QB Deshaun Watson, CLE (3 Viewers)

Bronco Billy said:

Yes.  I especially believe that to be true about any QB not considered a slam dunk (like Luck).

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flapgreen said:

I'm not a scout, obviously.   Just going by the history of qbs being drafted. Bunch of teams need one.  The success of qbs taken after the first round is not very good. Arguing on who deserves it and who doesn't is a different discussion.  Will have to leave it to the NFL scouts and GMs to decide, but I think need alone will lead to at least 4 qbs being taken in the top half of the first round. 

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-OZ- said:

That's exactly the conversation worth having. 

Drafting geno smith in the first round would not have increased his odds of success. Statistics mean less than makeup of the individual player.  

Eta: I'll gladly take the under. 

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Wire's Cole Thompson believes that Clemson QB Deshaun Watson "should be the consensus No. 1 QB moving forward."
We probably wouldn't go so far as to say that Watson is now the consensus top quarterback in the class -- there are going to be those who prefer Mitchell Trubisky or perhaps DeShone Kizer or Pat Mahomes -- but at the very least, he was a consensus winner coming out of the Combine. Watson was the most accurate quarterback in throwing drills over the weekend. CBS Sports analyst Rob Rang is of the opinion that the former Clemson gunslinger could be closing in on a top-10 selection.

 
 
Source: Draft Wire 
Mar 7 - 8:59 PM

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CBS Sports draft analyst Rob Rang writes that "few [scouts] expected that [Clemson QB Deshaun Watson] would look as polished as he did in the five- and seven-step drops."

Rang passes along that Watson was the most accurate quarterback during throwing drills in Indianapolis. The analyst still views UNC's Mitchell Trubisky as the top gunslinger in the class, but believes that Watson might have narrowed the gap and could well have turned himself into a top-10 pick over the weekend. He notes that quarterback-hungry teams near the top of the draft "could be dazzled with [Watson's] poise and upside."


 
 
Source: CBS Sports 
Mar 7 - 6:03 PM

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CabinFever said:

Not sure I want to focus too much on that metric 

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CabinFever said:

I don't know, what was RG3's ball velocity?   Not sure I want to focus too much on that metric 

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Bracie Smathers said:

Jared Tokarz‏ @NFLDraftInsider  19h19 hours ago




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Ball velocity (MPH) from NFL Combine 60 - Mahomes 59 - Webb 56 - Kizer 55 - Trubisky, Evans 53 - Peterman, Kaaya 49 - Watson
Jared Tokarz‏ @NFLDraftInsider  7h7 hours ago




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Jared Tokarz Retweeted Jared Tokarz

Wentz 57 Mariota 56 Flacco 55 Prescott 54 Goff 58
Jared Tokarz added,






Jared Tokarz @NFLDraftInsider
Ball velocity (MPH) from NFL Combine 60 - Mahomes








Jared Tokarz‏ @NFLDraftInsider  7h7 hours ago




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Man, I know people say 49mph is not big deal for Watson. But looking back at all QBs, 54mph seems to be the min for a successful NFL QB.

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An NFL coach speaking with Fox Sports' Bruce Feldman said Clemson QB Deshaun Watson will benefit greatly from the rookie success of Dak Prescott.
Per Feldman, teams may put a greater draft value on Watson following Prescott's success despite questions about his accuracy and unforced turnovers. "A lot of those quarterbacks (in Indy) got the deer-in-headlights look. He was great when the spotlight was brightest and I think that will hold up at the next level," an NFL coach said. "I like what Clemson does. They’re maximizing matchups and are really good at finding ways to declare the coverages by lining up in certain formations so they have the answers to the test, and Deshaun really did a good job with that when you ask him what type of information are you gathering with that."

 
 
Source: Fox Sports 
Mar 15 - 12:37 PM

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An anonymous NFL scout speaking with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel said Clemson QB Deshaun Watson is like a more athletic Teddy Bridgewater.
"Better athlete than Bridgewater," said the scout. "Arm strength? Probably similar. You don’t see him throwing the same pro kind of routes that Teddy did. He does make some NFL throws but he’s not going to be a guy who will wow you physically. Kind of lean-boned. There will be some concerns about withstanding because he hasn’t been hit a lot. Great athlete for the position." Watson ran a 4.66s forty at the Combine. "He’s No. 1," said another scout. "He’s played the best in the biggest stages. His best thing is leadership and he’s a winner. He has to develop into a pocket passer." A third scout likened Watson to Robert Griffin III. "He’s not as fast and isn’t as good a pure athlete but he’s like Griffin in that he beats you on the edges and not out of the pocket," he said. "He’s not a pure passer. You have to admire the way he brings teams back. That’s something you can’t discount."

