It’s that time to put together 2020 NFL Draft big boards for each position. We will see how many I get through. There’s an endless number of posts to do before the draft. Starting with the obvious, we’re going to do our 2020 NFL Draft quarterback rankings. Here are the top 10!
1: Tua Tagovailoa (Alabama)
Tua Tagovailoa is the best quarterback in the 2020 NFL Draft and it’s not close. I’ve done several articles on Tua already so I’ll be brief. We’re not just talking about the best quarterback in this draft. We’re talking about one of the elite prospects to ever come out of the draft. Tua is the arguably the most accomplished passer in the history of college football. He’s the most efficient one statistically, that’s not arguable.
Think about all he’s accomplished. Down 13-0 in the National championship as a 19-year-old. Jalen Hurts has completed 3 passes during the entire first half. Tua rolls his team back to win a title.
He’s lost two college games in his life. One to Clemson in the title game and one to undefeated LSU who won the national title.
Tua was statistically better than Joe Burrow every season prior to the point he got hurt. Also statistically better than Burrow from a career standpoint. 33 touchdowns and 3 interceptions this year with a 206.9 rating is banana land.
From a skillset standpoint, Tua is the whole package. His ability to make decisions and progress through reads is maybe the best I’ve ever seen. Plenty of arm strength especially in the short and intermediate passing game. Plus mobility for the position. Best of all, deadly accurate and makes something out of nothing more than almost anyone. This is left-handed Russell Wilson. If you’re dumb enough to pass on this, that’s on you.
Best case: Russell Wilson
Worst case: More Mobile Drew Brees
2: Joe Burrow (LSU)
Joe Burrow may go down as the hardest evaluation at the quarterback position in a long time. The long track record isn’t there. How do you explain the 2018 season from the 2019 season?
2018: 57.8 percent, 16 touchdowns, 5 interceptions
2019: 76.3 percent, 60 touchdowns, 6 interceptions
Where does the truth lie? What if it was just Joe Brady coming in to call the plays? Maybe it was a perfect storm of players with the nation’s best offensive line, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Justin Jefferson, Terrance Marshall, Ja’Marr Chase, and Thad Moss. LSU was the most talented team in the country. What if it was just his age? Burrow will be 24 and needed a 5th year to dominate in college.
From a skillset standpoint, Burrow is interesting. His arm isn’t a special one. In fact, it may be below average. His hand size also came in small at the combine. However, at the end of the day, he just made every throw this past year. He also has some leadership qualities to him and is a sneaky athlete being a high school point guard. I do, however, question his ability to read defenses at the NFL level. He didn’t have to do it this past year. Spread offense and look for matchups presnap. I’d be scared to death to take him but he was so historic this year you have to feel optimistic about his chances to make it.
Best Case: Tony Romo
Worst Case: Chad Pennington
3: Jacob Eason (Washington)
Jacob Eason is being slept on a lot during the predraft process. In terms of horse power, Eason has the best pure arm. That’s his strength. He struggled this past year dealing and avoiding pressure. Eason made some of the best wow throws all year but it was never consistent and really needs more starts. The plan should be to draft Eason and then have him learn. I do think there is some talent here worth investing in the 2nd or 3rd round. Eason needs to be in a good enviornment to thrive and an offensive line that can protect him.
Best Case: Carson Palmer
Worst Case: Brock Osweiler
4: Justin Herbert (Oregon)
In terms of pure tools, Justin Herbert has it all. Plus size, arm, and mobility. He’s even really smart too. Herbert can make all the throws, the problem is it doesn’t happen often enough. In terms of red flags? Boy, there are a lot of them. Inability to read a defense, horrible game tapes, and unwilling to take shots down the field. I think there is a chance Herbert hits but he was so bad in certain spots all year that I don’t even care if I’m wrong. Homeless man version of Josh Allen.
Best Case: Josh Allen
Worst Case: Joey Harrington
5: Jake Fromm (Georgia)
In terms of work ethic and heart, Jake Fromm has that. You can see Fromm has all the intangibles to play the position but lacks the necessary tools. Fromm has really poor arm strength and that’s probably an understatement. Fromm is the type of guy who may have to play in a dome or warm weather. He’s the opposite of Jacob Eason. Can make touch throws and improvise. He just can’t make those splash throws. I think he should be a 4th-5th round backup who MAYBE could be a fill in starter down the line.
Best Case: 90 percent version of Matt Ryan or Andy Dalton
Worst Case: Brian Hoyer
6: Jordan Love (Utah State)
Jordan Love, to me, is the wildcard of this draft. The range of outcomes seem crazy from top 15 starter in the league to out of the league altogether. Love has the tools to make all the throws. It’s easy to fall in love with some of the off platform throws he can make with different arm angles. It’s also easy to see why he can fail. Bad feet, bad decision making (on and off the field), and bad production. I didn’t see much of Love this year, but I watch the Colorado State game. Enough to make me terrified to draft him.
Coaching is going to be everything for Love. He has so much that needs to be cleaned up and isn’t close to being ready to play. Lump of clay guy here.
Best Case: More mobile version of the good Jameis Winston
Worst Case: Bad version of Jameis Winston all the time.
7: Cole McDonald (Hawaii)
Cole McDonald is my sleeper in this draft class. 6-foot-3 with 4.58 speed. McDonald is coming off a 63.8 percent, 4,135 yards, 33 touchdowns, and 14 interception season. Call it my diamond in the rough pick. McDonald has a lot of tools to like good enough arm and able to make splash plays down the field. Heavy spread offense at Hawaii and McDonald just threw darts down the field all year. The only concern with him is his looping release. That was a death sentence for Josh Dobbs. BUT… I think he’s got a chance.
8: Jalen Hurts (Oklahoma)
Jalen Hurts has come a long way throwing the football. Do I think he’s a legit franchise quarterback? God no. Could he be useful as a trick play guy? Possibly. I can’t envision even Dak Prescott being a realistic outcome. We’re talking about a guy who literally couldn’t throw the ball at Alabama. If you want to throw him in the Ravens offense doing crazy shit, fine. Hurts has trouble processing and often holds on to the ball too long in the pocket. It’s either that or he looks to run right away. These type of players never have big impacts in the NFL.
9: James Morgan (Florida International)
I don’t know a ton about James Morgan. He was average at the East-West Game and not invited at all to the Senior Bowl. He does have a really nice beard. Can’t say I watched Florida International this year. 14 touchdowns and 5 interceptions isn’t pretty coming from a small school.
10: Nate Stanley (Iowa)
I have to be honest, I don’t even like Nate Stanley. I just ran out of options. Seems like he can make it as a backup that never plays.
