Justin Fields
He's very coachable and wants to be coached. You see it in his behavior and actions on & off the sidelines. Engaged, focused. He's been working with former/current NFL players & coaches for years. He wants to be pushed and knows this isn't his final form. He knows there's a lot of work to do to get there. Whether it's reading concepts, throwing on the move or working on other issues hes a worker that doesn't run from mistakes. Everything on & off the record from OSU coaches have been positive.
Plenty of arm talent. Routinely shows off the ability to make NFL throws. Plenty of strength and velocity. Tight windows, far hash ropes, easy gas to touch 60 yards. In terms of the tough NFL passes, he makes them routinely. Nice touch, placement & accuracy. Can drop it over a shoulder, fit it on the sidelines, throw a change up - feather it over a defender and before the lines. Can also thread the needle, fire it through traffic. Arm talent is ++.
Almost a 3/4 throwing motion. Tight front shoulder, smooth delivery that could be a lil quicker but it's fluid & efficient. Ball jumps out. Slight hitch at times up top. Overall clean & effective. Could it improve, sure but show me who's couldn't at this stage to some degree. Base is solid - set, plays with enough bounce to evade. Nice balance in his lower half, allows him to really push, drive the ball. Can slide & disappear from would-be rushers, smooth lateral footwork but you don't see enough of it. It's there though. Need to see more. Would like to see him help himself more here. Creating, reworking a platform. Overall pretty clean but I believe his lower half could be more involved. Back foot comes up too often imo. Nice footwork but could faster, a little more efficient. Overall again pretty good but could improve some.
Fields plays with a toughness that should be unquestioned. It gets him into trouble at times imo. He might think he's a little bigger and faster than he is but he has "all in" mentality and toughness. There's no "fake it" here. He'll stand in the pocket or run for a first down, take a hit no problem. Frustrating at times but you don't win by playing scared in the NFL. Funnel and channel it. Designed runs, know when to toss it away, ease up on the contact. I could see him playing in the northeast. Has the size, arm and mentality imo. I think there's a "chip on the shoulder" angle here. Been tied with Lawrence forever. All this pre-draft nonsense, I'm sure Bill would have him on a mission.
Improved throwing on the move big time since HS. Maybe Lawrence's biggest asset is throwing to his non-dominant side. Fields has a lot of potential on the move as well. Bootlegs, scrambling, misdirection he's a big time threat with his athleticism and arm. 4.4 speed. Natural and comfortable here. Also saw improvement on finding his hot read and being quicker there. Good sign, I saw him fire the ball out many times here when he recognized pressure or had to go hot.
Pocket presence could definitely improve. Too often late to react, improvise at times. It's there and you see it but the feel and reaction need to be faster. I get the sense that at times he sees it coming but just thinks his athleticism and strength will be enough to make something happen. A lot of times that works. Those instances are coachable and can be worked out. These are mostly in front of him, he'll pretend like he doesn't see them and move at the last moment. Those can improve. It's the edge where his feel is really hit or miss. That is definitely a point of emphasis imo. Great command, vocal and active. They would run difference cadences, have snap issues and he deals with it. Recognizes and adjust pre & post snap. Its obvious he puts in the work. From his ability to work concepts & go through progressions. To his ability to look of certain defenders, know the weak spots in coverage and players to target. Able to do it all in that regard, could be faster. Overall very good but needs to improve his anticipation, need a little hurry up and work.
Needs to pass with anticipation more consistently but has flashed throwing lead shoulder and other examples many times.
Ran a complex system at a young age and excelled in many areas. OSU went away from mesh, we'll "out athlete" you every other play and went to a more vertical based offense. More option routes. More QB-WR on the same page stuff. Fields ran the most complex system out of the big names. Displayed he's the most accurate pocket passer in the class (almost every analytic person out there says Fields is the most accurate passer in the class) who just happens to run a 4.4. Prototype size - Cut up 6'3 225. Proportioned, loose muscles.
Fields has displayed great decision-making, accuracy and command in the pocket with a rifle for an arm. Precise, can hit from any distance on the field without reckless abandon. His pocket presence has to improve but it's not a killer, just a real area for growth.
Fields also has silly athleticism. Athleticism that wasn't always utilized probably imo. At times it looked like he wanted to prove a point hanging in the pocket. Where not talking huge leaps and bounds. Slight advancements with his presence and feel would go a long way.
Prospects like Fields don't come along every year. Pocket passers with a ratio of 60+ passing TD's to less than 10 INT the last two years. Athleticism to make defenses think, hesitate and suffer. He has that killer mentality and again I think Bill could really do work with him. Both have a lot to prove short term and could be a great pair.
