ROUND 5: Washington State QB Anthony Gordon
6-3, 210 – Senior

NFL teams are taking a closer look at Gordon, the latest Washington State QB draft prospect, after the rookie season Gardner Minshew had in Jacksonville where he threw 21 touchdowns and only six interceptions. Minshew, an undersized draft prospect, fell to the sixth round despite completing 70.7 percent of his passes and throwing for 4,779 yards with 38 touchdowns and just nine interceptions for the Cougars.

Gordon is taller and put up even better numbers while completing 71.6 percent of his passes for 5,579 yards with 48 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. Is he a product of Mike Leach’s Air Raid passing attack? Sure, but Gordon just had the fifth best passing season of all-time in college football and completed 493-of-689 passes in 2019. While there were plenty of bubble screens, shovel passes and other one-read throws that Gordon made in his lone season as a starter, there were also hundreds of other opportunities where he read coverages and hit his second and third options.

Gordon’s Washington State Career Passing Stats
2018: 3-of-5 passing (60 percent) for 17 yards, 1 INT
2019: 493-of-689 passing (71.6 percent) for 5,579 yards, 48 TDs, 16 INTs

Gordon didn’t have the on-field success that Minshew did last year when he led the Cougars to an 11-2 record and became a Heisman Trophy finalist. Gordon went 6-7 as a starter on a less talented Washington State squad, with one of those losses coming in epic fashion, as the Cougars blew a 49-17 lead in the third quarter to lose to UCLA, 67-63. That loss certainly wasn’t Gordon’s fault, as he completed 67.2 percent of his passes for 570 yards and a PAC-12-record nine touchdowns and two interceptions. That was one of six games where Gordon passed for four touchdowns or more.

The Bucs could use more competition at the backup quarterback position, but also want someone who has starting-caliber ability. Gordon doesn’t have the strongest arm in the draft, but he can push the ball downfield when he wants to – even though Leach’s offense often called for rhythmic short and intermediate throws. Gordon is a very accurate passer with his lowest completion percentage being 64 percent against Oregon. Bruce Arians loves to throw the ball, and a prolific passer like Gordon is a good value in the fifth round.