Quinn Ewers

QB Quinn Ewers Declares For Draft

January 15th, 2025 at 10:35am CST by Sam Robinson

Following Texas’ CFP semifinal loss to Ohio State, Quinn Ewers said he did not expect to be playing college football next season. The multiyear Longhorns starter made that official Wednesday.

Ewers is entering the 2025 draft, he announced on his X account. While Ewers is not currently viewed as a no-doubt first-round pick, he is expected to be one of the first QBs chosen in a crop that has generated significant questions. Ewers’ Austin exit also clears a path for Arch Manning, who is already drawing down-the-line NFL interest.

Going 21-5 as a starter under Steve Sarkisian, Ewers enjoyed a quality college career. He held off Manning for two seasons, remaining the starter despite the super-prospect seeing time as a redshirt freshman this past season. The 6-foot-3 QB piloted the Longhorns to back-to-back CFP semifinal games.

Ewers threw 31 touchdown passes and 12 interceptions this season, helping the Longhorns back to the semis. This season did bring a completion percentage step back, dropping from 69% to 65.8%, and a lower yards-per-attempt number (8.8 to 7.8) compared to his sophomore season. Ewers was unable to solidify himself as a surefire first-rounder, but he will get to work on attempting to do so before the draft.

ESPN’s Scouts Inc. rates Ewers as the No. 60 overall prospect. Among quarterbacks, that places him third in the class — behind Shedeur Sanders and Cam Ward and ahead of Jalen Milroe. That said, Sanders and Ward are candidates to be top-five picks. As far back as November, we heard a tier gap existed between the Colorado and Miami arms and the rest of the 2025 QB class. Nothing has yet emerged to indicate that assessment was inaccurate, and a more recent report pointed to evaluators being more intrigued by the 2026 and ’27 QB classes — one of which could well include Manning — compared to this year’s group.

With Manning on track to start for Texas in 2025, Ewers could have entered the transfer portal and commanded a lofty NIL payout to stay in college and further his stock for the 2026 draft. He had a senior year of eligibility to use. Georgia’s Carson Beck is taking this route, passing on a 2025 NFL entrance and transferring to Miami. Milroe, however, will join Ewers in declaring for a draft that features extensive question marks at the QB position.

An Ohio State recruit once upon a time, Ewers had reclassified to enter college earlier. He did redshirt as a first-year collegian, eventually using up three years of eligibility at Texas. Ewers will turn 22 a month before the draft. Rather than take the Jayden Daniels–Bo Nix–Michael Penix Jr. route to better his prep and enter a draft in his mid-20s, Ewers will follow the more traditional route Caleb Williams and Drake Maye took last year.

2025 Draft QB Rumors: Ewers, Allar, Titans

January 12th, 2025 at 8:19pm CST by Ely Allen

The collegiate career of Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers appears to be over. While he has not officially released a statement, in a College GameDay interview with ESPN’s Pete Thamel, Ewers gave a blunt reply when asked if he expected to play college football next year, simply saying, “No, I don’t.”

Ewers started drawing attention in his second year as the starter for the Longhorns, completing 69 percent of his passes for 3,479 yards, 22 touchdowns, and six interceptions and rushing for five more scores. This year, the emergence of sophomore quarterback Arch Manning made it difficult for Ewers to stay on the field.

Manning’s presence combined with some in-season struggles resulted in a bit of a down year for Ewers. Despite the Longhorns reaching the College Football Playoff semifinals, Ewers (3,472 yards, 31 touchdowns, 12 interceptions) was never viewed as a strength on a team that many saw as balanced throughout the roster. At this point, it seems impossible to hold off the advancement of Manning. With the writing on the wall, Ewers doesn’t appear likely to remain in Austin or in college at all.

Following the assumption that Ewers will declare for the draft, it’s hard to determine in which round he’ll fall. The consensus seems to indicate that Miami’s Cam Ward and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders are the only two passers that are worthy of first-round picks. The importance of the position may push a few fringe players up, though. In rankings from ESPN analysts and The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, Ewers is viewed as a fringe top-five quarterback, making it hard to believe that there will be enough need to push him into the first round, though he could hear his name in the middle rounds.

