Way too Early Look at '19 QBs

I've heard the south Carolina kid is the one to watch out for

 

I think I heard the QB class next year is nothing to get excited about. Besides, if anyone is decent they won’t be there when we pick at the bottom of the round. ;-)

 

Tanny goes down I will study the qb group in earnest. Otherwise ehh

I think the kids name is Jake Bentley at South Carolina. Ryan Finley’s game fits our o.

The dline class in 2019 looks loaded. If I’m miami I’m right now focused on de. We could be dropping 4 des next offseason.

 

I personally think that Osweiller was the steal of the offseason- very smart kid that can grasp Gase's offense and work efficiently. I think he was in the wrong system in Texas and he'll come around nicely if the unthinkable happens to Tannehill.

 

Christ Almighty, the 2018 season hasn’t even started yet and there’s already a thread looking at potential quarterbacks for the 2019 draft?

It’s no wonder I’ve been avoiding the boards lately

 

On another forum yesterday I saw someone with an entire first round mock draft. Now that's what I call jumping the gun, in case anyone cares we were drafting from #4.

 

That wasn’t Todd mcshays way too early mock draft was it? Was interested in hearing who he gave us. I’m sure it was a qb but I’d say the lead horse going into camp would be de.

 

Wouldn't mind Ed Oliver tbh, though he's a tackle. Will be a good draft for DL though since all those Clemson guys went back to school. They could have their whole starting 4 go in round 1.

 

You sir are being wayyyy to sensitive.

The Miami Dolphins are already studying the 2019 QB class, why the hell shouldn’t Dolphins fans talk about it during the slowest time of football season?

 

Its a very weak class and Finley is probably the best out of that group you have listed. I cant buy into the Drew Lock hype, maybe he goes another level the upcoming season. Regardless, as of right now there are no sure fire first round quarterbacks.

 

Meh, I’ve heard that before though.

Never know when a Carson Wentz will come out of nowhere.

 

Just remember this time last year most ‘experts’ didn’t think Baker Mayfield was a first round QB.

 

Really? Cause i thought he was since his Texas tech days. The guy displayed a gifted arm.

He had Trevor Knight benched immediately after Trevor had a successful bowl season in which trevor dismantled Saban’s tide in the sugar bowl. Baker was the next big thing in his conference, everyone knew why he made the transfer and texas tech fans while yes they ended up with Mahomes they were not happy to lose Baker.

 

I was high on him too, however you won't find many websites that had him on the 1st round before last season. The size was a huge knock if I remember right.

 

Drew Anderson of Buffalo is the senior I'd have an eye on, even if he's the backup to Tyree Jackson (for now). That's the one nobody knows about who should probably be considered the best senior in the class. Northern California QB coming out, walk-on at San Diego State who decided to go the JUCO route for some playing time.

He played at Diablo Valley and had more TDs and yards than any other JUCO QB in the state. He ended up at Buffalo with a scholarship but no commitment as far as starting, especially since they'd recruited this gigantic 6'6" and 245 lbs Cam Newton clone with a huge arm and tons of athleticism named Tyree Jackson (who is another guy to watch for 2019). Jackson really does remind me of the YOUNG Cam Newton I used to watch when I'd attend Gators practices during my visits to Gainesville. His development will be fun to watch in its own right.

But the thing that interests me here is Drew Anderson damn near got enough captain votes to be a captain on the team, even though he was the unquestioned BACKUP, and had really never played for Buffalo since transferring in out of JUCO. That's how much respect he commanded from certain sections of the locker room. I think that's really interesting.

When he got his chance to come in the second half against FAU, who would go on to rattle off 10 straight wins under Lane Kiffin, you could tell the offensive coordinator was being very careful and calling run after run after run. But they start calling some passes at need and he's executing every single one. You could tell they knew he was a good pure passer, because they asked him to do some stuff you would generally only ask a guy to do if you know he can pop the mitt with his arm strength. But he starts to surprise them with his mobility, and he won the game with less than 3 minutes to go against this team that would go on to rattle off 10 straight. Beautiful fade pass in the end zone to Jadeveon Clowney's cousin, perfectly placed, perfect touch, timing, everything.

He then goes against Kent State, a terrible team, and he has another really good day. Only this time he breaks off a 64 yard run out of nowhere on a zone-read keeper. The coaches had no idea he had that in him, but he does. He's 6'4" & 230+ lbs in his own right, and moves REALLY well.

Then he has THE game against Western Michigan. One of the best performances I've seen. Just constantly executing, even as his receivers drop tons and tons of on target passes during regulation. He threw SEVEN touchdowns in the game, also scrambled (really nice scramble too) for an EIGHTH touchdown, and even caught a NINTH score on a throwback to the quarterback for a two-point conversion. And he had to have thrown what should have been five more touchdowns or two-point conversions on the day too, but his receivers dropped the football or fumbled it or got caught from behind when they had no business being caught, etc.

