Finding Broncos: Scouting Ohio State QB Justin Fields
Welcome to Finding Broncos, our annual prospect-by-prospect series deep-diving on the coming NFL draft class. The scouting continues with Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields, a player whom the Denver Broncos have expressed interest in and scouted in-person.
Measurables
- Height: 6-foot-3
- Weight: 227 pounds
Stats
Sports-Reference.com
Pros
- Elite arm talent capable of making every throw on the field
- Downfield accuracy is a major plus
- Elite athlete that has more than enough mobility to escape, create and make plays with his legs
- Solid footwork in his drops and hip rotation to help drive the football
- Ball placement is amazing
- Takes care of the football
- Elusion within the pocket is outstanding
Cons
- Can hold the ball too long and eat some sacks
- Some issues with processing and diagnosing pressure schemes
- Late going through progressions, but that may be due to the scheme more than individual deficiency
- Doesn’t use that elite athleticism nearly as much as he should
Overview
Fields is a pro-ready starter that can come in and start immediately for any NFL team and have instant success. A great athlete that moves well within the pocket, he constantly plays within the structure of the offense until the very last second before breaking contain.
Fields progresses through his reads well and makes clean and accurate passes to every level and side of the field. The issues he has are more directly related to the scheme at Ohio State than any true deficiency within his ability, but there are some concerns that he may struggle with the high-level disguise defenses at the next level. He can get baited into some throws, leading to turnovers, but those are few and far between.
Fields has incredible upside and can improve in multiple facets, especially if he were to transform into a more diverse quarterback that uses his legs as the weapons that they are. One issue that may arise with that is that he doesn’t protect his body moving down the field and he can take some unnecessary hits, placing him at risk for some injury concerns. However, some coaching in that aspect could turn a high-quality prospect into an elite weapon as a true dual-threat quarterback
Fit with Broncos
There’s probably not much question that Fields would come into Denver and overtake Drew Lock sooner rather than later, but there are some scheme concerns with Fields that could arise should Pat Shurmur not place him in the right position to succeed.
Fields can work well in the spread dynamics of what Shurmur wants to run offensively, but with a slightly late processor at times, the QB could struggle with the quick passing philosophy that the coordinator likes to deploy to get his unit started. In any case, Fields would be an upgrade over Lock and has the upside to become one of the top quarterbacks in the league. That is a fit in any offense.
Grade: Top-5 (My QB1)
Where he Goes: Top-5
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