Missouri quarterback Drew Lock has done everything and more in his career, and he's done it in the SEC. Well, he's done it in the SEC East, but still.
The junior quarterback threw for 448 yards and five touchdowns in Missouri's 48-45 win over Arkansas Friday, which gave him 43 touchdown passes on the season. That's the most touchdowns in a single season in SEC history. What's more, his third touchdown pass of the day also broke Chase Daniel's Missouri record for most passing touchdowns in a season.
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With numbers like that it's no wonder people are starting to talk about the Tigers QB's draft prospects. So, it begs the question, how does the junior QB stack up?
The most notable thing right away is Lock's size. He stands at 6-4, and looks every inch of it on tape, and weighs in at 225 pounds. Second, he has the arm strength to go downfield. He does a good job of putting touch on deep balls, even those that stretch the normal boundaries of college quarterbacks.
Apparently, Drew Lock of #Mizzou does not care about moving guns across state lines after uncorking his Howitzer on #Arkansas. pic.twitter.com/KLURITO3AY
— Jason Stella (@ZeroStarRecruit) November 24, 2017
Third, he has good escapability. He makes plays with his feet as much as his arm and doesn't give up on plays. That is both a positive, but it can give some scouts some pause as well because he isn't the biggest QB as of yet, so one wonders if he would stand up to a beating from a good pass rush.
Which brings us to some of his negatives. He's not the most accurate passer in the world, though some of that could have to do with his receiving core. Lock has completed 58 percent of his passes on the season and has never eclipsed the 60 percent completion percentage mark as a college player. The NFL average is above 60 percent, so that has to be taken into account.
Lock doesn't throw a traditional route tree at Missouri, like many other QB's in spread offenses in college. He throws a lot of hot routes which it's good, but he also simply throws a lot of designed short passes which are not incredibly common in the NFL, at least in the way Missouri runs them.
Finally for Lock, he has not shown repeatedly an ability to throw the types of NFL throws scouts look for like the 18-yard out to the far hash, or the 14-yard dig that takes as much guts as arm strength to deliver at the NFL level. That's not to say he can't do that, but he hasn't been seen doing it yet. He'll have to prove he can make that throw to truly give NFL teams something to drool over.
That being said, Lock has the size and arm strength to profile as an NFL QB, but it remains to be seen on tape whether he can do it or not. If he comes back next year though for another year of development he could be a very high draft pick.
Here are some of Saturday's top NFL Draft-eligible players
Tyre McCants, WR, South Florida — McCants is the type of player that will go under people's radar because he doesn't fit a certain profile, but that doesn't mean he can't play. A wideout listed at 5-11, 235 pounds, he's seemingly too short to split out wide and not quick enough to play the slot. But the guy makes plays. He had nine catches for 227 yards and a touchdown Friday and looked unstoppable in the first half against Central Florida.
Rashaad Penny, RB, San Diego State — Penny isn't as shifty as his predecessor Donnel Pumphrey, but the senior who is listed at 5-11, 225 pounds can carry a load and has done so all year. He was the first RB to eclipse the 2,000-yard mark this season and did so with a 22-carry, 203-yard performance against New Mexico. He's a one-cut runner that doesn't have breakaway speed, but he doens't have a ton of tread on his tires since he has started for one year, and he is very strong.
Steven Dunbar, WR, Houston — Dunbar is big at 6-3, 202 pounds and doesn't have a ton of speed, but he has big hands, and good ones at that. He tallied eight catches for 142 yards and a touchdown in Houston's win over Navy and certainly merits a draft look next year.
Anthony Johnson, WR, Buffalo — Along the lines of Dunbar, Johnson is large, strong and has big hands, but he is not the most precise of route runners. He tends to round off his routes rather than hit his breaks hard, but he has a propensity for making something happen after the catch on bubble screens and he has been highly productive this season. He had six catches for 155 yards and two touchdowns in Buffalo's win over Ohio.
Asantay Brown, LB/S, Western Michigan — Brown is a bit of a tweener, hence the indecision between safety and linebacker, but he is always around the ball and can make a lot of plays. He had 22 tackles, 10 solo in Western Michigan's loss to Toledo.
Keke Coutee, WR, Texas Tech — Coutee has been a huge part of the Texas Tech offense this season and he was once again in the Red Raiders' win over Texas Friday. Coutee had nine catches for 168 yards despite the fact the Longhorns knew Tech was going to him every chance they got. He has 82 catches for 1,241 yards and nine touchdowns on the year.
Akrum Wadley, RB, Iowa — Yet another back in a long line of Iowa backs that will be going in the NFL draft, Wadley is shifty and has great vision along with a knack for finding room at the second level. He ran for 159 yards and three touchdowns in Iowa's win over Nebraska.
Sheldrick Redline, DB, Miami — The junior defensive back was one of few bright spots in Miami's loss to Pittsburgh. He had 12 tackles (eight solo) and a forced fumble in the loss.