As far back as 2021, new Wisconsin quarterback Tyler Van Dyke’s early-round upside was visible. Now, after transferring from Miami, can Van Dyke realize his potential in the 2025 NFL Draft cycle with his scouting report? Let’s take a closer look.
Tyler Van Dyke’s Draft Profile and Measurements
- Height: 6’4″
- Weight: 230 pounds
- Position: Quarterback
- School: Wisconsin
- Current Year: Redshirt Senior
Every developmental path is different, but after the 2021 season, Van Dyke had many convinced he was a future early-round pick in the NFL Draft.
After joining the Miami Hurricanes as a four-star recruit from Connecticut in 2020 and backing up D’Eriq King, Van Dyke emerged as the ACC Rookie of the Year and ACC Offensive Newcomer of the Year, passing for 2,931 yards, 25 touchdowns, and only six interceptions.
Van Dyke’s redshirt freshman breakout had him on the NFL Draft radar as early as the 2023 cycle — but his development began to stagnate after that point. In 2022, he threw for 1,835 yards, 10 TDs, and five INTs in an injury-riddled campaign. In 2023, though his efficiency improved again, he threw just 19 TDs to 12 INTs.
Statistically, Van Dyke has struggled to return to his 2021 form, and, on tape, the question marks surrounding his down-to-down operational utility are still apparent.
But with a change of scenery at Wisconsin, can Van Dyke chip away at those flaws and take the next step?
Van Dyke’s Scouting Report
Strengths
- Boasts an ideal prototypical build with excellent height, mass, and play strength.
- Possesses a visibly strong arm that generates high levels of velocity with ease.
- Sports a crisp, fluid release that consistently produces tight spirals, launching pace.
- Keeps his off arm tight to his body to maximize rotational freedom and torque.
- Velocity carries to all ranges and can be channeled through arm angle adjustment.
- Extremely elastic arm allows for free-functioning angle manipulation at release.
- Elasticity allows him to remain a threat as a passer working off-platform and on rollouts.
- With composite arm talent, flashes pristine layering and pace on tight-window throws.
- Has decent vertical speed in open field and has enough mobility to sidestep rushers.
- Has shown he can use controlled shoulder tilt to add loft on boundary passes.
- Can effectively place back-shoulder passes where only his receivers can reach.
- Tough, relatively poised pocket operator with good spatial feel and pressure sense.
- Able to slide away from slanted pressure looks to give himself space and keep eyes up.
- Flashes good discretion and response to stimulus when shifting to secondary reads.
- Has the wherewithal to throw the ball away when nothing is there and when cornered.
Weaknesses
- Tall, high-cut build naturally leads to stiffness when changing directions and evading.
- Visibly lacks great freedom as a lateral athlete and is a leggy mover in space.
- Incongruent, unstable mechanics cause shoulder misalignment and bouts of inaccuracy.
- Sometimes fails to roll his base on short rhythm passes, causing throws to stall out.
- Lack of off-platform mechanical discipline and congruence can cause passes to sail.
- More often than not, is an area thrower who struggles with situational precision.
- Still seeking a more consistent balance of arc and energy on passes to the deep third.
- Will sometimes simply throw up ill-advised passes, either off the snap or off-script.
- Still has room to become more consistent with his anticipation and trigger on reads.
- Hesitation and delays between stimulus and response can increase turnover risk.
- Doesn’t command a great deal of trust with pre-snap and post-snap recognition.
- Eyes sometimes idle on initial targets, staring down receivers against zone coverage.
- Laundry list of injuries across Miami career could call long-term durability into question.
- Will be a 24-year old rookie at the start of the 2025 campaign.
Current Draft Projection and Summary
Entering the 2025 NFL Draft cycle, Van Dyke grades out as a late-Day 3 prospect. At Wisconsin, he’ll have one more opportunity to improve his stock.
Though he faces an uphill battle, Van Dyke does have the near-elite composite arm talent to suggest early-round upside.
At around 6’4″, 230 pounds, Van Dyke is a prototypical passer with exceptional toughness and poise. That, combined with his rare arm strength and arm elasticity, can lead to some incredible touch and tape of layered throws to the intermediate and deep levels.
That said, Van Dyke’s development has largely stagnated since his breakout season in 2021, and there are still glaring operational inconsistencies in all areas. Aberrations with processing, field vision, mechanics, and accuracy all remain, and his injury history may also be cause for concern for NFL teams.
Going further, while Van Dyke has good utility as an off-platform passer, he’s a below-average athlete and creative threat, which also limits his upside at the NFL level. If he can further refine his ability inside the pocket, he can rise — but his lack of mobility works against him.
As a pocket passer without high-end creation capacity, the margin for error is slimmer for Van Dyke, and he still needs major work on the operational side. In his current state, he’s a quality late-round addition as a developmental backup, but there’s more to be desired.
