[Hammock Parties]

HAMAS SPEAKS

I'd classify myself as a Smith guy. This QB class is by no means perfect, but they never are. Far too often people go back and retroactively scout players based on what they did rather than what it appeared they were capable of doing. RGIII was a controversial prospect despite what people claim now. Stafford, not Sanchez, was Ground Zero of the CP QB Wars of 2008. Only once Stafford appeared out of reach did people start analyzing him down logically rather than fearfully.

Smith has a lot of positives. He has tremendous pocket presence and is willing to get his chops busted to complete the ball downfield. He's a thrower first and a thrower second. He only runs as a last resort. He's a true pocket passer, but not because he has the feet of Drew Bledsoe, he's always looking downfield. His deep ball accuracy is nearly immaculate and he has a very quick release.

There are some concerns. The first is that he throws too much off his back foot, and his arm, although strong enough to make any throw, isn't strong enough to make any throw from a bad position. Furthermore, he still comes from a system that is primarily a single-read. If you look at the LSU game from last year, for example, on his first ten throws he looks to the right side of the entire field maybe once. However, he has shown the ability to look off a safety, so a nascent ability to read a defense is there.

I don't really have much insight into his personal character or background. I doubt he'll wow or throw at the combine, but I don't think he really has to.
He's not the best prospect in the draft, but he's the best prospect at the most important position, and that means that any team without a QB absolutely cannot pass him up.

One other addendum I forgot. His intermediate accuracy to the outer hashes is occasionally sketchy and he's not super accurate off the run, but given that he's a pocket QB, those aren't super important. They're also fixable, just like his footwork.