Since 2021, Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers has been anticipated as a potential first-round pick. Can he realize that potential in the 2025 NFL Draft with his scouting report?
Here, we analyze his game in-depth, and make a determination.
Quinn Ewers’ Draft Profile and Measurements
- Height: 6’2″
- Weight: 205 pounds
- Position: Quarterback
- School: Texas
- Current Year: Redshirt Junior
Few QBs have ever come out of high school with the buzz that Ewers carried when he left the halls of Carroll High in Southlake, Texas.
Ewers has always been a naturally gifted passer. He famously had his first scholarship offer even before high school. As a mere sophomore, he put up 3,998 yards, 45 touchdowns, and just three interceptions at the varsity level.
A consensus five-star recruit and the top overall recruit in the 2021 class, according to many outlets, Ewers originally committed to Texas to play football in-state on one of the game’s biggest stages. But soon after, he swapped his commitment to Ohio State.
Ewers enrolled at Ohio State in 2021, but sat behind eventual second overall pick C.J. Stroud for the entirety of the 2021 season. When it was clear that Stroud would keep the starting job in 2022, Ewers entered the transfer portal and returned to his home state.
Now passing for head coach Steve Sarkisian, Ewers has shown modest improvement over two seasons. In 2022 — his first year as a starter — he threw for 2,177 yards, 15 TDs, and six INTs. In 2023, he passed for 3,479 yards, 22 TDs, and six INTs at 69% completion, leading Texas to a Big 12 Championship and a College Football Playoff appearance.
In a wide-open 2025 NFL Draft QB class, many have eyes on Ewers as a potential riser, and Ewers himself has much to prove, with Texas’ first season in the vaunted SEC on deck.
What does he bring, what does he lack, and how can he reach his ceiling?
Ewers’ Scouting Report
Strengths
- High-end arm strength shows up when he’s able to fully drive and rotate his hips.
- Boasts quantifiably elite arm elasticity, with second nature angle adjustment skills.
- Can use his angle freedom to widen his release points, as well as layer pace and touch.
- Can rip sidearm passes off-platform and place throws where only his WRs can reach.
- Dangerous thrower on the run who can keep his shoulders level while floating laterally.
- Functional athlete with enough explosiveness and short-area quickness to evade threats.
- Has shown he can step up and climb the pocket while surveying vertical routes.
- Shows glimpses of poise in the pocket and can place middle-field passes to WR leverage.
- Flashes good successive pocket navigation, sensing pressure and sliding to reposition.
- Has the corrective mechanics to snap into phase out of play-action exchanges and load his base.
- Able to use controlled shoulder tilt to put loft on throws while maintaining pace.
- Can identify single-high, hold safeties, and capitalize with perfectly-placed go-balls.
- Showcases good command at the line for his age and can adjust protection looks.
- Has flashed the ability to anticipate placement on crossers and fit passes into pockets.
- Has the wherewithal to throw the ball away, and has decent outlet awareness.
Weaknesses
- Has decent height, but is around average size overall and lacks high-end mass.
- Lacks elite creation capacity and movement freedom and is a bit stiff and high-hipped.
- Arm strength, while very good, isn’t quite elite, as deep passes lose pace at times.
- Mechanics are too lax and undisciplined, and pressure easily erodes mechanical control.
- Lack of mechanical control and lower-body discipline can lead to scattershot accuracy.
- Lackadaisical dropback footwork can cause delays in pressure reaction and slides.
- Footwork can become segmented and uncoordinated when faced with pressure.
- Lack of consistent lower body drive can increase risk on tight-window throws.
- Concave elbow on release can sometimes push passes too high, missing targets.
- Downward shoulder drift can lead to low misses and groundballs in the short range.
- Relatively reliant on PA and RPO work and is not consistent going through progressions.
- Can attain greater consistency at anticipating route breaks on curls and corner routes.
- Field vision is questionable, and patience and pacing on progression work can improve.
- On occasion, will attempt to force ill-advised throws early in reps with his arm.
Current Draft Projection and Summary
At the start of the 2025 NFL Draft cycle, Ewers grades out as a mid-to-late Day 3 prospect on my board. That said, with another year of growth, he could potentially rise into the early-round range.
Ewers has a well-documented five-star pedigree, and his elite composite arm talent has drawn the awe of onlookers for years on end. But that ranking has also contributed to lots of residual hype in his draft-eligible phase — and in truth, he has more work to do.
Ewers’ arm elasticity is special, and it allows him to remain a passing threat from virtually any platform. He has more than enough strength to pair with that angle freedom, and while he’s not overly explosive or fast, he is quick enough to be a modest creative presence.
Going further, the high-end flashes of execution where Ewers is able to channel these tools are very impressive. He can layer pace and touch beautifully on vertical and seam throws, and he does flash the ability to recognize opportunities pre-snap and capitalize.
Unfortunately, at this moment in his career, Ewers’ execution is still very inconsistent on a down-to-down basis, and much of it stems from his mechanics. While he’s fluid and flexible as a thrower, he also has a frustratingly lax, free-styling mechanical nature that can run counter to optimal timing and alignment.
While Ewers’ arm elasticity can correct imperfect mechanics to a degree, his accuracy to all thirds can be inconsistent because of his lacking base discipline. Additionally, as a processor, his progression work and anticipation also require more consistency.
If the 2025 NFL Draft were today, Ewers would be worthy of Day 3 consideration as a backup and developmental spot starter. But because he’s not an elite athlete or creative threat, Ewers needs to refine his operational game and learn to play with more mechanical control and intent before he can field starter consideration.