 
 
Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel 
Mar 14 - 1:24 PM

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Analyst's Tony Pauline hears from multiple sources that Clemson QB Deshaun Watson's struggles with "accuracy and timing on the deep outs and out to the flanks" will be problematic for the NFL.
"A longtime friend affiliated with Clemson told me Watson struggles throwing to his left," Pauline wrote, "and it showed [during Thursday's pro day]." One scout referred to the quarterbacks's showing as a "B-minus/C-plus type workout." Watson was a consensus winner in his throwing drills at the Combine, but Thursday's performance does not appear to have done much to build on those early strong reviews.

 
 
Source: Draft Analyst 
Mar 16 - 6:41 PM

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need2know said:

He should be the first overall pick

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ESPN's Todd McShay wrote that at the Combine and on pro day "it was clear that [Clemson QB Deshaun] Watson has tried to rectify [upper-body throwing tendencies]."
"Watson has shortened his stride and is firing his hips first, which allows his arm to become the elastic band in the equation, rather than the driving force," McShay explains. He notes that when he threw with this adjustment, "the ball came off his hand with better trajectory and more velocity." The analyst writes that while Watson sometimes reverted back to poor habits with his mechanics during pro day work, "it's an encouraging sign that the quarterback has devoted so much time to refining his technique."

 
 
Source: ESP

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The NFL Network's Charley Casserley polled the personnel of 22 NFL teams regarding their preferred quarterback, with Clemson's Deshaun Watson receiving the most votes with nine.
Watson led the field in Casserley's informal poll, followed up closely by North Carolina QB Mitchell Trubisky. Trubisky received eight votes. Of the remaining five votes, Texas Tech's Pat Mahomes drew two while the remaining three clubs polled checked in undecided. That is bad juju for Notre Dame QB DeShone Kizer, who received no votes at all.

 
 
Source: NFL.com 
Mar 21 - 9:58 PM

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Faust said:

The Instructive Case Of Deshaun Watson

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In his second set of positional rankings during the evaluating process, NFL Media's Bucky Brooks tagged Clemson QB Deshaun Watson as the No. 1 quarterback in this class.

DeShone Kizer stood atop Brooks' first rankings release, but ceded top-shelf billing to Watson this time around. Those two gunslingers are followed up (in order) by UNC's Mitchell Trubisky, Texas Tech's Pat Mahomes and Cal's Davis Webb. No surprises, there. These five are viewed universally as the five best quarterbacking prospects in this class, with the order varying depending on which outlet and analyst is your cup of tea. While it is unlikely that all five are drafted in the first round, such a circumstance is not impossible. Watson, Kizer and Trubisky are strong bets for Day 1 selections and both Mahomes and Webb have enough developmental intrigue about them that they could see love in the final ten picks of the first round. Stay tuned. Less than a month to go, friends.

 
 
Source: NFL.com 
Mar 28 - 5:57 PM

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The Jacksonville Jaguars will host Deshaun Watson for an official visit on Thursday.

The Jags haven't yet picked up the 2018 option on Blake Bortles' contract. They have until early May -- just after the NFL Draft -- to make a decision on the No. 3 overall pick in 2014. For the record, NFL.com analyst Daniel Jeremiah believes using a middle-round pick on a signal-caller is the most likely scenario here. The Jaguars own the No. 4 overall pick and come up again in Round 2 at No. 35.

 
 
Source: NFL.com 
Apr 5 - 1:21 PM

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Bleacher Report's Matt Miller hears from one director of player personnel that Bills GM Doug Whaley is smitten with Clemson QB Deshaun Watson.

