The highest two quarterback prospects on this 12 months’s draft — Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders — didn’t work out on the Senior Bowl. Whereas each have generated scrutiny, particularly when in comparison with final 12 months’s crop, this duo has been considered as the highest tier amongst QBs on this draft for some time now.
A thriller exists behind those two passers, with the likes of Quinn Ewers, Jalen Milroe and Jaxson Dart being a part of the subsequent wave of QBs obtainable. Every carries appreciable questions into the draft and this second group could not see a participant go in Spherical 1. Nevertheless, the supply-and-demand difficulty on the place recurrently results in second-tier QB prospects being drafted sooner than they need to be. That shall be one thing to observe.
The Senior Bowl exercises went nicely sufficient for Dart that he often is the clubhouse chief to be the third quarterback drafted. As Milroe struggled throughout every week that veteran ESPN analyst Louis Riddick described (h/t Paul Schwartz of the New York Post) as “uneven,” ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler notes Dart grew to become extra snug in the course of the week of practices. An AFC scout advised Fowler that Dart shouldn’t be considered as a first-rounder, however with the maligned crop coming in, it actually might occur.
Daniel Jeremiah’s first 2025 NFL.com massive board lists solely Ward and Sanders in its high 50. ESPN’s Matt Miller mocks Dart at fortieth general to the Saints, going two spots forward of Ewers. Milroe just isn’t in Miller’s top-64 providing. Past the host of QB-needy groups choosing within the high six (Titans, Browns, Giants, Raiders), groups just like the Jets, Saints, Steelers and Seahawks want long-term solutions. This demand, together with what just isn’t considered as a powerful free agent class would profit Dart.
Enjoying beneath Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss, Dart follows Matt Corral as a second-tier QB prospect. Corral didn’t pan out, stepping into Spherical 3 and never at the moment on an NFL roster. Dart began for three-plus seasons and completed the 2024 marketing campaign with a 29-6 TD-INT ratio and a ten.8-yard common per try. A 69.3 % completion charge and 495 speeding yards got here together with these spectacular numbers. One NFC staffer advised Fowler that the Kiffin offense is a “mess” when it comes to translating to the NFL, nonetheless. That stands to be a problem Dart should navigate in the course of the mix and predraft visits.
A few of the groups holding picks exterior the highest six might want to flip to free agent or commerce choices, however with starter hopefuls scarce, Dart impressing on the mix actually might start to generate first-round buzz. At the same time as Ward and Sanders will not be locks to be this draft’s high two picks, Tennessee and Cleveland wants however, their locations close to the highest of the draft are pretty solidified. The subsequent wave of passers, then, stand to be the extra fascinating a part of the predraft course of.
