By: Lucas Kochevar

#5 Hendon Hooker, Tennessee, 6’4’’ 218lbs.

• 3,135 Yds, 27TD, 2Ints
• Games Watched: Alabama, UGA, South Carolina

Film Thoughts: Good footwork and pocket presence. Decent mobility (Got to see it post-ACL surgery). Sold short throws and good accuracy over the middle.  Good decision-making in terms of going to run. Good arm strength, but can be inconsistent with his deep throws. Can throw with velocity to the sidelines, but the placement isn’t perfect. Solid frame. Play action needs work and need to play under center. Deep throws tend to float to the outside. Feels like he only throws it one style and speed. As a runner, he’s not supremely agile.

Hendon Hooker was on pace to be the Heisman winner of 2022, but an ACL injury cut his season short and will be a concern moving forward. Hooker exploded onto the scene with big, flashy offensive numbers in a very QB friendly offense under Josh Heupel. Before his injury, Hooker was good with his mobility North and South. Hooker is solid in his short and medium level throws; however, the placement can be inconsistent. His deep ball is more of a wild card as he has good arm strength but is inconsistent in his placement. He can throw on the run, but with the injury it may be hindered. Another concern regarding Hooker is his age at 25 years old. I think Hooker can play a good role on a team with an aging veteran. As a backup, he can recover from his injury and develop his game as a passer more. 

Sources: Image via Caitie McMekin, USA TODAY NETWORK.

By: Lucas Kochevar

#15 Anthony Richardson, Florida, 6’4’’ 232 lbs.

• 2,549 Yds, 17TDs, 9Ints
• Games Watched: Tennessee, UGA, Florida St.

Film Thoughts: Runs with force, not scared of big hits. Doesn’t have a lot of ball carrier moves. Unreal arm talent. Crazy strong-arm power. Decision-making is spotty at times. Accuracy is inconsistent for 15 yards and more. Running vision isn’t entirely there. Pocket mobility is great, can throw the ball on a rope without a great base. Play action is solid. With a clean pocket, can make any throw. Short throws are solid accuracy, medium can be some trouble, the deep throws are great when he has time, but can be trouble with any amount of pressure. Can attack man, but zone is tricky. Takes a fair number of risks. Great throw on the run. A tough SOB. Velocity on throws is always fast.
 
Anthony Richardson is another big, strong quarterback with an enormous amount of arm talent. The accuracy numbers won’t look favorable for him, but he can make every throw on the field when given a clean pocket. His athleticism is natural as he isn’t scared of contact and has great ability at escaping pressure. His ball carrier vision isn’t quite there yet. Richardson has solid short accuracy, but he could throw it away sometimes on these throws. The medium accuracy and throws to the sideline are iffy. This is also his biggest flaw where he trusts his arm talent too much and will gamble on tight windows. The deep throws are on the money for only his receiver to catch unless he gets hit. Also, his throws on the run are impressive for someone that hasn’t hit their full potential. I think he’s a great project quarterback with a ton of potential. I think a rough Florida team made him look worse than he actually is and if put in the right spot, I think he can have a ton of success in the league. 

Sources: Image via James Gilbert, Getty Images

By: Lucas Kochevar

#7 Will Levis, Kentucky, 6’3’’ 232 lbs.

• 2,406 Yds, 19TDs, 10Ints
• Games watched: Tennessee, UGA, 2021 UGA, Florida

Film Thoughts: Quick trigger release, Uses his legs well, Willing to take contact, Decision making can be inconsistent. Deep ball velocity a tad inconsistent, really strong play action game. Throws very dangerous passes. Reading coverages are a work in progress. Needs to throw with more anticipation. Short accuracy is good. Medium throws are troublesome in terms of putting his receiver in trouble and the anticipation isn’t quite there. Pocket presence is not great, but knows when to escape the pocket, can throw on the run but its not great. Has pretty good speed, curious to see the 40 at the combine. Internal clock has to speed up for the NFL. Decent throws outside the numbers. Can flip hips pretty fast.

