Top Quarterbacks In 2020 NFL Draft

1. LSU QB Joe Burrow – Senior – 6-4, 216, N/A

Burrow is expected to be the number one overall pick after a spectacular junior year at LSU where he threw for 5,671 yards, 60 touchdowns, and a 76.3 completion percentage on the way to winning the Heisman Trophy and the National Championship. Burrow, who Pewter Report’s own Jon Ledyard said is the best quarterback he’s ever scouted, is known as a very smart quarterback that greatly prepares each week for his opponent. Burrow has said that he wins the game during the week with his preparation, which gives him a ton of confidence on the field. His ability to identify the opposing defense and counteract their attack will directly carry over into the NFL. From a skill set perspective, Burrow is one of the most accurate passers that you can find in college football and has a strong enough arm to make any throw. He’s got great mobility in the pocket as well, being able to feel when the rush is coming. Burrow is the complete package at quarterback and will likely go No. 1 overall to Cincinnati.

2. Alabama QB Tua Tagovailoa – Junior – 6-1, 219 – N/A

Alabama WR Jerry Jeudy and QB Tua Tagovailoa – Photo by: Getty Images

You could make the case that Tagovailoa could be the No. 1 prospect at quarterback, but concerns about his injury history would put a dent in that argument. Tagovailoa had a high ankle sprain in 2019, followed by a season-ending hip injury midway through the year that required surgery. However, it looks like he’s on track to make a full recovery. Tagovailoa was first introduced on the college football scene when he entered the game in the second half of the 2017 National Championship game and led the Crimson to a historic comeback in an overtime victory. In his first year as the full time starter, he had 3,966 passing yards for 43 touchdowns and followed that up in 2019 2,840 yards and 33 touchdowns in nine games before his season was cut short. The southpaw quarterback has a good deep ball with a strong, accurate arm where he can also hit the short and intermediate throws as well. He’s aggressive but smart with the ball and has excellent footwork.

3. Oregon QB Justin Herbert – Senior – 6-6, 227 – 4.68

There’s an argument to be made that Herbert has the best arm out of all the quarterbacks with the combination of power and touch that he can put on the ball. Standing tall at 6-foot-6, Herbert is well-equipped to have a good pocket presence and solid mobility when it’s needed. At times, he’ll get sloppy with his throwing mechanics and can get erratic under pressure. Plus his vision down the field could be improved upon. Herbert didn’t have much to prove during this draft season but still accepted a bid to play in the Senior Bowl and came away looking impressive. He took a risk putting himself out there and it paid off, showing that he’s ready for any challenge. Herbert played at least eight games in all four years at Oregon, being the starter for his junior and senior years. He threw for 3,151 yards with 29 touchdowns and eight interceptions as a junior, and then improved upon that last season with 3,471 yards, 32 touchdowns, six interceptions in addition to a Rose Bowl victory.

4. Utah St QB Jordan Love – Junior – 6-4, 223 – 4.74

Love is an interesting case for the Bucs if they want to take him off the board in an earlier round. He’s got all the talent you want to see in his arm making big throws while also possessing good quickness and scrambling ability that keeps opposing defenses on their toes. But Love has also struggled identifying defenses and reading coverages, often relying on his first read without making progressions through to all of his options. As a three-year starter, Love’s final two seasons exemplify the type of potential he brings to the table, and also highlights his slights. As a sophomore, Love had a highly impressive season with 3,567 passing yards, 32 touchdowns and only six interceptions. One year later as a junior, Love’s interceptions ballooned to an FBS-leading 17 interceptions, while his passing yards went down 3,402 and his touchdowns dropped to 20. Love, who had a formal interview with the Bucs, lost a lot of his supporting cast from the previous year, which played a factor into a larger number of picks. But the question becomes which kind of player is an NFL team getting from Love at the next level?

