almost every evaluator will tell you the same thing: Seeing a quarterback move and throw in person is an important part of the evaluation, and much different than seeing it on a screen. Given the way the ball explodes off of his hand, Richardson has a chance to shine. Obviously, his pacing and placement will be important as well, but Richardson’s effortless velocity to drive the ball likely will stick with the NFL personnel inside Lucas Oil Stadium. I doubt Richardson will run or participate in any agility drills. But we can hope, right? If the over/under is 4.50 seconds on his 40-yard dash, I’ll be taking the under — which is ridiculous for a 6-foot-4, 230-pound quarterback. However, the most important part of Richardson’s combine will come when teams put him on the whiteboard to dive into his decision-making process. In regards to coverages and protections, what was he asked to do at Florida? Most of the answers can be found on tape — he did some promising things with his eyes and reads — but working through Richardson’s process with him will be an important step for NFL teams considering him in the top 10. What else to watch at QB • Much will be made of Bryce Young’s “official” measurements (my guess is he will be 5-10 1/2, 197), but we already know the Alabama quarterback is undersized, and the exact numbers won’t change much. • You have to feel for the quarterback that’s going to follow Richardson in passing drills. And, well, that just happens to be Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud, who doesn’t have a power arm. Obviously, there will be a drop-off in zip between Richardson and Stroud’s passes, but just how wide is the gap? If Richardson is erratic with his throws, following the Florida QB could turn out to be a positive for Stroud, because Stroud’s accuracy isn’t much of a question mark. • I don’t think most understand how much Kentucky’s Will Levis was affected by a left foot injury over the second half of the 2022 season. (He missed only one game and would get shots to manage the pain upon his return.) Receiving a clean bill of health from team doctors will be an important step. • It is a similar discussion for Tennessee’s Hendon Hooker, who suffered a torn ACL in late November. His rehab and recovery are ongoing, but teams will have a chance to make sure there are no long-term concerns with the knee. Running Back: Devon Achane, RB, Texas A&M A two-sport star in both high school and college, Achane led the Aggies in rushing last season (1,102 yards) and finished with an SEC-best 161.0 all-purpose yards per game. The No. 44 overall player on my pre-combine board (see below), Achane’s 6.4 career yards per carry is one of the best marks in school history. Achane has posted impressive numbers as a track star, too. In high school, he won a state championship in the 200-meter dash with a time of 20.46 seconds (fastest in the country in 2019). At Texas A&M, he ran a blazing 20.20 in the outdoor 200 meters in April 2022 and was named an All-American in multiple events. To put those 200-meter times in perspective, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics qualifying number in that event was 20.24. The main concern with Achane is his size; he’s listed at 185 pounds. How much will he weigh at the combine? Does he have the frame to comfortably carry 195-200 pounds while maintaining his special speed? We have seen sub-200-pound running backs drafted early in the past (Chris Johnson, C.J. Spiller, Jahvid Best), but very few backs crack the top 50 weighing under 190 pounds. Regardless of his size, Achane has the juice in his legs to put on a show. He is my pick for the fastest 40-yard dash at this year’s combine. What else to watch at RB • Like Achane, Alabama’s Jahmyr Gibbs has underwhelming size for the position, but his testing should be elite. The suddenness in his feet and his natural explosion will equate to eye-popping times on the stopwatch. • The 60-meter dash is a great indicator for 40-yard-dash performance, and Syracuse’s Sean Tucker clocked an elite number (6.88 seconds) in the former event in high school. When he has a clear track on the field, Tucker’s speed is impressive. • Tulane’s Tyjae Spears is one of the better running backs in this class, but his knee health will be a crucial box to check if he’s to be drafted as high as his talent suggests. • While his patience, vision and balance are well above average, UCLA’s Zach Charbonnet isn’t an elite athlete. The tape says he is a good enough athlete, but it will be interesting to see if his testing numbers prove that. • UAB’s DeWayne McBride probably won’t wow in the speed department, but his contact balance and power are impressive. Can he run a sub-4.55 in the 40? • East Carolina’s Keaton Mitchell is small (185-ish pounds), but his speed and agility times should turn heads. He ran a sub-11-second 100-meter dash in high school and was timed at 4.28 in the short shuttle last offseason, according to Bruce Feldman’s Freaks List. • Northwestern’s Evan Hull has the wheels to be one of the fastest backs at this year’s combine. There are straight-line elements to his run style, though, and I’m curious if his agility times match up. Wide Receiver: Tyler Scott, Cincinnati […] What else to watch at WR • A lot of eyes will be on Ohio State’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who missed almost all of the 2022 season with a hamstring injury. First and foremost, the medical feedback will be crucial. Secondly, will he be healthy enough to run in Indianapolis? If so, NFL teams will be watching his 40-yard dash closely. On film, Smith-Njigba’s speed is more average than above average, and evaluators will be hoping to see him stay under 4.55 seconds. This might be a situation similar to that of Drake London, who didn’t do any timed drills before last year’s draft but was still the first receiver taken. • TCU’s Quentin Johnston is one of the most physically impressive athletes in the class and the testing numbers should reflect that. Given his speed and leaping skills on tape (along with his track background), he should eclipse 40 inches in the vertical, 11 feet in the broad jump and run sub-4.45 in the 40. • Another potential first-rounder, Tennessee’s Jalin Hyatt is one of the top receivers in the class because of his speed. He clocked a 10.46-second 100 meters and a 21.14-second 200 meters in high school. The 40-yard dash should be a chance for him to flex. • The “other” Tennessee pass-catcher, Cedric Tillman, also will put on a show in Indianapolis. Don’t be surprised when he runs 4.4 or below in the 40 and jumps 40-plus inches in the vertical. • LSU’s Kayshon Boutte is one of the wild cards of the 2023 NFL Draft. I expect him to test very well (6.90 indoor 60 meters in high school), and he should impress athletically. But more important will be his medicals — he’s undergone multiple surgeries on his right ankle — and interviews. The combine will be Boutte’s chance to change his narrative during face-to-face conversations with NFL general managers. • A former five-star recruit at Penn State, Florida’s Justin Shorter didn’t have the prolific college career many expected, but you can see his talent at 6-4, 225. He might run in the 4.3s, which will make him a lock to be drafted. • A dual-sport standout in the Ivy League, Princeton’s Andrei Iosivas set an NCAA meet record in the 60 meters (6.71) while competing in the heptathlon at the 2022 NCAA Indoor Championships. Many around the league are eager to see how his elite track numbers translate. • There are dozens of other receivers with track backgrounds who should shine during their on-field testing, including Cincinnati’s Tre Tucker, Nebraska’s Trey Palmer and TCU’s Derius Davis. • Several draftable receivers are coming off injury or suffered a major injury in the past that will need checked out, most notably Penn State’s Parker Washington, Stanford’s Michael Wilson and Purdue’s Charlie Jones.
