2024 NFL Draft Stock Report: Week 13
Hand up. I short-changed everyone a bit last week but the slate is loaded this week. Mostly thanks to the schedule makers that really spread the games out. Also, thanks to absolutely incredible games during Rivalry Week. That was about as action-packed as it gets. I was entertained all weekend. I know you’re all here for the 2024 NFL Draft stock report notes so let’s get right down to business.
The slate this week includes Texas Tech vs. Texas, Oregon State vs. Oregon, Ohio State vs. Michigan, Alabama vs. Auburn, Washington State vs. Washington, Florida State vs. Florida, and Georgia vs. Georgia Tech. You’re welcome as always.
Texas Tech
They got smoked 57-7 and it was worse than that in terms of line of scrimmage disparity. It only makes it more insane that Tyree Wilson went in the top 10, but whatever. I got nothing.
Texas
God Texas is good up front. They have some behemoths in that front. Byron Murphy II is slippery, man. He just wiggles his way through the line. Damn gifted. Then you got T’Vondre Sweat who somehow has some Jordan Davis in him. It’s so rare to find a guy that big that can move like this. They don’t grow on trees so let’s appreciate what this guy is doing. Had another crazy pass deflection in space. I have no idea how this dude jumps that high at 360 but it’s amazing to watch.
I love Quinn Ewers. I don’t care what you think. There’s a good quarterback in there. Griff recently did this post and I actually agree with the scout who spoke in there. He just should have shut his mouth and let his team do the rest of the development. If he worked in my front office I’d find the rat and he’d be fired immediately.
We know what the problems are and they aren’t real problems. They’re development problems that will take care of themselves with time. He’s lazy with his footwork and doesn’t take care of the ball well enough. Last year his feet weren’t tied to his arm at all. Now they kind of are but he’s not driving the ball with the back foot on a consistent basis.
We have to remember this guy reclassified and is way younger than some of these other guys considered for the draft. He’s just 20 and would probably be the youngest starter in the league next year if he were to declare.
This is an NFL quarterback. I know it is. Talent isn’t the problem. This is my advice to Quinn. Call Jordan Palmer and work with him after the season ends. He will clean up your mechanics just like he did with Josh Allen. That’s all that really needs to be done.
I think the Marquise Brown comp for Xavier Worthy just feels real. Two times in this game his hands burned him. One that he should have caught that almost turned into a pick because he couldn’t reel it in. Another where he should have had a long touchdown but couldn’t track it and had his feet out before the ball even got to him.
C’mon, you know it in your heart. What have we learned over the last few years? You’ve been with us long enough. All of the best wide receivers are between 6-foot-2, and 6-foot-5. It’s hard to be small and be elite. Who’s the exception? Tyreek Hill because he runs like an alien?
Jerry Jeudy was regarded as the best in his class. CeeDee Lamb and Justin Jefferson are both way better. They’re also way bigger.
Marquise Brown was picked first in his class. Can’t happen when the freaks like DK Metcalf and AJ Brown go way later. I think we know who the freak is in this class. It’s Marv and the Lamborghini playing at Florida State named Keon. Maybe another in the form of Rome.
Do I even need to go down the Justin Ross song and dance? I knew he sucked the moment Marlon Humphrey dummied him in the Bowl game.
I don’t think Worthy sucks. I think he’s really good. I’m just asking you to make sure your expectations are in check. Go ahead, take him in the first. Just know your range is anything between Marquise Brown and DeSean Jackson and be sure to be happy about it.
This is what’s going to matter. How fast is he and does he make your heart melt when he moves in space like Zay Flowers did last year? That will be the answer to your range for Worthy.
I’m a fan of Ja’Tavion Sanders and AD Mitchell too. This Texas team has real talent. Not just ornaments anymore either. They are built well on both lines too.
Oregon State
You know by now that we’ve spent a lot of time tracking two wildcard quarterbacks with Joe Milton and DJ Uiagalelei. As time has gone on, I’ve skewed towards out on both. However, I think DJ has way more of a chance at this point based on everything that we’ve seen. Oregon State got killed but you almost knew it was coming. Oregon got beat last year and they weren’t going to let that happen again. The Ducks played with their hair on fire the entire game.
It certainly wasn’t a good game. But the Beavers losing 31-7 wasn’t on him. They were going to get killed regardless. Especially when you average 2.2 yards per carry on the ground. Made some okay throws but still isn’t accurate and can’t play fast.
Silas Bolden had a nice game though. Found a way to make plays when nobody else did. Finished with four receptions for 56 yards and a score.
Oregon
Let me say this about Bo Nix. He’s going to run a damn good time. He’s really fast. His 40-time is going to be legit. The pure arm isn’t bad either. Made a cross-body throw that had good juice on it. A throw that some guys just can’t make. I’ll give Nix this too. He was a stupid high recruit and players are allowed to get better. I wrote off Jalen Hurts too early because he couldn’t throw right away in college. I don’t want to do that again with Nix because he was brutal at Auburn. The positive is this guy has so many college starts and that just matters.
