Veteran NFL Analyst Leads Top Draft Risers List with J.J. McCarthy
Not long ago, Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy was considered a guy who might not even be worthy of receiving a first-round grade. Fast forward to only late February, Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton has probably long since set fire to that outdated notion.
As sure as the sun will rise, McCarthy's burgeoning stock is lifting skyward, and right across a plethora of NFL draft boards. Several quarterback-needy teams might still be dreaming of USC's Caleb Williams, North Carolina's Drake Maye, or Jayden Daniels from LSU. But, suddenly, it's McCarthy who is the red-hot name around NFL circles.
Drafting for dummies is often essential reading for teams this time of year, especially for sleepwalking GMs who seem hell-bent on ignoring the inherent value of selecting proven winners. Thankfully, NFL.com knows its apples from its oranges, and draft analyst Bucky Brooks is well aware that McCarthy is rising for many sound reasons.
Indeed, Brooks has decreed that McCarthy is atop his list of 10 prospects who could rise during the pre-draft process, but in truth, that horse has already bolted out the door.
If quarterbacks are judged by their wins, McCarthy should move to the front of the line, thanks to his nearly perfect résumé as the leader of the Wolverines. The 6-foot-3, 202-pounder finished his career with a 27-1 record and a national title while managing an offense that featured a smash-mouth running game. Though he routinely played a complementary role, McCarthy flashes intriguing skills as a dual-threat playmaker with A-plus arm talent and evolving pocket-passing skills.
The junior standout can make every throw in the book, but he needs more opportunities to show evaluators that he is deadly accurate and consistent with his ball placement. He's currently ranked No. 5 among QBs on my list of the top five prospects by position. Given his limited experience (28 career starts) and managerial approach with the Wolverines, McCarthy's stock will rise or fall based on his chalk-talk sessions and workouts leading up to the draft.
As teams start to get more hands-on with their complex evaluations, McCarthy feels like he's been knocking on the door, and now he's ready to burst through it. Coming off the back of winning Michigan their first National Championship in nearly three decades, the 21-year-old certainly won't be short of confidence when he walks into interviews with his potential suitors.
Armed with an outstanding 27-1 career record at Ann Arbor, when McCarthy lays down his resume on executive desks, it will be with a resounding thump. That said, picking apart a perennial winner is always easier when it relates to quarterbacks who operated deep within so-called protective environments.
Jim Harbaugh's run-heavy offense undoubtedly made McCarthy less of the buccaneering quarterback, you know, the type of pass-happy maverick scouts fall in love with? Nevertheless, Brooks is correct to point out that McCarthy can make every throw in the book. Plus, he can make them on command.
As it all relates to the Broncos, as their old HC Gary Kubiak used to love to say: "We are fixin' to find out. "Recent reports have claimed that Payton has already found himself "quite enamored" with McCarthy, and that wouldn't surprise anyone at this juncture.
After all, precision passing offenses fundamentally require a quarterback who can deliver on-point and do all the intricate things asked of him. We should think of McCarthy as the Heinz tomato soup of this upcoming 2024 draft class, he's going to come exactly as advertised.
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