Here are a few more rumors concerning quarterbacks potentially in the 2025 NFL Draft class:

Penn State’s Drew Allar has been an intriguing quarterback prospect in scouting circles. After being knocked out of the College Football Playoffs in the semifinals, reports seem to indicate that Allar will return to Happy Valley. Per Brugler, though, there were several in the NFL who believed Allar may enter the draft with a strong playoff run. While the Nittany Lions won two games, Allar only completed 54 percent of his passes for 433 yards, three touchdowns, and an interception in three games. There are certainly fans of Allar in the NFL, but it seems they’ll need to consider him for the 2026 NFL Draft as Allar has announced he’s returning for another year at Penn State, per Dane Brugler of The Athletic.
Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated recently gave us a bit of obvious insight in the Titans‘ upcoming decision with the No. 1 overall draft pick. There’s a clear sense that they can’t move forward with only Will Levis as the gameplan at quarterback. This means that Tennessee will be taking a long, hard look at Ward and Sanders. If they don’t like what they see, Colorado athlete Travis Hunter could fill holes on both sides of the ball, or the team may just trade back and make a pick that they believe matches the value of their draft slot.

2025 QB Class Generating More Skepticism

December 31st, 2024 at 9:58pm CST by Ely Allen

As the NFL regular season comes to a close and college prospects are making their final amateur appearances, focus for many NFL teams is shifting to the 2025 NFL Draft. While many sources seem to have narrowed the field of potential first-round quarterbacks to two players, there are reportedly some scouts who believe taking any quarterback on Day 1 “would be a mistake,” per Dane Brugler of The Athletic.

According to a post from Brugler, an AFC scout commented on the matter, saying, “Man, I feel bad for the teams trying to find one (quarterback) in this group.”

There are two obvious options for teams currently looking at a first-round quarterback: Miami’s Cam Ward and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders. After Ward and Sanders, there’s a big perceived dropoff in quarterback talent in this year’s draft class with other prospects like Alabama’s Jalen Milroe, Texas’ Quinn Ewers, and Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart all being projected as Day 2 or 3 picks. Georgia passer Carson Beck, who recently declared for the draft, forgoing one final year of eligibility (granted because of COVID-19), was at one point viewed as a first-round option, but after a disappointing redshirt season and UCL surgery, his draft stock took a considerable hit.

As for Ward and Sanders, it’s hard to imagine a world in which neither prospect hears their name called on the first night of the draft. The Giants sent general manager Joe Schoen and director of player personnel Tim McDonnell to the Pop-Tarts Bowl to watch Ward play in the first half this past weekend. According to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated, Raiders assistant general manager Champ Kelly was in attendance, as well. Schoen, along with scouts from his Giants and the Falcons, was also in attendance to watch Sanders take on the Utes about a month and a half ago.

The Giants (currently set to pick fourth overall) are one of six teams inside the projected top-10 picks of the draft with an interest in adding a quarterback. The Titans (No. 2), Browns (No. 3), Panthers (No. 6), Jets (No. 7), and Raiders (No. 8) have all been viewed as possibilities to go after a first-round passer, as well.

The need to fill such a crucial role as quarterback has a tendency to inflate some prospects’ draft stocks. In the 2024 NFL Draft, Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, and according to some sources, Drake Maye were all viewed as the likely first-round passers for most of the draft process. As the draft drew nearer and it became more obvious that some teams would need additional help at quarterback, prospects like Michael Penix, J.J. McCarthy, and Bo Nix all found their draft stock being bumped from Day 2 or 3 to Day 1.

Because this phenomenon is likely to take effect once again this year, even if Ward and Sanders were not considered first-round options — which, to be clear, many scouts do view them to be — they would still likely find themselves on stage at Lambeau Field on April 24. In order to simulate this effect, some have claimed that this year’s versions of Ward and Sanders would’ve ranked as QB4 and QB5, in any order, in last year’s quarterback crop, placing them firmly in the top ten draft picks for that class, as well. In fact, the often-desperate need for young quarterback talent may even bring players like Beck, Milroe, or Dart back into first-round consideration with Ward and Sanders.

There’s still plenty of time until we arrive at Day 1 of the draft. Between now and then, we will see College Football Playoff performances, the NFL Scouting Combine, and pro days around the country. Many quarterbacks and other prospects will see their draft stock rise and fall throughout the next few months. At this point, though, Ward and Sanders seem to have cemented themselves as top five picks, regardless of what some scouts believe their value to be.

Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders Playing In Shrine Bowl

November 22nd, 2024 at 10:12pm CST by Ely Allen

It’s become clear that scouts only view two quarterbacks in this year’s draft class as elite prospects: Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders and Miami’s Cam Ward. While it’s almost certain that both players will be taking the next step to the NFL following this college football season, Sanders pretty much made it official this week by accepting an invite to play in the East-West Shrine Bowl this winter.

