Now that the collective mocking of the 2022 NFL Draft’s quarterback class has finished, let’s turn our attention to the 2023 crop of signal callers.
A few of these players have only a season of starting experience, and while their draft stocks might be pointing up going into the 2022 season, things will change.
His Rose Bowl performance against Utah was an exciting exclamation point on the season, featuring with the game-winning throw to cap off his year of growth.
Stroud can shorten his motion to throw underneath, making him a viable thrower on RPO plays.
Stroud is a good player in his own right, but Ohio State’s surrounding talent certainly made his job easier.
Stroud has the bouncing footwork similar to Justin Fields when he was playing in Ohio State’s offense.
Quickening his footwork will open up his room for error, especially if his receivers aren’t as dominant as the ones he played with last season.
Stroud is able to create plays out of structure and is a good enough athlete to break the pocket, but he prefers to operate from the pocket rather than win with his legs.
He already flashes the ability to throw teammates open and the willingness to push the ball downfield, and he has a growing understanding of the concepts he’s running.
He is a twitchy athlete with a quick motion, and the ball has zip off of his hand.
His tape features moments of finding throws in the progression when the pocket is clean, but he needs to continue to quicken his clock a count or two.
However, Young is currently listed at 194 pounds — two pounds heavier than Kyler Murray’s listed weight in college — and it remains to be seen how much he can add to his frame.
But just because Young is a smaller quarterback, don’t mistake him for a pure scrambler who goes one-and-done with his reads.
Still, Young’s ability to extend plays has drawn comparisons to Murray and Russell Wilson, two smaller quarterbacks who have seen injuries interrupt hot starts to their seasons.
Levis, a transfer from Penn State, showed off improved mechanics and the ability to operate in a pro-style offense in his first year starting at Kentucky.
His decision making and ability to progress through reads improved throughout the 2021 season as he started to better understand the timing on these plays.
Seeing the defenders squeeze the inside vertical route, Levis quickly moves on to the dig route and drives the throw.
Even as a tremendously improved passer, he is not afraid to use his legs to pick up yards on designed runs or when things break down, though he lacks ideal vision as a runner.
That rushing ability raises Levis’ floor as a player, even if his future team won’t want him attempting to run through a half-dozen NFL defenders.
Levis became more comfortable in the flow of the offense as the 2021 season progressed, but he still made boneheaded plays too often, finishing last season with 12 interceptions.
But he is older than Stroud and Young — he would be a 24-year-old rookie in 2023 — and he will be playing with a new offensive coordinator in Rich Scangarello during his last season in Lexington.
Van Dyke took over as the Hurricanes’ starting QB after an injury to D’Eriq King three games in the season and ended up as the ACC Rookie of the Year.
Van Dyke has the arm strength to attack downfield and drive the ball on intermediate throws.
Van Dyke played in an offense at Miami that gave him few easy throws.
With a new coaching staff at Miami, Van Dyke will hopefully play in an offense in 2022 that will allow him to progress and find throws, rather than operating on a one-and-done schedule.
As of right now, Van Dyke is an intriguing blend of size and solid athleticism, with the arm strength and accuracy to make the big throws necessary at the next level.
Last season was McKee’s first starting in college, after previously spending two years on a Mormon mission before enrolling at Stanford.
McKee showed the ability to adjust his arm angle on underneath throws, as well as intriguing accuracy and arm strength.
He fell off statistically as the 2021 season wore on, with four touchdowns and seven interceptions in the final five games.
Napier’s staff had well-coached units at Louisiana Lafayette, and he got the most out of QB Levi Lewis when he was there.
Rattler has legit first-round arm talent that is impossible to teach, but he will have to vastly improve his decision making on and off the field to take advantage of that ability.
He is another QB who lacks ideal size and will be an older rookie if he declares for the 2023 draft.
Haener also lacks size and ideal arm strength but shows off true polish when processing in the pocket.
The offense Jefferson has played in at Arkansas hasn’t featured a ton of translatable concepts for the next level, but he has the ability to push the ball downfield and is a smooth athlete with legit rushing ability.
