This is the part of the draft process that I hate. The over analysing of good prospects for the sake of something to do.
This time an “anonymous” scout told NFL Network that Mariota may slip in the NFL Drat because she isn’t a pure passer.
“Speaking to scouts, expect to see Mariota’s four games in Nov. ’13 to be a focus in the spring,” he tweeted. “Mariota hurt his knee on 10/26/13. And with his wheels, and the option game, limited over the next month, he struggled as a passer.”
He went on to critique Mariota:
“I personally don’t think Marcus is a pro-ready quarterback. I don’t think he’s a guy that can play right away. I think he’s a guy that has to sit for a year or two, learn an NFL system. I think as this process goes on you’re going to see Marcus Mariota’s stock drop a little bit because he is not pro-ready.”
“He’s a phenomenal talent. He’s a great kid. But he’s not ready to play in a traditional system.”
It’s hard to call a guy with over 50 total TDs and only 3 picks an average passer. Everything I’ve seen says that he has great anticipation, a strong arm, and pocket awareness that allows him to quickly gain balance to make difficult throws. All attributes of the best QBs in the NFL.
