The remaining available QBs in this draft

The top 6 guys are gone. We took Nabers at #6. It doesn't matter if you are happy or upset at the pick. What's done is done. Let's move on. What would you do if you were GM?

1) Follow Sy's advice after passing on QB in the 1st round and punt the position altogether

2) Try to get one of the next tier of QBs on Day 2 or 3

If you chose #2, who would be your top target(s) to bring in for competition in the QB room, regardless of round? For me, I like both Joe Milton and Jordan Travis. Are they elite prospects? No. Could they potentially be better than the trio of Jones/Lock/DeVito? Perhaps.

To save time from recapping Sy's overview of the remaining QBs and their grades, here you go:

Quote:

7. Joe Milton – Tennessee – 6’5 / 235 Grade: 75 Sixth-year senior. Two-year starter. Spent three seasons at Michigan before transferring to Tennessee in 2021 where he lost his job to Hendon Hooker (Detroit third round pick in 2023). Milton has rare arm strength combined with a plus-sized frame and easy confidence. The traits are there to create the high-ceiling outlook if he can be properly developed. In order for him to come anywhere near that ceiling, he needs a lot of ducks to line up perfectly. His mechanics, ability to read a defense, and accuracy all need significant upward strides, or the bottom is going to fall out fast. Hit or miss, star or castoff. A team will likely need to keep three quarterbacks on their 53-man roster for at least a full season because of how far away he is from being ready. *If NYG is going to punt on quarterback early (which a case can be made for), Milton is a name to keep an eye on for day three. I think coaches will know within a year of working with him whether or not he can be a guy. That Tennessee offense is something else and while some will say it is too simple to project potential NFL success from, it can actually mean Milton has ability between the ears we don’t know about yet. Milton’s tools are as good as it gets. If the processing can catch up and his lower body can get more consistent, he’s 90% there. Some are fully out on Milton, I’m not. The NYG quarterback situation, if they don’t go QB early, is an ideal spot for a guy like Milton if you’re ok with three quarterbacks on the 53 and waving goodbye to Tommy Cutlets. NFL Comparison: Jeff Driskel / WAS NFL Ceiling: Carson Wentz / KC 8. Michael Pratt – Tulane – 6’2 / 217 Grade: 74 Four-year starter. All-AAC three straight years including first team honors in 2023 along with winning the Conference Offensive Player of the Year Award. Pratt turned the Tulane program around during his time under center. They had not reached double-digit wins since 1998 and they went 2-10 during Pratt’s first full season as the starter. He ended his career with two straight double digit-win seasons and a Cotton Bowl win over USC in January of 2023. His consistent ascent as a quarterback puts proof to the amount of work he puts in off the field. He is a plus-athlete and hard-nosed competitor that has the ability to lead through example. There are questions about his hip rotation and general feel for coverages, but the physical ability is there to be a true dual threat at the next level. *Pratt is the kind of backup that can come in for a few weeks when your starter goes down with an injury and keeps it together. He can lead your team to a couple wins. I see some Josh Dobbs in his game but in terms of developing him into anything more, I’m not sure there is enough on tape to project anything more. The way he approaches his game and the mental side is ideal for any quarterback room, however. And the fact he put an entire program on his back and got it out of the basement means something. He can be a leader, one that makes a real difference beyond playing on the field. NFL Comparison: Brandon Allen / SF NFL Ceiling: Sam Howell / SEA 9. Spencer Rattler – South Carolina – 6’0 / 211 Grade: 74 Four-year starter. Spent three years at Oklahoma prior to transferring to South Carolina for his final two seasons. Following his redshirt season in 2019, Rattler burst on the scene in 2020, winning the Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year Award and first team All-Conference honors. He went 15-2 as a starter under Lincoln Riley. However, in 2021 he was benched week six for Caleb Williams. In total, Rattler started 42 games between the two programs. He won the team-MVP award both seasons with South Carolina and set a single season record for both completions and completion percentage. He is a gifted thrower with a lot of pro traits already developed in his game. The footwork, power created from his base, and pure arm talent all scream NFL starter. There is a lot of unknown to his game despite the heavy amount of experience. He rarely threw the ball deep and did not have a lot of success when doing so. He is undersized and he does not have standout athleticism. Rattler projects to a quality backup at the next level that has the arm talent