Way better at dealing with traffic now too. Just has really figured out how to contort his body in order to complete the throw. It’s real progression. 33/40 for 367 and two scores speaks for itself.
I don’t want to sound like a broken record on Troy Franklin and Bucky Irving, but what else can I say? I’ll just add this.
A: Really nice to see Bucky Irving catch a touchdown. That’s the way the NFL is trending. Gotta have backs that can catch. Caught five in this one and showed the hands are there.
B: I really like Troy Franklin’s body control. He’s not one of these fast tall guys. He’s actually a fluid athlete. Had a route in this one that really made me excited. Can bend and get from point A to point B with speed. I really like him.
*Bonus*
I caught bits and pieces of the LSU / Texas A&M game during the Noon window. Malik Nabers is really good. Really good. How do you deny the season he’s having? I don’t think he’s Jefferson or Chase but god he’s good. Sudden and a mover.
Ohio State
Kyle McCord still has work to do to be taken seriously as an NFL quarterback. Just way too many times where it’s first read and fire. Never has a prayer at going through reads. It’s not good enough against a defense like this. Showed some toughness and bounced back with some nice throws. It’s just not all there yet and probably needs to go back.
I really like number ten Denzel Burke. He’s pretty good at flipping his hips in coverage. On the Wilson touchdown, he was a hair away from getting the interception. Nice size on him too at 6-foot-1, 190.
Call me crazy but are we sure Emeka Egbuka is good? Where was he? Two bad drops. You know what he looks like? One of those bad imitations of Deebo Samuel. You know what I’m talking about Laviska Shenault, Wan’Dale Robinson, etc. Egbuka is better than those two but how confident are you that this is a dude you’re willing to pick high? Three catches for 24 yards and a score. K. Sure. Whatever. At some point you gotta make me excited. Maybe it’s just hard to do with Marv on the other side but I don’t think he’s nearly as good as JSN from last year.
J.T. Tuimoloau didn’t overtake the game. Wasn’t long Michigan had this elaborate dropback pass game either. I don’t really care. Still love the player. Just noting it that maybe this is one to go back and track later because I never really felt him. This defensive line did a decent job at stopping the run but I never felt this unit really get after the quarterback. Michael Hall is kinda interesting. He gets up the field really well but I don’t really know what to do with a 280 defensive tackle. That’s what he’s listed at but I don’t think he’s even that big.
Josh Proctor played as a deep safety the entire game. I’m not sure that’s his game. Not sure he can be that chess piece back there. The other safety Steele Chambers made a bunch of tackles but missed a bad one on Blake Corum’s score. Not sure either are worthy of getting excited about.
Michigan
JJ McCarthy was certainly better than I described this week but I still wasn’t blown away. What was his depth of target in this game? One really nice throw between two defenders. Other than that a lot of dinks and dunks. 16/20 for 148 and a score. Nothing that knocked my socks off but nothing that made me feel more discouraged either.
Zak Zinter got hurt in this one. Always hate to see that. He has an NFL future. I’ll just leave it at that and let the medical process play out.
Will Johnson deserves some respect. Guy just continues to prove he’s a really good player. Undercut Marvin Harrison Jr. for an interception. Looks really long too and has ball skills. He followed Harrison around the field for what felt like the entire game. Didn’t win every matchup but the fact that he even competed and made his impact felt is what should matter. It’s everything that Kalen King couldn’t do when Penn State played the Buckeyes.
How about the hit Mike Sainristil laid out on the running back Henderson? Corners that can tackle! Gotta have them. Good player. Keep in mind, this is a converted wide receiver with ball skills making this hit.
This defensive front is just really good. They have NFL players on that front. Junior Colson made a bunch of plays in space with timely tackles. Kris Jenkins is a load in the middle.
Alabama
Iron Bowl. What else do you want me to say? Auburn lost 31-10 to New Mexico State and the following week they should have beat Alabama. Any given Saturday!
Jalen Milroe is still a goof that has no idea what he’s doing. No way you trust him as a real NFL quarterback. It’s deep shot on the first read or take off and run. Even had a play in this one where he went to run, crossed the line of scrimmage, went backward, then threw it. Totally illegal and epitomizes who he really is.
Jermaine Burton genuinely impressed me. Really good game for him hauling in four receptions for 107 yards and a score. He’s becoming the number one there. Most of the damage, however, came on this deep shot where nobody covered him. Still made some really nice plays and is aware of his surroundings. Good toe tapper.
Deonte Lawson is a dude. I’m just saying. Don’t want to say he’s CJ Mosley but I don’t think he’s far behind and probably is faster.