Sanders has been one of two leaders on an electric Buffalos team that is still in the running for the Big 12 championship and a spot in the College Football Playoff. Sanders ranks sixth in the FBS with 322.2 passing yards per game and is tied for second with 27 passing touchdowns, adding four scores on the ground. He has a chance to end the season with a bang by rattling off some wins here to close out 2024 and continue elevating his stock in the 2025 NFL Draft.

Ward is right up there with Sanders. He leads the FBS in both passing yards (3,409) and passing touchdowns (32) and has four additional scrimmage touchdowns of his own (three on the ground and one receiving). He’s led the Hurricanes to a 9-1 record through 10 games, and like Colorado, Miami is in position to appear in their conference title game and secure a spot in the 12-team playoff.

Past Sanders and Ward, though, experts view 2025’s quarterbacks class as relatively barren. In a discussion with Brock Huard of FOX Sports and Steve Serby of the New York Post, ESPN’s Matt Miller claimed that “it’s Shedeur 1…Cam 2, and then…there’s a bit of a gap between (them and) the next crop of quarterbacks,” including guys like Carson Beck of Georgia, Quinn Ewers of Texas, and Jaxson Dart of Ole Miss.

Miller sees Sanders and Ward as the only two likely first-round picks in the class of passers. He projects Beck, Ewers, Penn State’s Drew Allar, Alabama’s Jalen Milroe, and LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier as potential mid- to late-round projects but goes so far as to suggest that Milroe and Nussmeier should return for another year of development in the SEC.

Even though Sanders and Ward are seen as clear favorites and leaders of this class, Miller speculated where the two would fall in last year’s draft class in a discussion with another NYP writer, Ryan Dunleavy. Miller claimed that, despite Sander’s “surgical” accuracy and Ward’s “ability to dial up velocity like crazy,” both would fall lower than four of the first five quarterbacks taken last year in his rankings, Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye, and J.J. McCarthy. He believes they compare more favorably with the other two first-round passers taken last year, Michael Penix and Bo Nix.

Just because he views Sanders and Ward more in the realm of Penix and Nix, that doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll be drafted in the 8-12 range like those two were. Teams in need of a new, young passer don’t have the luxury to wait around that long and hope that no one trades ahead or takes a flyer on their future franchise arm. A QB-need tends to make NFL teams antsy, often forcing them to overvalue a passer past their actual worth.

There’s plenty left to be seen through the remainder of the college season, conference championships, and the College Football Playoff. Following all that will be prospect games, like the Senior Bowl and East-West Shrine Bowl, the NFL Scouting Combine, and each school’s pro day. Who knows? Maybe we’ll even see Sanders for the West suiting up against Ward for the East in Frisco, TX, this winter for the Shrine Bowl. Until then, both quarterbacks still have a lot to prove in order to hear their names called early on the first night of the draft next April.

Top QB Quinn Ewers To Skip Senior Year, Join Ohio State

August 3rd, 2021 at 1:46pm CST by Zachary Links

Quarterback Quinn Ewers, ranked as the No. 1 or No. 2 prospect in his class, has decided to forego his senior year of high school to enroll early at Ohio State (Twitter link). Ewers is now set to enroll at Ohio State this fall, accelerating his potential timeframe for the NFL Draft by a year. For now, he’ll vie with C.J. Stroud, Jack Miller, and Kyle McCord for playing time.

“I’ve taken time to think about what lies ahead of me, both in the short- and long-term,” said the Texas high school standout. “It’s unfortunate I’ve found myself in this situation, as my preference would have been to complete my senior season at Southlake Carroll along with the teammates and friends I’ve taken the field alongside for the past three years. However, following conversations with my family and those I know have my best interests in mind, I’ve decided it’s time for me to enroll at Ohio State and begin my career as a Buckeye.”

To be eligible for the NFL draft, players must be at least three years removed from high school. Of course, nothing is guaranteed for any 18-year-old prospect — no matter how good they are — but the 6’3″ signal caller is already on the radar for pro scouts. Previously, he would have been on track for the 2025 NFL Draft, at the earliest. Now, he could go pro as soon as 2024.

As a high school athlete, Ewers cannot profit off of his name. However, thanks to the NCAA’s revised rules, he’ll be able to earn money for his name, likeness, and image. According to Pete Thamel of Yahoo Sports, that could net Ewers as much as $1MM in 2022. Beyond Ewers, it’s a potential game changer for college and pro prospects on the whole. Now, there’s extra incentive to enroll early, enjoy the fruits of college fame, and, by extension, enter the NFL sooner.