​Will Levis is a big, strong player with an arm that can get him into trouble at the next level. The 2022 version of him struggled mightily with a new offensive coordinator and below average O-line. The 2021 version of him is the player that you’re drafting for as he looked much more comfortable throwing in play-action heavy scheme. The short throws are typically on time and the medium throws tend to be hospital balls. The deep ball is very 50/50 and the inconsistency in whether he floats it or not is there. The lack in decisiveness killed him as his turnovers came from a lot of hesitation. His footwork can be inconsistent but he has a quick trigger. He tends to get away with a lot of mistakes that wouldn’t work in the NFL. I can understand the appeal with his tools, but in order to have long term success, he needs to work on the tools upstairs. 

Sources: Image via Andy Lyons,  Getty Images.

By: Lucas Kochevar

#7 C.J. Stroud, Ohio State University, 6’3’’, 218lbs.

• 3,688 Yds, 41 TDs, 6Ints
• Games Watched: Iowa, Michigan, Georgia

Film Thoughts: A true pocket passer, doesn’t look to run when given the chance. Throws to the outside have great zip and are placed well. Makes the throw to the corner of the endzone look very easy (his WRs are very good too). Has bad habit of trying to squeeze in throws across the middle. Could use word in fluid play-action movements. Throws to the sideline fantastically. Inconsistent footwork. Learn to throw the ball away. Quick throwing motion. Ball placement is pinpoint on a ton of throws. His throw on the run is inconsistent. Loses control when under pressure. Doesn’t escape pressure well when touched. Processes well. The short accuracy is solid, while the medium accuracy is inconsistent between the numbers. The deep accuracy is really strong and the arm strength is defiantly there. The throws on the run are where he struggles. His throws with anticipation are really strong. Arm strength on the run isn’t great, but the velocity is still there.
       C.J. Stroud is a quarterback that can make any throw in the pocket. Short throws, medium throws, and long throws are made with ease in a clean pocket. When the play breaks down is when he runs into problems. In times of pass rush, his footwork gets messy and he’ll force a throw into coverage. The throws to the perimeter are all on target for only his receiver to catch. Deep throws with single coverage are where his best highlights are, really any man coverage is where he thrives. He has decent mobility, but doesn’t uses it when he needs to, which will often lead to those troublesome throws he makes into traffic. When it comes to throwing on the run, he struggles to place it accurately consistently. His arm talent shows some great zip and distance. In the right system, I think he can be a real threat in the league, however, I could see him struggling mightily under a troublesome organization.

​Sources: Image via Jay LaPrete, AP Photo

By: Lucas Kochevar

#9 QB Bryce Young, Alabama. 6’0’’, 194 lbs.

• 3,328 Yds, 32 TDs, 5Ints
• Games watched: Tennessee, LSU, and Kansas State

Film thoughts: Lacks the ideal size, on the smaller size of 6 foot. Pocket presence is incredible, can hold onto the ball too long sometimes. Steps up in the pocket at good times. Two hands on the ball at all times. Mobile, but not a dynamic runner.  Throws with good velocity. Isn’t scared to put his body on the line (Please slide more), isn’t scared to try and make every throw. Incompletions tend to be low thrown passes; throwing base isn’t strong in these typically. Throws over the middle with ease, outside the numbers is a bit spottier. Needs work in play action (Not that he’s bad, I just don’t see it a lot in this offense).  Strong in the short throws and medium throws. The deep throws are not consistent, mainly due to calibration in throw power. When he hones it in, they’re beautiful. Can throw on the run, but the anticipation suffers. Could work on anticipation throws in the intermediate part of the field also.
      
​       Bryce Young is a no-brainer top five pick in this year’s draft. I won’t say he’s the perfect prospect, but he does a lot of really good things for a college quarterback. His short throws and medium throws are typically on target. The deep ball doesn’t always hit the target, but he does have a handful of perfectly placed deep throws. His arm strength doesn’t jump off the screen, but he can flash it a couple throws per game. When it comes to outside the pocket, he can hit his target well. He’s not a runner that wows you, but he has the mobility to be a threat. Young has all the makings of an NFL quarterback with a high ceiling, but I would love to see him get bigger and stronger in order to stick in the league as a franchise guy. 

Photo via Getty Images