In our individual draft features, each of our team assigns a rating from the rating system described below. We combine our ratings to give one rating, a projection for where he will get picked, and best fits in the NFL. Here is our 2020 NFL Draft profile of Oklahoma quarterback Jalen Hurts.
Rating System
0.0-1.0 – Bust, you won’t remember this name in three years
1.0-2.0 – Mostly minor leagues and practice squads, occasionally makes the top level
2.0-3.0 – Gets some minutes off the bench, not a major contributor
3.0-4.0 – System player – not much of a ‘wow’ factor but could be utilized in a good system
4.0-5.0 – Role Player/Depth Guy (3rd down back, run block TE, etc) – can fill a hole
5.0-6.0 – Fringe Starter on the Depth Chart
6.0-7.0 – Top of the Depth Chart potential
7.0-8.0 – Starter with big season potential
8.0-9.0 – Consistent All-Star, one of the best in the league at his position
9.0-10.0 – Future Hall of Famer
Jalen Hurts
Our Grade: 5.0
Grade Range: 1.0 to 10.0
Best NFL Fits: New England Patriots, Indianapolis Colts, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Projection: Round 4, Pick 11 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Analysis: The Buccaneers? But they just drafted Brady? In my opinion, this is almost an ideal situation for Jalen Hurts. After what he’s been through in his college career, Hurts developed a well-deserved reputation for being one of the most mature quarterbacks in this draft class. However, he’s not going to go in the first round. There are three teams – the Bengals, Dolphins, and Chargers – that will most certainly be taking a quarterback, and they’ll be taking the consensus top 3 signal-callers in Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert, and Tua Tagovailoa. I believe the next two teams to take a quarterback will be the Patriots and Colts, and while I think Hurts is a good fit for both teams, I don’t see him being selected by either.
The Patriots lack a proven starter for Hurts to learn under, and Hurts is not the prototypical pocket passer that New England usually covets. The Colts could go for the former national champion, but given their recent trauma of seeing their franchise quarterback retire early due to a multitude of injuries, my instinct is the Colts are going to be wary of a dual threat that could suffer from the same maladies. After eliminating those options, I believe the next team to be looking to draft a quarterback will be the Buccaneers. They have Brady for two years, but the man is 42 years old and whatever you say about his legacy, the age alone brings some question marks. Hurts will have a chance to learn under the most successful quarterback of all time, and then he will take the reigns in a couple of years, as Tampa Bay looks to extend their window to win.
As for our grade, we were all over the place in grading Hurts, as have many experts will be. The dual-threat quarterback is a tricky topic, and whether Hurts will be closer to Lamar Jackson or Tim Tebow is tough to tell. There’s no question he has the work ethic, and the talent is there, but can Hurts find a system to utilize his strengths, and stay healthy long enough to build a strong career?
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