5. Washington QB Jacob Eason – Junior – 6-6, 227 – 4.89

Washington QB Jacob Eason – Photo by: Getty Images

The former Washington Husky is another potential mid-round pick for the Bucs if they want to go that route. Eason played two years at Georgia but then transferred to Washington once Jake Fromm became the Bulldog’s starter that he never relinquished after Eason missed time with a knee injury. Eason had a solid year in his lone season as a starter at Washington, throwing for 3,132 yards, 23 touchdowns, with 64.2 completion percentage and just eight interceptions. Eason is still quite green around the edges after only one full season as a starter. He’s got a good arm that he can fit the ball in between defenders and stretch the defense deep, but he also has very little mobility so he’s got to get rid of the ball soon or the pass rush will be after him. Eason has a tendency to make some panicked throws from the pocket, which is a big concern to scouts who wanted to see him return for his senior year.

6. Georgia QB Jake Fromm – Junior – 6-2, 220 – 5.01

What Fromm brings to the table is that he’s a smart player that knows what he can and can’t do, and will stick to that. Fromm’s high football I.Q. allows him to execute the game plan well and he’s a natural winner. He has great knowledge of opposing defenses and how to read what they’re scheming. As a three year starter, he also brings leadership to running a pro style offense. Fromm’s biggest issue is that he has a weak arm, which especially hurts if he’s on the run or his to improvise on a play. His arm won’t be able to bail him out if he’s rushed, and will likely limit him to West Coast offenses. Fromm never eclipsed 3,000 passing yards in any one season, showing more of a conservative approach with his best of 2,860 yards in 2019. He had a career-high 30 touchdowns in 2018 followed by 24 last year, but also had a career-low five interceptions. Fromm can take care of the ball, as long as he can stay with short and intermediate passing plays.

7. Oklahoma QB Jalen Hurts – Senior – 6-1, 218, 4.59

Oklahoma QB Jalen Hurts – Photo by: Getty Images

Hurts is the most mobile and versatile quarterback in the draft, being known as much for what he can do with his legs than being a quarterback. Hurts has been in the limelight for his whole college career, starting out as Alabama’s starting quarterback as a freshman in 2016 and going to the National Championship in a losing effort against Clemson. Hurts then brought Alabama again to the National Championship in 2017, but was replaced by Tagovaoila at halftime of the championship game and rallied for a comeback win. Hurts was replaced outright by Tagovaoila in 2018, and then transferred to Oklahoma in 2019 where he took the Sooners to the College Football Playoffs and was a Heisman finalist. Hurts has always been known as a run-first quarterback, rushing for 3,274 yards in his career and 45 touchdowns, while throwing for 9,477 yards with 80 touchdowns. Hurts is as athletic and fast as they come, and now he’s out to prove that he has the arm to play in the NFL. He made great strides in his lone season with the Sooners where he completed 69.7 percent of his passes for 3,851 yards with 32 touchdowns and eight interceptions. Hurts was able to show off hi arm at the Senior Bowl where he impressed many that week.

8. Washington State QB Anthony Gordon – Senior – 6-2, 199 – N/A

Gordon played behind current Jacksonville Jaguars and fan favorite Gardner Minshew, so his senior year was his only as a starting quarterback. Gordon began his college football career at City College of San Francisco before transferring. He still needs to be developed more as a quarterback, but there are things to like about his game. He gets the ball out fast and has enough arm strength to hit receivers on short and intermediate throws. He isn’t very technically sound yet and has trouble with his footwork, which has given issues when trying to remain calm when the pocket breaks down. Gordon benefited from playing under former Cougars head coach Mike Leach, as he threw for a whopping 5,579 yards last season with 48 touchdowns, a high completion percentage of 71.8, and 16 interceptions. There are parts of his game that are worth taking a late-round flier on if a team is willing to give him some time to fix his issues.

9. Iowa QB Nate Stanley – Senior – 6-4, 243 – 4.81

Iowa QB Nate Stanley – Photo courtesy of Iowa

Stanley has been linked to the Bucs by PewterReport.com as a late-round pick. He’s a three-year starter who passed for 2,951 yards 16 touchdowns, a 59.4 completion percentage and seven interceptions as a senior, leading the Hawkeyes to a 10-3 record. Stanley has played in a NFL-style offense which bodes well for him, and he’s usually smart with the football and has decent mobility within the pocket. Stanley, who had an informal interview with the Bucs at the NFL Scouting Combine, has a very strong arm that’s good enough to get the ball down-field, but is often inaccurate on his throws, as seen by a pedestrian completion rate numbers. Mechanics are another part of his game that needs work, and he skipped the Senior Bowl to spend that week working with a quarterbacks coach, going over footwork and his release.

