The 2022 Reese’s Senior Bowl is all but in the books, with practices over and just the game itself left to be played on Saturday in Mobile. Six quarterbacks are taking the field in the showcase and have been performing in an effort to raise their draft stock throughout these practices in an effort that culminates this weekend.
Here’s a look into where each Senior Bowl signal-caller stands as of now ahead of April based on their performance this week:
1. Carson Strong, Nevada – We knew Strong was the best deep passer coming into the Senior Bowl and he looked the part from Day 1 onward. Strong was the most mistake-free quarterback on the first day, with one lie throw and one pass that could have resulted in an interception into coverage. In addition to looking like the best developed true passer in Mobile, Strong also showed a good amount of mobility within the pocket, the ability to evade pressure and carried the ball himself a small handful of times.
2. Kenny Pickett, Pitt – Pickett didn’t have the best day in the rain on Wednesday where some of the hand size concerns were once again raised as Pickett struggled with a glove on one hand. But it wasn’t really a solid day for any one quarterback outside of Ridder, who redeemed himself from a bad Day 1 practice. Outside of that day though, when Pickett had some missed throws that went outside of his receivers, he was consistent and didn’t do anything to significantly raise or lower his draft stock after a standout season with a meteoric rise that’s comparable to current Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow.
3. Malik Willis, Liberty – Willis came to Mobile with a lot to prove after his high draft stock took a hit when he struggled as a passer not incredibly far into the season, posting three games with three interceptions against secondaries that weren’t exactly outstanding. Willis had some of the best and some of the worst throws on the day in the first day of practices, but one thing that was still an obvious personal improvement for him was the touch he threw with that he lacked for the better part of the season. Willis looked much more solid on the final two days of practice, throwing with consistent accuracy, showing off his live arm while also completing the short stuff and showcasing his mobility and athleticism so many have raved about. It’s only one showcase and he’s going to have to remain consistent, but his stock has definitely gone up.
4. Sam Howell, UNC – Howell has been classified as an underwhelming quarterback by several analysts but the body of work he put together with the Tar Heels this season despite the shortcomings of his offensive line and supporting cast. Howell told me Thursday that he thought he had the best arm in the class and that he also felt he had the best ability to rally a team. Howell certainly had some zip on the ball and posted an overall solid performance throughout practices, but there’s still some room for improvement in areas like footwork. Between his competence as a passer and his tough running style, Howell brings to the table a lot of things for NFL teams to like and be able to work with regardless of scheme.
5. Bailey Zappe, WKU – Making a statement here was something of relative importance for Zappe, considering that some knock him for the fact he played at a small school in Houston Baptist for the better part of his career, then transferring to an also lesser-known program in WKU where he played a single season that was one for the books. Zappe firmly etched his name into the FBS record books with just shy of 6,000 passing yards and with 62 touchdowns by the end of the season. Zappe had a rough first day, especially struggling on shorter passes but found his rhythm by Day 2 and only got better as time went on, showing he could hang with the bigger conference players and showing he could play against higher-level competition and with a different supporting cast.
6. Desmond Ridder, Cincinnati – Ridder showed a world of cause for concern on Day 1, fumbling a snap and missing several throws that all other quarterbacks were making. But he drew a high amount of praise Day 2, arguably the best quarterback on the field that day as he seemed almost completely unaffected by strong wind and rain that other passers consistently found themselves tussling with. Like the rest of the quarterbacks, Ridder consistently got better as time went on, but is still a quarterback who needs to find consistency and maintain it while he builds on a good foundation of traits.