He entered the 4th quarter down 24-14 because drops and penalties were killing the offense after a few quick scores to start the game, and he led them on the comeback to go into overtime. They went into SEVEN overtimes before yet another excellent pass went wasted and they had to settle for a field goal, and Western Michigan answered with the touchdown. Anderson did not throw a single interception in the game, nor did he even get sacked a single time in the game. He was pressured, but he danced out of everything.

Very next week he takes on a pretty good Northern Illinois defense and in the first half, yet again, looks like he's on his way to another great performance. But he took a vicious shot to the throwing shoulder while delivering the ball. No serious damage but it was enough that when Tyree Jackson came back healthy he got the reins back.

Interesting thing is, and this is to Drew Anderson's credit, Tyree Jackson completely changed his style when he came back after watching the offense completely blossom with Anderson executing like a pure pocket passer. Before he got hurt, Tyree had been running the ball like 9 times a game. After he got hurt I think he ran the football maybe twice in four games. He and the coaches sort of re-made himself in Anderson's image, and it worked. They won 3 of 4 games, were scoring 30+ a game, etc.

Anderson finished his stint in 2017 going 66 of 106 for 1,039 yards, 10 TDs, 1 INT. He ran 9 times for 102 yards and 1 TD. He was only sacked 2 times for -10 yards. An incredible run, with most of those stats against three pretty good pass defenses (FAU, Western Michigan, Northern Illinois).

Those two are going to be fun to watch next year. And that cousin of Jadeveon Clowney's, his name is Anthony Johnson, he has some talent too. He was another JUCO transfer that sort of came out of nowhere.

I also like Ryan Finley and Nick Fitzgerald. Everyone knows them.

Kyle Kempt of Iowa State is a guy that people need to keep an eye on because his competitiveness was just off the charts when he got his chance in 2017. The teams he beat or played with, I mean that's not been a great team at Iowa State. This is a lot like Drew Anderson. Came unheralded, shouldn't have been this good but absolutely was. Difference is Kyle doesn't have Drew's legs, and not quite his talent.

I like Drew Lock well enough but I'm still a bit more iffy on him than some. His feet don't want to be quick or active. I think he just does what he's told that way. Decision making gets spotty. He's just not my type. Good combination of arm talent and athleticism, though.

I was a really big fan of Clayton Thorson but it's hard to reconcile his overall talent level with what he did this year at Northwestern, even if he did lose a big time receiving target. Watching him in 2017 was a bit like watching Josh Allen in 2017 in that you're looking at a team that was sooo bad, so over-matched...and he's expected to do something with all that. But strictly speaking, trying to figure out WHO the man is as a quarterback, what he wants to be, he's still very attractive to me. Could I end up forgiving some bad games in 2017 with a good 2018? Absolutely.

Jake Bentley has been my favorite underclassman but you never know who is going to come out from among those guys. He is a total manager of the chaos around him, and that's very attractive because we all know things get chaotic in the NFL. Bodies flying everywhere, pressure, tight coverage, disguised coverages, etc. Bentley handles a lot at South Carolina. He's got a picture perfect above waist process and follow through. Only needs to just keep working on his feet which is true of just about any quarterback. Really good arm, good accuracy when his feet don't get too wide. Watch his feet and you're going to see where his mind is going on every play, and it's really fun. I would liken him to Josh Rosen except he doesn't have any of the personality quirks that turned people off (for better or worse) about Rosen, and he also has athletic ability Rosen never had.

Like I said before...you're going to want to see where Tyree Jackson of Buffalo's development goes. If it goes the right way, he WILL be a headliner talent for the draft. Whether you like him or not, you will be hearing about him.

There are people that like Shea Patterson and Will Grier, Shea being an underclass and Grier a senior, both of them are too wild for me. But things could definitely click.

Jarrett Stidham was attractive to me before, but like with Clayton Thorson, there were things he did in 2017 that won't come out of my head. I'm wary. A really solid A+ year could make me forget, obviously. But he's so bad under pressure.

Obviously Justin Herbert is very attractive with his size and arm, his being the Oregon quarterback. But there are some things that turn me off. As things stand right now, I'm not sure he's more than a Chase Litton. He forces the football, especially down the field, in situations and against looks where it doesn't make sense. But what I really dislike is the way he protects himself, or rather the way he doesn't protect himself. There's a physical spatial awareness that's not there. He takes shots because of it, and I see that it's already taken its toll on his physical health. I'm wary, but he's young.

A guy that has a super-attractive combination of total athleticism and arm strength is Khalil Tate of Arizona. Yikes! Keep an eye on that one. This reminds me of what I was watching Robert Griffin at Baylor circa 2008, before he missed a year with a knee injury and would recover and go on to become a #2 overall pick (I rated him a 2nd rounder, but still!).

