Six years ago, Jake Fromm was once a heavily targeted four-star quarterback prospect who had Southeastern Conference schools aiming to pilfer him — with Netflix chronicling his journey to Georgia in their series QB1: Beyond the Lights.
Now, the once prized Georgia commit is aiming to stay on with his third NFL roster, this time with the Washington Commanders.
Jake Fromm Was Once Nation’s No. 2 Ranked Pro-Style QB
Tracing back to his coveted preps career in Warner Robins, Georgia, Fromm was labeled the nation’s second-best pro-style quarterback by 247Sports. Rivals listed him as a four-star prospect as well while calling him the nation’s 20th-best overall prospect for the Class of 2017.
Fromm showed some early promise as a true freshman. He completed 66.7% of his throws in his debut versus Appalachian State, which was won by him and the Bulldogs 31-10. He was then given the starter reins the next week in his first big Power Five challenge in Notre Dame — resulting in a 141-yard day with one touchdown, one pick, and a Georgia win, 20-19.
Fromm would go on and see action in every Georgia game that 2017 season and produced one 300-yard day (326 versus Missouri on Oct. 14). The season ended, though, with Alabama beating Georgia 26-23 in overtime for the national title. Fromm threw for 232 yards, one touchdown, and was intercepted twice that evening. It was the same game that saw Jalen Hurts get replaced by Tua Tagovailoa on Alabama’s offensive side.
The next season, Fromm went on to put together an even stronger sophomore campaign that saw 2,749 yards, 30 touchdowns, and six interceptions. He delivered seven games of throwing between 3-4 aerial scores.
While his yardage went up to 2,860 his final season in Athens, Fromm only had three games of throwing for 3+ touchdowns and settled for just 24 touchdown passes with five picks.
What Were the Knocks on Fromm Before the NFL Draft?
While he played in some marquee games at Georgia, most CFB fans have likely remembered Fromm for falling short in larger games — a la the SEC title game and national championship.
In fact, Fromm’s last two Georgia teams were on the losing end of the conference title. Furthermore, he went an even 2-2 in bowl games…but the losses were his lone national title game appearance and a New Year’s Six defeat at the hands of an underdog Texas team in the 2018 season.
Fromm was praised for his football intellect and for playing with a strong composure while facing the toughest conference in the country on a weekly basis. However, NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein knocked him for having a below-average arm talent and velocity to his throws.
Fromm additionally struggled with establishing consistent pinpoint placement on his passes to his receivers. There was even a brief streak where he failed to complete 50% of his throws.
He eventually fell to the fifth round of the 2020 draft in a class that saw names like Joe Burrow, Tagovailoa, Justin Herbert, and Jordan Love go in the first round. Fromm, however, was released one season later by the Buffalo Bills before eventually returning to their practice squad.
Then, on Nov. 30, 2021, the New York Giants signed Fromm off of Buffalo’s practice squad. He saw limited action that season against the Dallas Cowboys and was eventually released in March 2022.
Now, after signing with Washington’s practice unit on Oct. 18, 2022, Fromm is on a reserves/futures contract with the Commanders. He’s now one of three QB options in a room that has veteran Jacoby Brissett and the newly named QB1 Sam Howell.
But for Fromm, it’s his chance to remain in the league now that he’s on his third NFL team in four seasons.