When it comes to handicapping the quality of the quarterbacks in April's NFL Draft, most draft analysts are unanimous in rating Indiana's Fernando Mendoza as a runaway at No. 1. After Mendoza, who is expected to be selected first overall by Las Vegas, it's unlikely they say that we'll see another QB taken in the Top 10.
Which brings us to Saturday's Senior Bowl in Mobile, AL, and several days of practice in which a group of signal-callers has been trying to complete passes, show their best for the assemblage of NFL scouts and generally say the right things. At the invite-only event, the top QBs in attendance include Diego Pavia (Vanderbilt), Garrett Nussmeier (LSU), Taylen Green (Arkansas), Luke Altmyer (Illinois), Cole Payton (North Dakota State) and Sawyer Robertson (Baylor).
Diego Pavia: 'I Want to Be Myself'
Pavia (5-10, 198) led Vanderbilt to a 10-win season, finished second to Fernando Mendoza in voting for the Heisman Trophy, was the SEC's Offensive Player of the Year, First-Team All-SEC, and was named a second team All-American by The Associated Press.
Asked by the NFL Network crew who he tries to model his game after, Pavia mentioned Johnny Manziel and Baker Mayfield.
"And so that's like who I am, but I only want to be known as Diego Pavia," he said. "I want to be myself, self-made."
In his second season with the Commodores after two years with New Mexico State, Pavia threw for 3,539 yards, hitting on 70.6 percent of his passes (267 of 378) for 20 TDs and 4 INT. He also ran for 862 yards and 10 TDs.
He's an acknowledged leader, though some experts have questioned his ability to excel in the NFL at only 5-10. Senior Bowl executive director Drew Fabianich is not among those people.
"He's a winner, I mean, he's got that," Fabianich said. "He's got that A-type personality. I mean, when he walks in the room you know he's a leader. And, you know the thing he said yesterday, which is true, he said, 'I just win.' And he does. I mean, everywhere he's ever been, I mean New Mexico State, Vanderbilt."
He added: "They're just going to have to figure out whether you're going to change an offense and use his legs, use a lot more RPOs, you know, and decide what your philosophy is on offense. Because, you know, it's hard as a 5-10 quarterback to see over the line of scrimmage. He's not going to be a pocket passer. You're not going to be a five-step, seven-step play-action guy. You're just not. So that's more of a philosophy."
Garrett Nussmeier: Back in Jersey No. 13
At the start of his college career at LSU, Nussmeier was handed jersey No. 18, a shirt that has special significance for the Bayou Tigers -- focus, attention to detail and leadership.
After an up-and-down season (for the team and the player), Nussmeier was on the practice field in Mobile sporting his favorite number, which was also worn by his dad, Doug. The elder Nussmeier is the New Orleans Saints' offensive coordinator who played in college at Idaho (1989-93) and was a fourth-round selection (No. 116 overall) in the 1994 Draft. He played for four NFL teams (1994-99) and finished his playing career in the CFL in 2000.
"It's an extreme honor to wear 18 at LSU, and it's something that I'm forever grateful for," he said. "I'll forever bleed purple and gold. I'm a Tiger for life, and I have a lot of love for those guys, and wish them nothing but the best, and I'll be rooting for them every single week for the rest of my life. But, I've always worn 13, grew up and it just was my number. My dad wore it for the Saints, and my dad wore it here in this game 30 years ago. So just to be able to continue wearing that number means a lot to me, and so I'm grateful to have that opportunity."
Taylen Green: A Work in Progress
Green has all the physical attributes (6-6 and a nearly 7-foot wingspan) and a lot of room to grow. He's acknowledged where he needs to improve and has gotten to work in Mobile.
"Just my processing, being able to command the huddle, an NFL-type offense," he said. "And just to improve, I can throw the ball and be versatile in that. Also run it, just be a true dual-threat quarterback."
Green transferred to Arkansas after three seasons at Boise State, and this past season he had 2,714 passing yards, 19 TD passes (11 INTs) and rushed for 771 yards (12th-most among FBS QBs) with 2 rush TDs.
Quick Hits
Luke Altmyer drew praise from ESPN's Jordan Reid for his strong play in practice on Thursday. "At 6-foot-1, 210 pounds, Altmyer has not only shown that he's reliable attacking the middle of the field, but his touch on deep passes has remained consistent," Reid said.
Cole Payton, a left-hander with a looping throwing motion, has turned in strong performances in practice that drew notice from Matt Miller of ESPN. "The 6-foot-2, 229-pound Payton has solid arm talent, but what most impressed me was his ability to put the ball on his man despite not having fully developed the trust and feel with the wideouts he's working with," Miller said.
Sawyer Robertson, a top scholar-athlete who threw for 31 TDs for Baylor this season, at 6-4, 220 has the size and arm strength to get a shot at the next level. "I got better throughout the week, yeah," he said. "I think that's the biggest thing, have that growth mindset. I feel like today [Wednesday] I was better than I was yesterday [Tuesday], and so hopefully, just keep building on that."
