Why is QB Prospect Draft Stock so Low
In this upcoming draft class, there are a few bonified draft prospects. According to a Saints Wire mock draft, the top three draft picks will be quarterbacks, which could include Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy.
According to ESPN, during his three years at Michigan, he passed for 6,226 yards with 49 touchdowns to 11 interceptions. In 2022, McCarthy started as the Wolverines’ backup to then-quarterback Cade McNamara, who lost the job in Week 2. McNamara then transferred to Iowa as its starting quarterback but has battled injuries since transferring. However, according to ESPN.com, he does plan to return to Iowa for his senior season this fall.
According to the report, McCarthy's draft stock is late first-round grade. This is surprising because McCarthy won a national championship a few months ago, which usually drives draft stock up. For example, back in 2020, Zach Wilson had such a great pro day that he shot up draft boards and was taken No. 2 overall. Although it didn’t work out, McCarthy’s situation should be different because he learned from Jim Harbaugh.
Plenty of teams in the mid-to-late first round could take a quarterback. Teams that come to mind in the range that McCarthy could include the Denver Broncos, Las Vegas Raiders, Seattle Seahawks, and Pittsburgh Steelers.
According to this article, people think these teams may inquire about McCarthy because they are too far down to trade up to get a top quarterback without giving up a king’s ransom. The Denver Broncos hold the No. 12 pick in this year’s draft, Las Vegas has No. 13, the Seahawks hold No. 16, and the Steelers hold No. 20
It would make sense for the Denver Broncos to target McCarthy because they plan to move on
from Russell Wilson. If they decide to take McCarthy, Sean Payton would be a great teacher for McCarthy because he tailors his offense to his quarterback, which is the right way to do it. This is the right way to do it because if you marry an offensive coach with a rookie quarterback, the coach can design the offense to the player’s strengths. That rarely works when you have a defensive-minded coach because they focus on making the defense so good that they won’t have 2 to rely on the quarterback to win. However, the NFL has 18 out of 32 offensive-minded coaches, according to DecyFry Sport.
The Las Vegas Raiders and the Seattle Seahawks would target McCarthy because they hired an all-new coaching staff. The Pittsburgh Steelers might target McCarthy in the draft if they cannot trade for or find someone in free agency. Kenny Pickett hasn’t been that great since joining the Steelers in terms of being successful. The last time the Steelers won a playoff game was in 2017, when they had Ben Roethlisberger. The Steelers have made the playoffs the last few years, but that is behind such a great defense.
Based on the teams listed above, the best team he could go to is probably the Denver Broncos. They make the most sense because McCarthy would transition from a great college offensive mind to a great NFL offensive mind.