Although it felt at times there was only one quarterback in last weekend’s NFL draft — the slip-sliding Shedeur Sanders who tumbled to the fifth round — there were actually 14 selected over the three days. That’s tied for the most taken in a draft since 2016.
Considering the impact of last year’s class, which included Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye, Michael Penix and Bo Nix, each of those quarterbacks drafted this year has to be encouraged that the window of opportunity is more than cracked open.
To get a better understanding about some of these players, the Los Angeles Times spoke to quarterback analysts Rick Neuheisel and Greg Cosell, who spend countless hours studying the position and prospects.
Neuheisel, a former UCLA quarterback, went on to become an offensive coordinator in the NFL and head coach at Colorado, Washington and his alma mater.
Cosell, a senior producer for NFL Films and analyst for ESPN’s “NFL Matchup,” spends much of his time breaking down game footage and evaluating college football players. The nephew of legendary broadcaster Howard Cosell, he’s widely respected in NFL circles for his knowledge of the game.
As he does every year, Cosell shared with The Times his highly detailed breakdowns of the top quarterback prospects, analyzing their strengths and weaknesses as did Neuheisel.
A look at the five quarterbacks selected before Cleveland drafted Sanders in the fifth round: