School: Arizona State / LSU

Position: QB

Year: Senior

The Good: Daniels is a dual-threat quarterback in the purest definition. His pure speed is real – I expect him to run the 40 in the 4.4s range – and he’s a creative and silky runner too; Daniels just effortlessly glides by defenders in his way and can turn any given scramble into a housecall. As a passer, Daniels throws with solid zip and is at his most (relatively) accurate when throwing deep. Daniels’ recognition of coverages is there and he’s good about not putting the ball in harm’s way. In his 2023 Heisman campaign, the prototypical QB stuff turned way up for Daniels.

The Bad: That last sentence might not make the most sense without context, so here it is: Daniels did not have a nearly firm enough grasp on the QB position required at the NFL level through his fourth year of college ball (and his first at LSU). Like I wrote, it got better as a super senior, but Daniels still has a bunch of red flags as a prospect. His short-armed release jumps out immediately on tape – which creates mediocre short accuracy – as does his wiry build that’s going to get him tossed around in the NFL. The concerns only heighten for Daniels as you watch more and more of his tape. Simply put, Daniels’ general ability to read the field is very suspect. He can hold onto the ball too long in the pocket and his pocket movement is too dramatic as well. When it comes to arm talent, Daniels’ raw arm strength is subpar by pro standards, and he cannot currently deliver on a full arsenal of throws either. Even with some grace for QB prospects in tape study, it’s hard not to take note of Daniels’ quantity of flat-out bad misses on throws.

The Bottom Line: I understand why Daniels will go in Round 1 of the Draft; he’s fresh off a season with 40 touchdown passes and is truly a killer runner for the position. Still, it needs to be said that Daniels isn’t a Mike Vick/Lamar Jackson “Houdini” type of QB runner. In the passing game, Daniels basically only took what was drawn up or right in front of him, and I definitely cannot say I love that we’ve seen Daniels at the age of an NFL rookie be merely “ok” in college – whether the full 2022 LSU season or against better SEC defenses that were able to achieve some containment against him in 2023. You cannot pump up Daniels’ 2023 stat line without acknowledging that he threw to two bona fide stud wideouts in Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr, and LSU was willing to run the same routes over and over again for them until defenses slowed them down – hint: they never did. At the end of the day, it boils down to that Daniels probably has the most alarming vision I’ve ever evaluated for a first-round QB prospect in my years of doing this, and I can’t place a Round 1 recommendation when he’s carrying that designation.

Grade: Second Round

Pro Comp: Kordell Stewart

Games Watched:

• Stanford 2021
• USC 2021
• Florida State 2022
• Mississippi State 2022
• Tennessee 2022
• Alabama 2022
• Georgia 2022 (SEC Championship)
• Florida State 2023
• Mississippi State 2023
• Arkansas 2023
• Ole Miss 2023
• Missouri 2023
• Auburn 2023
• Alabama 2023
• Florida 2023

Plays That Matter [LINK]