Weekly Ranking of the Top 5 Quarterbacks in the 2022 NFL Draft
The Houston Texans will need to keep an eye on the top 5 College Quarterbacks following week seven of the college football season
Going into week seven there were multiple Quarterbacks with questions surrounding their performances throughout the season thus far. As the season continues the 2022 class of quarterbacks look worse by the game. With it becoming more and more evident that there isn’t one top ten player at the position of quarterback in this draft.
Following week seven Quarterbacks around the country showed some promise while others continued to ruin their draft stock for the upcoming draft.
Here are the top 5 quarterbacks whose draft stock rose with the Houston Texans from the seventh weekend of the College Football season:
Houston Texans QB radar 5th place:
Sam Howell played subpar against the Miami Hurricanes. Howell went 17/26 passing while throwing for 154 yards and 2 touchdowns and one interception. Howell also rushed 17 times for 98 yards averaging 5.8 yards a carry and two touchdowns.
Howell continues to stack solid performances together making his case to be taken high in the 2022 NFL draft. While Howell isn’t as mobile as some other Quarterbacks coming out this year he has a “Sneaky Fast” feel to him where he can hurt you with his legs given the opportunity.
There is no beating around the bush when it comes to the fact that Howell looked like he regressed this week. Howell’s feet weren’t steady, and his accuracy was subpar. Howell continues to underthrow multiple wide-open receivers going down the sideline-a performance that was reminiscent of the Virginia Tech game earlier in the season.
This performance was shaky and is something to try to avoid building on. If Howell continues to stack performances like this together he may just end up off the list when the season is over. His arm strength is obvious but tends to be a crutch at times. Howell needs to see more in his overall game Going forward.
Pro Comparison: Baker Mayfield.
Houston Texans QB radar, 4th place:
Malik Willis is a solid quarterback. His game is the complete package with the ability to continue to keep the defense guessing. Willis’ ability to run as impressive as it is isn’t nearly as impressive as his passing ability. What’s most impressive about Willis, is his ability, leadership, and accountability, things that can’t be taught.
Willis finished with a stat line of 16-28 while throwing for 135 yards, 1 touchdown, and 3 interceptions. While also rushing for 157 yards on 23attempts and two rushing touchdowns. The concerning part about Willis’ game this weekend was the inaccurate passes leading to interceptions.
Willis’ ability to impact the game in multiple ways makes him the definition of what a dual-threat quarterback should look like. The ability to account for 3 touchdowns in a single game from the quarterback position is impressive especially when it’s done in multiple different ways.
However, Willis’ last two outings produced 3 interceptions each. If Willis doesn’t correct the issues soon people will start to doubt him as a prospect. He already has a lack of competition going against him as it is. His talents will transfer to the NFL, but there are always little things he can improve on.
Such as ball security- as the competition around him compared to other Power-5 draft prospects will be seen as a caveat when it comes to draft day. Willis needs to have very strong performances, and limit mental mistakes.
Pro Comparison: Russell Wilson.
Houston Texans QB radar, 3rd place:
Talk about throwing the air out of the ball! Carson Strong threw a whopping 54 pass attempts against Hawaii in week seven.
Strong finished the night with 395 passing yards while throwing 34-54 with a completion percentage of 63.0 percent with an average yardage per throw at 7.3 yards. Strong also threw for 2 touchdowns on the night with no interceptions.
The most impressive part of Strong’s performance was the lack of drop-off. Every throw was as good as the one before it. The arm talent is undoubted with Strong, capable of making any pass while making it look good. Even with the high number of attempts, the throws late in the game did not look different from earlier in the game. Strong’s stamina to keep firing zingers is one of his best attributes.
Improvement and consistency are the names of the game for Strong. From week to week, Strong needs to show steady improvement. The up and down performances have hampered his stock so far- something that needs to be fixed to improve his draft stock.
Otherwise Strong may go tumbling down draft boards come April and for a quarterback that makes for a much harder uphill battle to make a 53-man roster.
Pro Comparison: Carson Wentz.
Houston Texans QB radar, 2nd place:
There is a lot to like when it comes to the prospect of Desmond Ridder. From his physical gifts to the obvious knowledge of the game that Ridder poses, such as his arm strength and deep ball touch. As the weeks go on, Ridder’sdecision-making and poise continue to improve.
Ridder led his team to a no-doubt win over UCF showing once again how dominant their offense is. Cincinnati was the best team on the field on Saturday and that confidence and poise come directly from their quarterback.
Ridder finished with a Stat line of 13-23 while throwing for 140 yards with 1 touchdown and no interceptions. Those numbers don’t jump off the page but it’s the level of consistency week to week that does. Ridder continues to impress while putting up almost identical stat lines every week. Consistency is a major factor in scouts’ opinions on players, especially Quarterbacks.
Performances like this while continuing to keep the Bearcats undefeated will push Ridder more and more into the national spotlight. Look for Ridder to move up mock draft boards following this performance as he leads the number 2 team in the nation and solidifies himself as a top college quarterback.
If the right team takes Ridder with the ability to groom him in their system, there is no doubt he can become a solid NFL starting quarterback.
Pro comparison: Justin Herbert.
Houston Texans QB radar, 1st place:
Matt Corral is as of right now the best quarterback this draft class has to offer, with a slight lead over Desmond Ridder. Corral continues to show up in big moments with his legs and his arm.
There is so much to like about Corral starting with the fact that he plays in a pro-style system at Ole Miss making the eventual transition to the NFL slightly easier for Corral. With his ability to run keeping the defense honest Corral can be an extremely successful quarterback at the next level in the right situation.
While throwing for 231 yards on 21-38 passing and 2 touchdowns and one interception, Corral also rushed for 195 yards on 30 carries. The most impressive part of that is being able to time and time again answer the bell with Tennessee not going away quietly. This game went back and forth from start to finish.
Needless to say, Corral continued to impress against the Volunteers after a solid game against Arkansas. Corral needs to continue this high level of play he’s had over the past two games.
Not only will he solidify his position in the top 5 looks for NFL scouts to start taking notice. The talent is obvious, the dual-threat ability is there Corral just needs to gain consistency in his game and his stock will skyrocket.
Pro comparison: Matthew Stafford.
Recap
After a crazy week in college football, here are the changes to the list from last week.
- Malik Willis falls from number three to number four. This is based purely on not taking care of the football in two consecutive games.
- Sam Howell stays at number five. Another shaky performance in a year where that’s become normal for Howell. That’s not good.
- Carson jumped from 4 to 3 after a solid performance against Hawaii.
- Desmond Ridder stays at number two following another solid performance in week 7.
- Matt Corral stayed at number one and rightfully so as right now he’s the best QB in this draft class.
Be sure to check back next week to see how the top 5 shakes out following week eighth of college football.