Tight End: Luke Musgrave, Oregon State There are several impressive athletes at the tight end position this year, but Musgrave is on a level by himself. Along with earning All-League in football and lacrosse in high school, Musgrave was a champion alpine skier and posted impressive numbers in track, especially for his size. At 230 pounds, he ranked top five in the triple jump (44 feet, 4.25 inches) at the 2019 Oregon state championships and posted personal bests in the 100 meters (11.25), 200 meters (23.43) and long jump (22 feet, 1 inch). That athleticism clearly translates to the football field. Musgrave has the one-step acceleration to gain a step vertically, along with a loose lower body to separate out of his breaks. During Senior Bowl practices, he clocked 20.05 miles per hour, the first time a tight end has reached the 20-MPH mark in the five years Zebra Technologies has been tracking player speed in Mobile. The other important factor with Musgrave’s combine will be for teams to check on his knee, which was the reason he missed almost all of the 2022 season. He looked healthy, without any restrictions, during Senior Bowl week. What else to watch at TE • Utah’s Dalton Kincaid is quick to enter his routes and has elusive traits after the catch. His testing numbers should be impressive. He also is one of the most sure-handed pass-catchers in the draft, so I’m eager to see him in the gauntlet drill. • Notre Dame’s Michael Mayer is the top inline tight end in this draft class. He isn’t the same type of athlete as Musgrave or Kincaid, but he isn’t a slug either, and it will be important for his testing numbers to show that. Mayer should run a 40-yard dash in the 4.6s. • We didn’t see much of Michigan’s Luke Schoonmaker over the final month of the season due to an AC joint injury, which also sidelined him for the Shrine Bowl. Hopefully, the potential top-100 pick is good to go in Indianapolis. • Unfortunately, we won’t have the opportunity to see Old Dominion’s Zack Kuntz work out, as he is still working back from an ACL tear he suffered midway through his senior year. He is one of the freakiest athletes in this draft class and would have posted absurd numbers, at 6-8 and 250 pounds. His medicals will be crucial. • North Dakota State’s Noah Gindorff has draftable talent, but the medicals are a potential hurdle for him. He suffered a broken fibula and damaged ankle ligaments in the 2021 FCS playoffs, which kept him from entering the 2022 NFL Draft. He returned this past season, but the injury didn’t heal correctly, and he also missed most of the 2022 season. • Although his tape doesn’t always live up to his athleticism, Cincinnati’s Josh Whyle should light up stopwatches and be one of the best testers at tight end this year. Offensive Line: Blake Freeland, BYU […] What else to watch at OL • Northwestern’s Peter Skoronski earned All-State honors in both football and track and field in high school — his 57-foot, 3-inch shot put is one of the best numbers of any player in the draft. He should be a top-10 draft pick. • Tennessee’s Darnell Wright flipped his narrative with much-improved play during his senior season, elevating his stock from being a priority free agent to a potential top-50 pick. He always had the talent, as evidenced by his state title in the shot put (54 feet, 1.5 inches) as a senior in high school. • Based on technical refinement, Georgia’s Broderick Jones wouldn’t be a first-round pick. But his gifted movement skills at his size (6-4, 315) are why some teams think he is the draft’s best tackle. I’m eager to see him in person, because the tape says his testing data can be remarkable. • USC’s Andrew Vorhees has some things working against him (age, injuries), but you can see his multi-sport background on tape. He was a standout wrestler in high school and posted a best of 54 feet, 3.5 inches in the shot put. According to Feldman’s Freaks List, Vorhees also put up 40 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press. • The top-ranked center on my board, Wisconsin’s Joe Tippmann (6-6, 315) is taller than most players at his position, but he also is a top-tier athlete at 320 pounds. His strength numbers should be impressive, but pay attention to his 10-yard split and short-shuttle times — they should be among the best in the offensive line class. • A small school “sleeper” to keep an eye on: Minnesota-Duluth’s Brent Laing, who is a smooth mover on tape and should stand out with his testing.