and swagger to start if he can develop and hide the shortcomings he could not extinguish over the 42 college starts. *There is a ton of love for Rattler around the league. It really seems like he is heading toward a round two slot. I can’t get there on him. There are too many components beyond looking good when you throw that matter to me. He falls below average in multiple areas of what I look for and there were some immaturity concerns that centered around him thinking he was better than he was. That did not factor into his grade, but it did help break the tie between a few guys. Rattler will look good enough to get you excited, but once the filters come off the finished product won’t be enough. NFL Comparison: Bailey Zappe / NE NFL Ceiling: Baker Mayfield / TB 10. Jordan Travis – Florida State – 6’1 / 200 Grade: 74 Sixth year senior. Four-year starter. All-ACC in both 2023 and 2022, first team in 2023. Won the ACC Offensive Player of the Year Award in 2023. Travis transferred to Florida State from Louisville in 2019 and leaves the storied program as one of the most accomplished and productive quarterbacks in its history. He set records in career touchdowns and total offense in addition to finishing atop the quarterback rushing record book and second in passing. His late-season ankle injury ended his final season early and hampered his pre-draft process. He proved to be capable of leading an offense and creating on his own with both his legs and arm. The creative playmaker protected the ball, came up big in clutch situations, and led by example. There are multiple physical shortcomings to his game that do limit his ceiling, but this will be a quality addition to anyone’s quarterback room and should be in the league for a long time as an athletically-biased backup. *If you liked Bryce Young last year – you have to at least somewhat like Travis. There is a lot of Steph Curry in their games; undersized but slippery, weak but tough to get hands on, and always ready to fire even when he isn’t fully lined up. Travis’ significant broken leg suffered late in the year should keep him off the field 100% until training camp but that won’t impact the grade. He will be drafted to provide depth and in most cases, he will be the third guy. Is there potential for more? Yes. Travis has the gamer-trait in him that I’ve been drawn to since 2022. He is a quiet-leader type that teammates respond well to. If NYG wants to wait until the round 5/6 area for a new quarterback, Travis is on my short list of guys I want that I believe will be around. NFL Comparison: John Wolford / TB NFL Ceiling: Case Keenum / HOU 11. Kedon Slovis – BYU – 6’2 / 223 Grade: 71 Five-year starter. Spent three seasons at USC, where he won Pac 12 Freshman of the Year in 2019 and earned first team All-Pac 12 honors in 2020. Transferred to Pittsburgh in 2022 before ending up at Brigham Young in 2023. Slovis was heading for stardom after a historic true freshman season for one of the most followed college programs in the nation. It only declined from there to the point where he lost his job in 2021. He replaced Kenny Pickett at Pittsburgh but never quite took off, prompting the second transfer. Slovis’ completion percentage decreased all five years of his career. The primary concern is that he did not progress and there is a credible durability concern. He is an underrated athlete, however, and there are a lot of fundamentals to the position that look natural and consistent to the point where he can project to back up duty for years. *Rewind back to 2019, the year in which he looked like a first rounder, and I was initially thinking this could be the next Josh Rosen! Yes, that Josh Rosen. Yes, arguably my worst miss as an evaluator at the quarterback position. That said, maybe the projection in 2019 does end up being accurate. Rosen is currently holding on for dear life as a backup and that is where I end up slotting Slovis. This is a guy that tested athletically much better than I anticipated. He looks good in workouts and has a very clean, mature way about him on and off the field. Things just don’t seem to click when he gets pushed away from his point. Despite the experience, Slovis never quite matched what we saw in 2019. Multiple programs but the same shortcomings. He can stick somewhere as a backup, though. 12. Devin Leary – Kentucky – 6’1 / 215 Grade: 71 Sixth-year senior. Five-year starter. Spent five seasons at North Carolina State before transferring to Kentucky in 2023. He suffered season ending injuries in both 2022 (shoulder) and 2020 (fibula). His best season came in 2021 where he broke the program record set by Philip Rivers for passing touchdowns. The highly experienced, tough-minded signal caller has the arm talent to make it at the next level. He has a small, but thick frame and a fast release. The accuracy woes led to a career high in interceptions and career low in completion percentage in his one season in the SEC. The starting point is strong enough to warrant a third string job for Leary, but he will need to prove he is more the 2021 version of himself than the 2023 one fast if he wants to stick to a roster long-term. *Everyone that watches Leary throw the ball is impressed. Everyone. He can spin it as well as anyone. I’ve been keeping an eye on him since 2021 where he really caught fire and there were rumblings about him declaring for the draft. 