And I just know I'm going to fall in love with McKenzie Milton. Already kind of have. He's destined to be the next in my string of gunslingers who I love way more than the NFL does and who end up playing CFL football. Seems like I've got one every year.

 

Drew Anderson has decided to transfer out of University of Buffalo...to MURRAY STATE.

He's a graduate transfer, so he will play immediately.

Couldn't get a better offer than MURRAY STATE? Kid showed he could be starting a ton of different FBS teams.

 

You may be right. Sometimes it's all about fit. He has a legitimate shot at the backup spot if he can beat out Fales. Speaking of Fales, Gase is high on him right now after he got to play our last game against New England. Have you or anyone else had a chance to rewatch that game? I am curious to see how Fales did and if anyone else thinks there might be something there.

 

I think it’s gonna end up osweiler as the backup with fales on the p squad

Assuming fales can in fact qualify for the p squad. Osweilers making dirt money and I think gase feels he can limit the qb exposure more as a play caller with osweiler. The thing about osweiler is he will force the ball to his primary regardless of leverage or coverage played at times. He’s real lucky he has a howlitzer for an arm other wise he’d be throwing pick 6s out the nose.

So to offset gase needs to call should he play as many predetermined and easy primary read throws as possible. That’s easier said than done situationally.

I was impressed with fales arm in that final game start but like most first game starters he lacked eye discipline in his drop and missed some opportunities for big plays as a result. A red zone td opportunity where he was trying to fit a throw between 2 zone defenders comes to mind where had he held the safety I think it was in his drop with his head in the center of the field he’d have never got there to break it up. I remember saying to myself if that’s tannehill that’s 6. Cause tanny does an excellent job of head and eye discipline in his drop. And he’s done it since he showed up in the building.

 

I mean if we are talking the pure pick of the litter give me the bosa kid.

Clelin Ferrell is one I’ve got my eye on.

 

Nick Bosa is just a force on the field, seen him in person a few times. He doesn’t quite yet have the speed of Joey, but he has a JJ Watt body with great balance and a high motor.

Someone may get a future HOF

 

Gonna have to finish top 5 to sniff that.

 

For sure.

Barring an injury early in the year he will be picked much earlier than our mid to late teen pick (most likely)

 

Speaking of quarterbacks, go watch the Foster Farms Bowl between Arizona and Purdue.

You will see two professional talents looking the best they've ever looked in their young college careers, battling it out in an all-timer.

Khalil Tate is a clone of Donovan McNabb, only he doesn't play in the same system McNabb did at Syracuse and thus he doesn't have the advantages Donovan did translating to the NFL. He has great athleticism, speed, explosiveness. He's a natural ball carrier. But he uses the athletic gifts to slow down everything around him, keep a calm head, use his eyes, his mind, and his arm to hurt the defense. Bottom line, kid has an arm and can throw the football. Very good throw process on a guy with legs. We're going to be talking about him over the next year.

Elijah Sindelar is cut from different cloth. He's a BIG dude at 6'4" and 230 lbs, attractive pocket passing attributes. What is so attractive about him is the way he's battled adversity.

He couldn't win the battle with David Blough clean, and so Jeff Brohm (far be it for me to criticize Brohm, he's a great college coach) made a curious decision to rotate the two during games. They would rotate the 1st and 2nd quarters and then ride the hot hand in the 3rd and 4th. I don't think Sindelar did very well in this setting, and he had two bad games against two pretty good defenses in Wisconsin and Rutgers. That led to his benching outright, as Blough played exclusively against Nebraska and Illinois.

But then Blough took a sever right leg injury and missed the rest of the year. What did Sindelar do coming off the bench, as the exclusive starter? He was 109 for 187 for 1,108 yards, 12 TDs, 2 INTs, 12 sacks for -87 yards, and he somehow added 7 runs for 14 yards.

I say, "somehow" added the runs because...HE TORE HIS ACL. Right away in the first of his four starts to end the year, he tore the ACL in his plant leg against Northwestern. He finished that game with nearly 400 yards passing and then won the next three games straight. It's funny to think about but I believe the torn ACL may have made him a better quarterback. His feet were better. There was more snap in his hips. He certainly wasn't about to lock his front leg, and he always had to make sure he stayed balanced. By the time he got to the bowl game against Arizona, I don't know that he's ever looked so good throwing the football.

He had ACL surgery the day after the bowl game.

That game was fantastic. Purdue gets a lead, Arizona comes back, takes the lead with 2 or 3 minutes left in the game, but then Sindelar lead a TD drive of his own and gets the go-ahead TD with 1:44 left. Khalil Tate trying to make something happen, scrambles, his receiver on the scramble drill is stopped short and signals he's going to go deeper, so Tate throws him deeper but then the receiver curiously stops again to try and get open and the ball is picked off sealing the win for the Boilermakers.

Both quarterbacks will be guys to watch next year.

 

I kinda like this Tannehill kid. He's more NFL ready.