10. FIU QB James Morgan – Senior – 6-4, 213 – 4.89

Morgan played two years at Bowling Green and then transferred over to FIU to play another two seasons there. He’s smart with the football, throwing for just five interceptions his senior year compared to 2,585 passing yards and 14 touchdowns. At times Morgan will hold onto the ball for too long, though he isn’t afraid to stand in that pocket and deliver the ball accurately. He can make nice throws, it’s just about doing it consistently. And that’s where taking him as a developmental project and letting him sit for a year or two comes into play. Morgan played for Bucs linebackers coach Mike Caldwell, who was the head coach of the East team at the East-West Shrine Bowl.

Best Of The Rest

11. Hawai’i QB Cole McDonald – Junior – 6-4, 220 – 4.58

McDonald has big play-ability because of an arm that was built to throw the ball downfield. With that comes a high number of interceptions to go along with it. There’s no throw on the field that McDonald isn’t afraid to make, so there’s value in having that type of confidence, but his decision-making really needs to be improved upon. It’s kind of an all-gas, no-brakes situation here. McDonald played six games as a freshman and then resumed the role as a starter for his sophomore and junior seasons. He had 4,135 passing yards, 33 touchdowns, a 63.8 completion percentage and 14 interceptions in 2019. These were all career highs.

12. Virginia QB Bryce Perkins – Senior – 6-3, 215 – N/A

Perkins made the journey of red-shirting a year at Arizona State followed by missing all of next season with a broken neck. Perkins then played at Arizona Western College before transferring to Virginia where he was a starter for two seasons. Perkins made an impact for the Cavaliers, breaking the school’s all-time passing record with 3,530 passing yards as a senior. He’s a dual-threat quarterback, who ran for 769 yards last year as well. Perkins threw 22 touchdowns and ran for another 11 scores in 2019. While he brings athletic ability and fluctuating accuracy, Perkins isn’t always consistent making throws and is overly reliant on his first option, often panicking if that receiver isn’t open. Perkins has a family history when it comes to playing at the next level as his father Bruce, brother Paul, and uncle Don have all played in the NFL.

13. Utah Tyler Huntley – Senior – 6-1, 205 – N/A

Another quarterback with mobility, Huntley can create opportunities with his legs has an average level of accuracy to complete throws, especially if they are shorter routes. He’s also got a decent feel for the pocket. He needs to work on identifying coverages outside of man-to-man, as he can get fooled if the defense disguises it’s look enough. Huntley had 3,092 passing yards, 19 touchdowns, a 73.1 completion percentage and four interceptions along with 290 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns as a senior.

14. Colorado QB Steve Montez – Senior – 6-4, 240 – 4.68

There’s the prototypical NFL size that Montez has, along with fluid mobility in the pocket that is surprisingly good. Montez, whose dad played one year for the Oakland Raiders, has a strong arm, but needs to learn how to put a little more touch on the ball. Another thing he needs to learn more of is situational awareness and overall decision-making. He was a four0year starter that had 2,808 yards, a 63 percent completion rate, 17 touchdowns and 10 picks in his last season. He’s a better athlete than he is a quarterback and might go undrafted despite attending the Senior Bowl.

15. Oregon State QB Jake Luton – Senior – 6-7, 230 – N/A

Luton played one season at Idaho in 2015, and then transferred to Oregon State where he had to sit out the following year, but saw some playing time from 2017-2019. He only started one full year for the Beavers, which came during his senior campaign. Luton has great size at 6-foot-7 with solid arm strength that matches up well when he’s mechanically correct. He also decent ability to move around the pocket, too. Luton needs to work on his accuracy his intermediate throws. Staying consistent with his mechanics is another thing. Luton doesn’t turn the ball over much, throwing just three interceptions in 2019, while also passing for career bests 2,714 yards and 28 touchdowns. His 62 completion percentage was just slighly lower from a year prior.

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