This director of player personnel does not see an early run on quarterbacks come Day 1 of the draft -- he said, "I think it happens in the 20's" -- but admits that the Bills could potentially throw a wrench into that hypothesis. Speaking with Miller, he said that Buffalo could make a run at Watson with the 10th pick if Whaley is "as in love with Watson as we hear he is." Should Watson slide into the 20's, though, the Chiefs are one team to watch at No. 27. Kansas City met with Watson on Monday of this week and has been tabbed as a potential NFL home for the Clemson star in several industry mock drafts.

 
 
Source: Bleacher Report 
Apr 7 - 4:06 PM

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Faust said:

Tuscaloosa bar apologizes to Watson after QB asked to leave

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dual mock draft with Mel Kiper Jr., ESPN's Todd McShay projected the Chargers to select Clemson QB Deshaun Watson at No. 7.
The Bills, Browns and Chiefs are among the teams that have been most heavily connected to Watson thus far. Los Angeles has yet to enter that rumor mill to any serious degree, but McShay sees the Chargers as a fine fit. Wrote the analyst, "Do the Chargers have bigger needs? Yes. But this move would be about giving coach Anthony Lynn a clear succession plan at quarterback for Philip Rivers." McShay is keen on the possibility of sitting Watson behind an established starter before he is dumped into the NFL fire. As for McShay's draft partner-in-crime, Kiper waits until No. 12 before slotting Watson to those aforementioned Browns.

 
 
Source: ESPN Insider 
Apr 8 - 3:35 PM

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Clemson QB Deshaun Watson is visiting the 49ers on Monday and Tuesday and will visit the Cardinals on Wednesday.

The 49ers pick No. 2 overall in the first round and are scheduled to come back on the clock in Round 2 at No. 34. San Francisco won't pick Watson No. 2 overall, but may be interested in trading back into the first stanza if he begins to tumble down the board. The Cardinals sit at No. 13 and have been sniffing around the class' top signal-calling prospects.

 
 
Source: Ian Rapoport on Twitter 
Apr 10 - 1:09 PM

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NFL Network's Mike Mayock compared the leadership of Clemson QB Deshaun Watson to that of Titans QB Marcus Mariota.
"He's a quiet leader. A little bit like Marcus Mariota. He's not a screamer, but his teammates really respect him," Mayock said. The analyst is sold on Watson's intangibles, but offered more questions when it came to his on-field tendencies. "When he had to go beyond [his first read], I thought his decision-making really went downhill. He's got a long way to go," Mayock said. Watson took visits to both the 49ers and Cardinals last week. He could potentially draw a top-10 selection later this month.

 
 
Source: philly.com 
Apr 17 - 2:20 PM

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ESPN's Josina Anderson reports the Bills will meet with Clemson QB Deshaun Watson on Friday.

This report just adds more smoke to reports of Buffalo's not-so-secret admiration for Watson. Earlier this month, for instance, Bleacher Report's Matt Miller reported hearing from one director of player personnel that Bills GM Doug Whaley is "as in love with Watson as we hear he is." Watson is no certainty to be available when Buffalo picks at No. 10 overall. Chicago, picking No. 3, is reportedly interested. And Cleveland has reportedly talked to the Jets about moving to No. 6 -- from No. 12, hopping Buffalo -- to land a signal-caller. Stay tuned.

 
 
Source: Josina Anderson on Twitter 
Apr 20 - 12:44 PM

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Deshaun Watson, Clemson


"His body of work impressed me the most. He went to back-to-back national championship games. He beat the best teams in college football. I love the poise that he plays with. He played his best football when Clemson was behind and all the chips were on the table. He's got thick skin, and he's mentally tough. I saw him overcome three interceptions to come back and beat Louisville. I like his overall game. He's athletic. He's a dual-threat. He's got the intangibles that everyone craves."

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Andy Dufresne said:

Every time I read about Gruden being high on a player I remember how much he frothed over EJ Manuel.

Gruden is the biggest fraud there is.

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Faust said:

ESPN's Jon Gruden Analyzes 2017 QB Draft Class

Excerpt:

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Andy Dufresne said:

Every time I read about Gruden being high on a player I remember how much he frothed over EJ Manuel.

Gruden is the biggest fraud there is.

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Faust said:

Jon Gruden calls E.J. Manuel a "first round talent"

Gruden excited about EJ Manuel's potential

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