The Super Bowl champions have been crowned, and the focus has swiftly pivoted towards the Draft. But the Eagles are a lesson headed into April. Philly’s success was largely down to the sum of their parts. Hindsight is 20/20, but the consensus notion throughout was that their roster was the most stacked in the league. Not dependent on one player, unlike the opposition, whose one key player laid a bit of an egg. That said, the MVP in the championship game was still Jalen Hurts. A second-round pick who came in with more questions than answers. Deemed replaceable by a blueblood program. Those aspects are directly translatable to another QB in the upcoming NFL Draft, and franchises are seemingly catching on.

Akin to how Jalen Hurts was forced to pass the baton to Tua Tagovailoa at Alabama, Kyle McCord was deemed surplus to requirements at Ohio State. Akin to Jalen Hurts, he’s only gone from strength to strength after their perceived setback. Just this past season, McCord broke the all-time ACC yardage record for a single season for the Syracuse Orange. Now that he prepares to ascend to the next rung of the football ladder, he’s laser-focused. Quite literally!

Over on IG, @nflrookiewatch relayed some promising news pertaining to Kyle McCord to his 54k followers. This also goes for his X page with 166k on there. The post provided an account of how McCord performed in the S2 Cognition evaluation, among other things. The eval is run by a private firm by the same name and “combines state-of-the-art technology with an in-depth understanding of how athletes’ brains are wired for the game. This technology is the only of its kind to accurately measure an athlete’s reactions with millisecond precision.” Essentially, it uses 9 different tests to measure cognitive ability. The NFL, alongside other leagues, has been a proponent of using the test to gauge prospects. Especially for QBs. Turns out, Kyle McCord’s results were off the charts.

The post relayed that “McCord reportedly recently scored in the 99th percentile on the S2 cognition test.” Although test scores aren’t made official, certain high-profile ones have been leaked. Bryce Young, for instance, scored a 98. Conversely, CJ Stroud scored a measly 18. Given how the 2023 draft went, it’s safe to assume these evaluations are vital data points in the process. McCord is making inroads beyond just this facet. There has also been credible reporting about McCord being perceived as the best leader in this class. More so than Shedeur Sanders and even Cam Ward. Ward’s controversial actions at Miami’s Bowl game seemingly cost him brownie points among scouts and front offices in that regard. As for Shedeur, the last name tags along some undue baggage. Things bode well for McCord, and it may be surprising to some. But he’s got one thing working in his favor—experience.

Kyle McCord will go down in the annals of college football. As hyperbolic as that may sound, it’s unequivocally true. He’s garnered over 8500 total yards in his vetted career spanning across 2 programs, most of which came at Ohio State. Kyle McCord is so much of a staple at the college level that he didn’t want to leave! Although he completed his final year of eligibility, McCord filed a waiver with the NCAA, attempting to gain an extra year. He cited the fact he played 5 games as a true freshman while the redshirt threshold sits at 4. His appeal was denied, and he’s now headed to the NFL. So, which franchises are in the reckoning for this relatively old but seasoned signal-caller?

Franchises vying for Shedeur and Cam different than those in the Kyle McCord sweepstakes

McCord presents a unique opportunity. One could argue he’s closer to his ceiling than Jalen Milroe or Quinn Ewers. That’s the glass-half-empty perspective. The glass-half-full perspective dictates he can plug in straightaway and provide more stable quarterbacking than Milroe, who has a total of 27 starts in CFB. As a result, Kyle McCord will be enticing for teams that aren’t looking for a long-term project but, in fact, a solution from the jump. While Shedeur Sanders and Cam Ward will go to franchises in need of a messiah figure, McCord fits the remit for those further along in the hierarchy. A couple of teams fall in this category.

The NY Jets mortgaged a lot of their future for a short championship window in the present. But at the crux of their chances was Aaron Rodgers. As with everyone, Father Time caught up to the future golden jacket, and he’s now out the door. Meanwhile, new head coach Aaron Glenn still has a stacked roster that can make noise if they get above-average QB play. With the likes of Davante Adams, Garrett Wilson, and Breece Hall as weapons, Kyle McCord can facilitate the offense. Similarly, the Steelers are also a viable landing spot. If Russell Wilson doesn’t return, Mike Tomlin could do with someone who’s more of a pocket-passing threat than Justin Fields.

The Jets, in particular, have been reported as a possible home for Kyle McCord. He’d probably like that, having already been stationed in New York with Syracuse. But that’s just conjecture. For now, McCord will seek to keep this momentum going during the Combine and Pro Day. The QB class for ‘25 is not as high as previous years in terms of quality. However, there’s a lot of volume. A host of names are grading in and around Day 2, and McCord will seek to create separation from his contemporaries. Jaxson Dart, in particular, is a bit of a direct rival, given his similar level of production, play style, and experience in CFB. A career-altering couple of months beckon for McCord and the rest.