Auburn
I like Jarquez Hunter. I think he’s a good back. He’s been getting meaningful playing time since his freshman year. Going for 6.6 yards per carry against Bama isn’t easy to do. Guy runs hard and should profile as a plus athlete. Solid 210 and tough. He will make it and if you need a running back late you won’t miss here.
Washington State
We’re positive that Michael Penix Jr. is better than Cam Ward? Would you bet your life on it? What about if you put Odunze on the other sideline? What about if you swapped coaching staffs? These are the questions you need to ask yourself because everything changes at the NFL level.
It’s hard to win on the road. Even hard to win when your team gets hit with 10 penalties for 85 yards. Even harder to win when your guys are dropping touchdowns. He still went 32/48 for 317 yards, three touchdowns, and two picks. Finished with a higher yards per attempt and QBR than Penix in the game.
What’s the gap? Ward is two years younger and probably should have won the game on the road with far less talent around him.
Washington
I said all I need to say on Penix in the previous section. I’ll just add this to it. If I turned the card in for that guy in the first round I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night. You’re out of your mind if you think he’s just going to walk in the league be the next left version of Tua. You people hate Tua. You’re watching Penix’s touch accuracy? 18/33 and missed far too many throws. The guy will be 24 soon. He should be dropping his nuts on the table every time he plays. Accuracy isn’t good enough. Injury history is extensive.
I’m not denying what he’s doing. The season on the whole has been impressive. Guess what? Nobody cares that Zach Wilson had a 33-3 TD to INT ratio his last year at BYU. You see but are you observing? I don’t see it and nothing about his arm actions are consistent.
You know who drops the nuts? Odunze over and over again. Jalen McMillian is back in the lineup. Ja’Lyn Polk couldn’t buy a catch. Rome makes both look tiny. I’ve watched this team several times and this dude is the best player on the field every time I watch. I think they have four fewer wins without him. He really might be that good.
How many times does he keep dropping games like this? Seven receptions for 120 yards and two scores. Also, had the play of the game on 4th down.
Florida State
The Seminoles were clearly limited throwing the ball without Jordan Travis. You felt it. Don’t want to discredit that despite the fact that I still think he’s Desmond Ridder at the next level. Keon Coleman had a freak punt return that help swing the tides. Johnny Wilson made a few nice catches.
The real breakout performance was Trey Benson and they needed it. Three touchdowns in this one and just ran like a dawg. I don’t know what got into that guy but he was possessed in this one. They needed him to do this too. Really good sign.
Jared Verse showed up in the 4th quarter when the game was on the line to seal it. I’ve been banging on Verse for a few weeks because he may as well have been in witness protection for some of the games I watched. No chance this is a top ten pick.
Really good game in this one. Dummied the Florida left tackle the whole game especially in pass rush. Maybe the Florida left tackle stinks and that may need to be looked further into. Still, that’s what good pass rushers do. Close the game out with a lead. Still not as high as public perception but this was a good sign.
Florida
Fire Billy Napier. Is there a worse-coached and more undisciplined team in the SEC? There are levels to this sport. Barry Odom is dominating at UNLV but look at what Missouri is doing without him? Napier is a cute Louisiana Tech coach. He’s not built for this and it’s so obvious. Florida should have won that game and they only didn’t because of that idiot. How do you have another takeaway? It’s the same stuff over and over again. Totally blew the game because his team wasn’t in line. Just bad.
Good game for Montrell Johnson who went for 18 and 107 including a score. He’s not even the best back on the roster but don’t think it’s crazy he can be another Dameon Pierce for someone.
Georgia
Don’t want to go crazy because Georgia should have won by more but clearly took the foot off the gas late in the game.
More than fine with the performance Carson Beck had. Didn’t need to go win the game. The skillset we have been seeing was there again.
I got three quick hitters.
1: Way to go, Kendall Milton. 18 carries for 156 yards and two scores. This is the guy we’ve been waiting for. Finally starting to pick up the momentum late in the season. He’s really helped himself and these Georgia backs have proven trustworthy at the NFL level.
2: Dominic Lovett led the team with five receptions for 68 yards and a score. No Brock Bowers so who was going to take over? Lovett did that and looked good. Still probably just a slot guy but he’s not untalented.
3: Did you see Smael Mondon running in coverage? That was so sick. LB1 and don’t care what you say. Go back and watch him cover one on one deep down the field as a middle linebacker. Find me another that’s better in college football. What he’s doing is crazy.
Georgia Tech
I’m not sure if Georgia Tech has an NFL player on their roster but what Haynes King did in this one was semi-impressive. Former Texas A&M transfer. Other quarterbacks have had far worse performances against this team. Not saying King is legit or anything but he’s clearly not a terrible athlete watching him just move around. I’ll leave it at that.
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