Spencer Rattler, QB South Carolina: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Rattler was a five-star recruit from Pinnacle High School in Phoenix, Ariz. in the class of 2019

There are a lot of outdated narratives about South Carolina quarterback Spencer Rattler. The redshirt senior isn’t the same player or person he was at Oklahoma. He has a chance to be a third round selection in the 2024 NFL Draft.

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

Spencer Rattler, QB South Carolina: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Redshirt senior quarterback from Phoenix, Ariz.

Background: Rattler was a five-star recruit from Pinnacle High School in Phoenix, Ariz. in the class of 2019. He was the No. 11 recruit according to 247Sports, No. 13 for Rivals, and No. 15 for On3.com. ESPN ranked him 29th (four-star) in the nation with an 86 grade out of 100. Rattler transferred from Oklahoma to South Carolina for the 2022 season. The Arizona native set the state high school record with 11,083 career passing yards to accompany 116 passing touchdowns, over 1,000 rushing yards, and 14 rushing touchdowns. He was selected for the All-American Bowl. Rattler was born on Sept. 28, 2000

Injuries & Off-Field: Injured his hip against Kansas (2020)

Awards: 2020 Honorable Mention All-Big 12, 2020 First Team All-Big 12 (Associated Press), 2020 Co-Big 12 Newcomer of the Year (Associated Press), 2020 National Freshman of the Year (CBS Sports), 2020 FWAA Freshman All-American, 2022 & 2023 South Carolina Rex Enright Captains’ Award

Pros: Rehabbing image, feet avoid getting stuck in the mud, adjusts speed and angle of release, quick throwing motion, excellent arm strength, easily accesses throws 50+ yards downfield, ball fires out of his hand with good velocity, drives ball on a frozen rope to the sidelines and over the MOF, velocity to beat tight windows along the sideline, passes lead receivers when throwing from a clean pocket, impressive understanding of touch, flashes of incredible ball placement, processing has sped up, plenty of reps with full-field reads, time to throw meets league standards, getting better at throwing the ball away, delivers throws with pressure in his face, moves the pocket while keeping eyes downfield, makes some pass rushers miss in the pocket, comfortable throwing on the move or off-platform, enough mobility to break the pocket and gain positive yardage

Cons: Questions linger about maturity dating back to Oklahoma, production never got back to 2020 levels, 14 fumbles over the past two years, deep drops in the pocket don’t help his linemen, doesn’t step up in the pocket consistently, must learn it’s better to eat the sack than attempt throws under pressure sometimes, lack of protection led to some negative tendencies at South Carolina (2023), throws off his back foot leading to ball hanging in the air, inconsistent base leads to arm-only throws, might be too willing to challenge tight coverage, trusting arm too much gets him in trouble with two-high safety looks, vision sometimes misses the lurking safety, could use more anticipation, significant number of throws that don’t lead receiver (especially over the MOF), must be careful throwing to the sideline late, was late to throw an intermediate out resulting in an interception vs. Georgia (2023), put too much air under some deep throws in 2023 resulting in interceptions, limited speed and agility to hurt defenses, overestimates athletic ability as a runner, drops his head a little too early versus pressure

Overview: Rattler arrived at South Carolina after a disastrous end to his tenure at Oklahoma that had many questioning his maturity and leadership. Fortunately, the past two years have done a lot to rehabilitate his image, and he was one of several Rex Enright Captains’ Award winners in 2022 and 2023 at South Carolina’s annual banquet award ceremony. While he never quite surpassed the peak he reached in 2020, Rattler showcased mental development on and off the field with the Gamecocks. His mid-play processing is much quicker and helps him go through full-field reads while getting the ball out in a timely manner. Rattler is also more willing to throw the ball away, but he still needs to learn when to take a sack instead of trying to get the ball out while under pressure. His attempts to get the ball away with defenders swarming have contributed to his 14 fumbles over the past two years. Rattler’s feet avoid getting stuck in the mud when operating in the pocket. His talent as a passer is why he drew first round interest entering the 2021 season. He adjusts the speed and angle of release to meet passing windows, and the Arizona native has a quick throwing motion. His arm strength is excellent and allows him to access throws 50 or more yards downfield. The ball explodes out of his hand with ideal velocity. Rattler puts the ball on a frozen rope to the sidelines and over the middle of the field. He throws with the velocity to beat tight windows. However, this natural talent leads to some arm arrogance. Rattler puts too much trust in his arm at times, leading him to challenge tight coverage. This trend combines with some lapses in vision to get him in trouble with safeties in two-high looks. Rattler must stop throwing to the sideline late since those throws are too easy for defenders to jump. He put too much air under some deep throws in 2023, resulting in interceptions by safeties. The redshirt senior usually leads receivers when throwing from a clean pocket, but there were a significant number of times when he didn’t lead his receivers over the middle of the field, resulting in difficult catches. Rattler needs to throw with more anticipation. He throws with impressive touch and has flashes of incredible ball placement, but his footwork leads to some inconsistent throws. The former five-star recruit doesn’t always set his base, leading to arm-only throws. He’s also guilty of throwing off his back foot, which results in the ball hanging in the air. Rattler takes deep drops in the pocket that don’t help his linemen, and he often fails to step up in the pocket to avoid the rush. He has the mobility to move the pocket while keeping his eyes downfield. Rattler is comfortable throwing on the move or off-platform and has enough mobility to break the pocket and gain positive yardage. However, his speed and agility limit his ability to threaten defenses with his legs. He is sometimes too quick to drop his head and rely on his legs.

Overall, Rattler’s processing has matured over the past few years, and he still has high-level arm talent to push the ball downfield or beat tight windows. His footwork in the pocket and decision-making against two-high looks must become more consistent. There will always be some level of boom-or-bust to Rattler’s game because of his faith in his arm, but his physical traits and recent improvement warrant a top 100 pick.  

Role & Scheme Fit: Pocket passer in a spread offensive scheme

Round Projection: Mid to Late Third

Size: 6'1", 217 lbs. (Unofficial)

Submitted: 12-18-23