The proverbial book on Jalen Milroe’s college career has reached its conclusion. It was more of a short story than a novel, with merely 2 years atop the depth chart and 27 total starts for Alabama. The discourse pertaining to him has now pivoted towards April’s NFL draft board. Milroe is projected to be picked anywhere between Day 1 and Day 2. The exact number where Roger Goodell will take his name is far from set in stone. Owing to his inexperience and liquid NFL grade, Milroe was one of the biggest stories at the Senior Bowl. How did he take this opportunity to make inroads with scouts and the front-office powers that be? Well, let’s just say he didn’t quite “let the naysayers know.”

Jalen Milroe is a bit of an unknown quantity by all accords. His best attribute is that he’s a dual-threat QB. The guy can leg it for a first down almost any time. That’s irrefutable. However, his arm is still a work in progress, to put it lightly. The ceiling is high, though, if he’s developed properly. As such, Milroe was being weighed up by franchises with extra scrutiny down in Mobile, Alabama. Over on the @nflrookiewatch IG profile, those who run it reported some alarming news from the Senior Bowl. “Milroe reportedly ‘struggled’ much of practice, throwing INTs, skipping balls, and having issues with accuracy all day long. At one point, Milroe reportedly missed 8 throws in a row during 1-on-1 drills,” read the post. In the wake of this initial misstep in Mobile, Jalen Milroe has spoken about his ongoing preparation for the Combine and Pro Day.

Over the GoJo and Golic YouTube channel, Milroe sat down with the namesake hosts out in NOLA ahead of the Super Bowl. He was asked how he’s dealing with essentially being back to square 1 as he embarks on fresh territory with the NFL. These interviews may seem unassuming, but it’s all baked into the final decision franchises make on a player. “I try to narrow my focus to just each day. Just trying to attack each and every day and seize every opportunity to get better,” said Jalen Milroe.

Milroe mentioned being out in Orange County training and preparing for the draft with Bills backup QB Mike White and QB coach Jordan Palmer. Who also trained the likes of Joe Burrow and Josh Allen coming out of college. “We’re just trying to pour each and every day into our toolbox. We’re trying to build just seizing every opportunity…I think it’s so important just being around the right people,” he said.

Begrudgingly, Milroe had to face some prejudicial critique during Senior Bowl week, too. One with racial undertones that Lamar Jackson also had to contend with during his ascension from college. He was confronted about switching over to the running back position. “No, it’s always quarterback,” he said. “Of course, the question is asked—switching positions, something like that, what I can do…But you never ask a zebra to be a dog.” This was reported by Chris Simms of NBC.

These damning revelations around the Senior Bowl come in the wake of one potentially QB-needy AFC side supposedly weighing up Milroe as a real possibility. The signal caller will hope he hasn’t burned bridges with his showing. But the signs point to that being the case. Prospects yearn for a situation and franchise of this sort coming out of college. Milroe only had one year as a starter under Nick Saban. Now, there’s a future Canton inductee who’s reconsidering drafting him after reportedly warming up to the idea.

Mixed reporting around an interest in Jalen Milroe for Mike Tomlin and the Steelers

About a fortnight ago, Pittsburg-based reporter Andrew Fillipponi stated, “Source: There are Steelers scouts who ‘love’ Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe. Believe he’s a 1st round talent. And potential franchise quarterback. Mike Tomlin will see him next week at the Senior Bowl. Stay tuned.” As this was relayed to his over 100k X followers, it instigated discourse around whether this was a good move for the Steelers. They have Russell Wilson on a very cheap deal (for them at least, sorry, Broncos) as well as Justin Fields in the wings. Fields is a more intriguing aspect of this ordeal.

You could argue both Milroe and Fields are of a similar archetype. Running QBs who haven’t been able to compliment their athleticism with an arm. That wrinkle makes this either off-putting or more fascinating for a Steelers fan, depending on your thoughts on Justin Fields. Sitting Milroe for a year while he learns the ropes is a viable route with 2 starting-caliber QBs already in the building. Alas, the Senior Bowl really did throw a massive spanner in the works. Over the weekend, the Athletic’s Mike DeFabo reported something that almost does a full 180 in contradicting Fillipponi’s reports.

DeFabo has heard from inside the Steelers’ camp that they believe Jalen Milroe will be off the board well before they’ll be willing to pick him. The glass-half-full perspective on that shall be, ‘Hey, that means they’re interested for real,’ which relates to Fillipponi’s info. Conversely, the other perspective dictates that they don’t consider him a must-have. Or else they’d draft him in round 1, where he should fall to the Steelers. Whatever the case, Jalen Milroe is now staring at the Combine as his next shot at winning people over. He’ll have to make amends, or else he could slide down the QB hierarchy very quickly.