2022 did not pan out. The transfer to Kentucky, replacing eventual second rounder Will Levis was a gamble, one with huge upside, also did not pan out. Leary is the kind of guy that looks better in workouts than on film. His response to pressure has never been good and he has enough experience in multiple systems with some solid-enough talent surrounding him to dampen his projection. Backup life is for him, one without much upside to be more. 13. Sam Hartman – Notre Dame – 6’1 / 211 Grade: 70 Sixth-year senior. Five-year starter. All-ACC in 2022 and 2021 before transferring to Notre Dame for 2023. Left Wake Forest as the all-time leader in yards, completions, and touchdowns and finished second all-time in ACC career yards. Hartman is a free-spirit type quarterback that will take chances, play strong against pressure, and bounce back from adversity. Hartman was one of only five FBS true freshmen to start week one in 2018 before losing his job a year later. Hartman won the job again in 2020 and never looked back. This is a guy that played well in multiple systems and was often playing against defenses more talented than what he was working with offensively. He won two separate bowl game MVP awards and has an immense amount of experience under his belt. Physically, Hartman can throw the deep ball with strength and precision. Mentally, he is the coachable type and brings a level of toughness to the team with the way he plays. He will be a backup that elevates the room but lacks the upside of anything more. *Hartman does just enough to keep him in the discussion. He is a good kid, and he is the kind of guy that raises up the quarterback room behind closed doors. The experience he has as the poster boy of multiple college program shows the needed and desired maturity coaches want from their quarterbacks. When push comes to shove, I don’t think the talent is enough to project anywhere past third string. 14. Carter Bradley – South Alabama – 6’3 / 218 Grade: 68 Sixth-year senior. Three-year starter. Two-time All-Sun Belt. Spent four seasons at Toledo before transferring to South Alabama in 2022. Son of Colts Defensive Coordinator Gus Bradley. Carter never fully held the starting gig at Toledo but he did play a credible amount of snaps his final three seasons. He set a single season school record in his first year with South Alabama right away, putting himself on the NFL radar. While 2023 did not meet expectations, Bradley continued to build his reputation as a guy that can make every NFL throw while handling the mental capacity the position demands. The NFL lineage helps strengthen the notion. *There is not much to get overly excited about with Bradley, but there is a safe feel to his game that was also seen at the Senior Bowl. He knows when to take chances and when to take the single. He plays smart. His knowledge of the game alone is worth looking at because that backup quarterback, in some cases, can be just as much of a coaching staff add-on. 15. Tanner Mordecai – Wisconsin – 6’2 / 210 Grade: 68 Sixth year senior. Three-year starter. Spent three seasons at Oklahoma before transferring to SMU, where he spent two years. Finished off at Wisconsin in 2023. All-AAC in 2021. Mordecai has had statistical success in air-raid type offensive systems. He threw over 70 touchdowns and 7,000 yards over a two-year span. He can sling it and the athletic ability is up there with some of the best in the class. When he got matched up against a tougher schedule in the Big Ten, Mordecai did not raise his level of play. While he still has the occasional flash and his ability to run is always a threat, Mordecai proved that his ceiling is too low to credibly project anything more than a backup. *This is a kid I found myself wanting to root for. In evaluation, you always need to be careful with a situation like that. It can hide the truth. The truth is Mordecai was in a QB-friendly system for years and it created a lot of production for him. He also turned the ball over too often in that system as well. I always speak about how I like Jayden Daniels ascending after transferring a level up to the SEC. Mordecai did the opposite at Wisconsin. The small hands factor into the equation as well but I still think he is worth a shot in training camp because the talent has always, and still is, there. 16-20: 16. John Rhys Plumlee – Central Florida – 6’0 / 200: 67 17. Taulia Tagovailoa – Maryland – 5’10/202: 67 18. Jack Plummer – Louisville – 6’4 / 216: 67 19. Austin Reed – Western Kentucky – 6’1 / 220: 67 20. Jason Bean – Kansas – 6’1 / 184: 65

Link to Sy's QB draft preview - ( New Window )