Quinn Ewers, QB Texas: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Ewers was a five-star recruit from Southlake Carroll High School in Southlake, Texas in the class of 2021

Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers was one of the highest-ranked recruits in history. He flashed early in his time with the Longhorns before injuries and inconsistent play derailed his season. Ewers has a high ceiling, but he’s overshadowed by more developed quarterbacks in the 2024 NFL Draft class.

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Quinn Ewers, QB Texas: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Redshirt sophomore quarterback from Southlake, Texas

Background: Ewers was a five-star recruit from Southlake Carroll High School in Southlake, Texas in the class of 2021. He was the No. 1 recruit according to 247Sports, No. 1 for Rivals, and No. 3 for On3.com. ESPN ranked him 2nd in the nation with a 95 grade out of 100. Ewers reclassified to join Ohio State for the 2021 season. Afterward, he transferred to Texas. During his 22-game high school career, he completed 450 of 643 pass attempts for 6,445 yards passing, 73 passing touchdowns, and eight interceptions. He also rushed for 701 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns on 115 carries. As a high school junior, Ewers missed six of 14 games with a core injury but still completed 159 of 241 pass attempts for 2,442 yards, 28 touchdowns, and five interceptions while rushing for 133 yards and three scores. He led Southlake Carroll to a 12-2 overall record and an undefeated 6-0 mark in the district. He received Second Team 6A All-State honors from the Texas Sports Writers Association and was the unanimous MVP of District 5-6A. As a sophomore, Ewers completed 291 of 402 passes for 4,003 yards with 45 touchdowns and three interceptions to accompany 83 carries for 568 yards and nine touchdowns. He led a Southlake Carroll offense that averaged 49.3 points per game. The team finished with a 13-1 record and a 7-0 mark in the district. Ewers averaged 45.3 yards per punt on seven attempts as a freshman in 2018. He also played on the school’s baseball team.

Injuries & Off-Field: Missed six high school games in 2020 with a core injury, a shoulder sprain cost him three games in 2022

Awards: 2022 Honorable Mention Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year

Pros: Age, varies release and throwing motion speed, takes the checkdown when downfield routes are covered, productive at all levels of the field, comfortable throwing on the run and off-platform, velocity to drive the ball into small windows along the sideline, arm strength to access throws 50+ yards downfield, flashes of dropping the ball in a bucket over his receiver’s shoulder, layers the ball between the defense’s second and third level, applies touch at all levels, throws with anticipation, delivers in the face of pressure

Cons: Five fumbles in 2022, benefits from some pre-determined throws and half-field reads, needs to work through progressions faster, footwork can be a little hoppy, sidearm throwing motion where the launch point is outside of his frame, sidearm throwing motion seems to impact his accuracy negatively, release speed could improve, wish the ball arrived outside with more zip, arm talent doesn’t qualify as elite in this class, misses way too many open targets, ball placement varies between being high and low, ball placement is behind receivers crossing the MOF, misses wide on out routes, overthrown deep passes where he wasn’t on the same page as his receiver, downfield accuracy left big plays on the table, stares down targets, get tunnel vision which ignores open pass catchers, challenges double teams, vision doesn’t reveal safeties lurking over the top, breaks good pockets, mobility doesn’t scare defenses, burn the Oklahoma State tape (2022)

Overview: Ewers is one of the younger quarterbacks eligible for the 2024 NFL Draft. Outside of his lauded performance against Alabama, Ewers’ 2022 season was very inconsistent. His flashes of brilliance were outmatched by his head-scratching misses. The redshirt sophomore’s accuracy and ball placement will draw plenty of attention from evaluators this season, considering his recent struggles. Ewers varies his throwing motion speed to match receiving windows or beat pressure. He takes the checkdown when downfield routes are covered. Ewers is productive at all levels of the field and loves taking vertical shots. He is comfortable throwing on the run and off-platform. Ewers lacks elite arm talent, but he still drives the ball into small windows along the sideline. His tape includes flashes of dropping the ball in a bucket over his receiver’s shoulder. The nation’s former top recruit layers the ball between the defense’s second and third levels and applies touch at all levels. He separates himself from other college quarterbacks by throwing with anticipation at a high level. Ewers fumbled five times in 2022. He benefits from some pre-determined throws and half-field reads in Texas’ scheme. The former five-star recruit needs to work through his progressions faster. His footwork in the pocket gets hoppy at times. Ewers uses a sidearm throwing motion that puts his release point far outside of his frame. This motion seems to impact his accuracy negatively. Reworking this process to improve his accuracy and release speed could take significant time. Some of Ewers’ passes don’t arrive with enough zip, and his arm strength is more limited than ideal for passes over 50 yards downfield. He missed far too many open targets in 2022, spraying the ball wide on out routes or putting it behind receivers on crossers. Ewers and his receivers failed to connect in 2022. There were plenty of overthrown deep passes where he and his targets simply weren’t on the same page. Texas had a very talented group of pass catchers in 2022, but they dropped a significant number of catchable balls. That doesn’t excuse Ewers’ poor ball placement and downfield accuracy issues that left many big plays on the table. He stares down targets and gets tunnel vision, ignoring wide open pass catchers. The Texas native’s vision doesn’t reveal safeties lurking over the top. Ewers challenges double teams when he clearly shouldn’t. He breaks good pockets and doesn’t have the mobility to scare defenses.

Overall, Ewers has flashes of elite quarterback play, but his accuracy and ball placement resulted in more head-scratching moments than jaw-dropping highlights in 2022. Ewers can still turn things around and get back into the first round discussion if he displays significant growth in 2023.

Role & Scheme Fit: Pocket passer in a vertical passing offense

Round Projection: Third Round

Size: 6'2", 204 lbs. (Unofficial)

Submitted: 06-19-23