Kyron Drones, Virginia Tech: 2025 NFL Draft Profile & Scouting Report

Drones was a four-star recruit from Shadow Creek High School in Pearland, Texas in the class of 2021

Virginia Tech and quarterback Kyron Drones are in for a massive season. The Hokies have one of the most talented offenses in the ACC. Drones’ elite arm talent and high-level mobility will put him on NFL Draft radars as a potential Day 3 selection in 2025.

Visit my Twitter account @Sam_Teets33 for more opinions on prospects, clips, and the latest football content.

Kyron Drones, QB Virginia Tech: 2025 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Redshirt junior quarterback from Pearland, Texas

Background: Drones was a four-star recruit from Shadow Creek High School in Pearland, Texas in the class of 2021. He was the No. 263 recruit according to 247Sports and No. 216 for On3.com. Drones was an unranked three-star recruit for Rivals and an unranked four-star recruit for ESPN with an 80 grade out of 100. He transferred from Baylor to Virginia Tech for the 2023 season. MaxPreps credits Drones with completing 94 of 189 pass attempts in nine games as a high school senior for 1,530 yards, 21 touchdowns, and six interceptions. He also carried the ball 75 times for 472 yards and three scores. As a junior, Drones led Shadow Creek to a 16-0 record and the Texas 5A D-I Championship. He was the championship game offensive MVP, the 10-5A Overall MVP, and a Third Team All-State selection after completing 199 of 345 passes for 3,390 yards, 46 touchdowns, and ten interceptions. Drones also ran 134 times for 825 yards and 18 touchdowns. He completed 21 of 25 passes for 337 yards, four scores, and an interception as a sophomore. Drones also played basketball for Shadow Creek. According to 247Sports, Drones ran a 4.89 40-yard dash and a 4.45 20-yard shuttle as a high school sophomore.

Injuries & Off-Field: Missed some time as a high school senior as a precaution following an injury in his school’s season opener

Awards: 2023 Military Bowl MVP

Pros: Good body armor, examples of stepping up and around pressure, throws the ball away when nothing is open, no issue firing from off-platform positions and on the run, elite arm strength, unlocks all elements of the vertical passing game, capable of easily accessing throws 60 yards downfield, leads instead of underthrowing vertical routes, excellent velocity on throws outside the numbers, velocity unlocks tight window throws, throws darts with elite velocity over MOF, punishes zone-heavy defenses with well-placed throws, attempting to add touch on red zone fades, accuracy on downfield passes seemed to improve throughout 2023, RPO threat, can handle QB-designed runs, uses his blockers well on the run, creates chunk plays with his legs, impressive initial burst as a runner, squeezes through small gaps, top speed to outpace second and some third level defenders, power to muscle through some DB tackle attempts

Cons: Inexperience, penalized six times in 2023, ten fumbles in 2023, feet occasionally get stagnant in the pocket, footwork collapses when throwing under pressure, toesy or still backpedaling while throwing even when not pressured, holds the ball too long, looping wind up in throwing motion, release point contributes to awkward throws on dump offs, stares down targets giving DBs chance to undercut throws, arrives to throws too late, vision doesn’t reveal DBs waiting to undercut his passes, doesn’t see lurking safeties, vision leads to missed opportunities to hit wide open receivers (usually Da'Quan Felton), arm arrogance, doesn’t throw with anticipation, limited touch on short passes, velocity makes some short passes difficult to catch, attempts to add touch on short passes lead to awkward and inaccurate throws, throws to a general area not a precise spot, inconsistent ball placement at all levels, high ball placement on intermediate frozen ropes, limited downfield accuracy, deep passes miss as overthrows, lacks elite elusiveness, needs to slide to end runs more often

Overview: Drones lacks elite size but combines a thick, muscular frame with excellent mobility. Offenses can call designed quarterback runs for Drone. The former Baylor transfer creates chunk plays with his legs and has impressive burst. His top speed allows him to outpace second and some third level defenders, and he has the play strength to muscle through tackle attempts by defensive backs. Drones is an inexperienced passer with only 308 attempts under his belt entering 2024. He was penalized six times in 2023 and fumbled ten times. There are examples of Drones stepping up in the pocket and around pressure. He’s willing to throw the ball away when no one gets open and the defense starts closing in. Offenses can move the pocket and trust Drones to feel comfortable throwing on the move and off-platform. The redshirt junior has elite arm strength that unlocks all elements and levels of the vertical passing game. He leads receivers on throws downfield, even when the ball travels 60 yards in the air. Drones fires passes with elite velocity on throws outside the numbers and over the middle of the field. He excels at punishing zone-heavy defenses with well-placed throws. The Texas native showed improvement throughout his first season as a starter by adding touch to red zone fades and showcasing better accuracy on downfield passes. Drones is still a very raw prospect. His feet become stagnant in clean pockets, and his footwork totally collapses when throwing under pressure. He gets toesy and throws while backpedaling, even from clean pockets. Drones holds the ball for too long and has a looping wind up in his throwing motion. His release point also contributes to some stiff throws on short dump offs. Drones stares down his targets and throws to receivers late in plays, giving defensive backs chances to undercut his passes. His vision doesn’t always reveal these lurking defensive backs. The former four-star recruit also doesn’t see his own receivers running wide open through the secondary at times. He has arm arrogance, meaning he puts too much faith in his arm to fit passes into disadvantageous coverages. Drones doesn’t throw with anticipation, and his high-end velocity and lack of touch make his short passes difficult to catch. His attempts to add touch to short passes make the ball wobble and lead to awkward and inaccurate throws. Drones still throws to a general area instead of a precise spot, which leads to inconsistent ball placement at all levels. His passes sail high when he drives them with too much velocity on intermediate passes, and his deep throws have limited accuracy. Overthrows on deep vertical passes are common. Drones needs to slide to end runs more often.

Overall, Drones is a mobile, dense quarterback with a rocket arm, but he’s still learning the mental aspects of the game and regularly struggles with accuracy and ball placement issues. Drones made progress toward the end of 2023, but his best long-term path to the NFL is returning to school in 2025. 

Role & Scheme Fit: Mobile quarterback in an RPO & play action heavy offense

Round Grade: Mid Fifth to Mid Sixth Round

Size: 6'2", 234 lbs. (Unofficial)

Submitted: 06-19-24