The likes of Mel Kiper and Todd McShay are pioneers of the mock-drafting practice and draft analysis in general. Doubt they knew they were spurring chaos unto the sports realm. Draft analysis and all its iterations divide fans, stakeholders, and players alike into two factions. With some overlapping in the middle, sort of like a Venn diagram. Firstly, there are those who consider it a futile activity disassociated with reality. Then, those who consider certain people’s projections gospel and etched in fact. Finally, those who have no strong opinions take them on board but with a pinch of salt. After looking at one person’s QB rankings for April’s NFL Draft, Quinn Ewers will firmly fall into category 1.

The curious case of Quinn Ewers. A 5-star prospect coming out of high school whose stock seemingly declined year upon year in college. The 2024 draft saw the most QBs picked in the first round ever. With the competition being that tough, Ewers chose to stick around and enter the draft in 2025 instead. However, he’s actually lost ground during a year riddled with injuries. He’s even nursing one to his oblique right now and missed the Senior Bowl as a result. The consensus on Quinn Ewers is that he’ll be a Day 2 or 3 pick off the board. Not ideal, but still far from an indictment. However, those health concerns run deeper than a receiving route. They’ve now seeped into his NFL grade. CBS’ Danny Kanell has issued a public warning to front offices eyeing up Ewers.

Injuries plagued Quinn Ewers’ entire college career. After missing time in the 2023 season with an AC joint sprain, he found no respite last season, either. Back in Week 3, he went down with an oblique strain. Ewers returned in Week 7 while Arch Manning held it down in his absence. Turns out, he never fully healed from this injury and played the rest of the year through it. After Texas’ season ceased in the Cotton Bowl, this finally came to light. With all this and more baked in, Kanell ranks Ewers as the 6th best quarterback in this class. He gave his reasons on CBS Sports HQ. Discerning that all his regression stems from persistent health issues.

“I worry about two things. One, the top tier arm strength. Two are injuries,” remarked Kanell. “Ewers did not finish any season from start to finish. I wonder how much those injuries impacted his arm strength. The deeper [throws] started to bloop a little bit, started to hang in.” Ewers’ mobility in and out of the pocket was also visibly hindered after he returned last year. His arm strength and mobility, or lack thereof, can also be viewed from a different POV—paralysis by analysis.

Knowing he’s got a future in the NFL beckoning, Ewers could have had issues with confidence or a fear of re-injury. He didn’t look like the guy he was from even a year ago. Maybe Arch Manning breathing down his neck was also a factor for him to oversimplify his game. Ewers was largely cruising through games in 2nd gear. Whether this was physical or mental, neither bodes well for franchises weighing him up.

Quinn Ewers not partaking in the Senior Bowl means the Combine is ultra important for him to shed concerns about his tangibles and health. But things en route to Indy are looking bleak. Alas, there have even been suggestions that he should’ve returned to college for yet another year. An idea that gained traction after Bengals QB Joe Burrow fanned the flames of it.

Joe Burrow hints at agreeing with the notion Quinn Ewers should’ve remained in College Football

There may not be a lot of similarities between Joe Burrow and Quinn Ewers in how they’re perceived entering the NFL. Burrow was a Heisman winner and National Champ with LSU. However, there’s one transitive property- both were recruited by Ohio State. Before leaving for greener pastures. Burrow didn’t have the portal, though, so he had to graduate before switching base. Neither did he have as many or as lucrative NIL avenues. He spoke about this and implied Quinn Ewers and his kind should consider staying in college longer now. Owing to the money on offer.

“You should take advantage of NIL,” he told Dan Patrick. “If you’re going to be able to make seven figures in college, you’ve got to go and take advantage of that. If you’re in high school and you’re getting offered that, go wherever they’re paying you the most,” This came right after Patrick asked him about Ewers. Now, Burrow perhaps didn’t mean to direct his statement to Quinn in particular, but it still resounds. Given the market, Ewers could’ve likely made more money this season playing CFB than he’ll make during the entirety of his rookie-scale contract as a late-round pick!

 Ewers will just hope a solid organization takes a chance on him. The situation a malleable QB walks into can dictate the trajectory of their career. He’ll likely have to sit initially wherever he goes. If it’s an environment conducive to growth, Ewers could well get back to the levels expected of him out of high school. He’s vying for limited landing spots with a bunch of adversaries. There are still a lot of pages left of his story. Albeit injuries have indeed torn some pages out of the proverbial book of his career.