Accuracy
Both guys have had their issues in this area but Mariota has vastly improved since his redshirt freshman season, while Winston seems to have taken a step back.
During his Heisman Trophy campaign in 2013, Winston completed 257-of-384 passes (66.9 percent). In 2014 he completed 305-of-467 attempts (65.3 percent). While that doesn’t seem like a big drop, on film Winston was far more erratic in 2014. Somehow, his ball-placement got much, much worse during his sophomore campaign. His interception numbers also rose from 10 in 2013 to 18 in 2014.
Winston tends to rush his mechanics on short and medium-length throws, which causes them to be delivered high, wide and sometimes behind his targets. His footwork can also get lazy, which has a direct impact on accuracy. His mechanics as a whole need some work and that should help him improve in this area.
Mariota has improved tremendously during his three years as a starter at Oregon. In 2014, Mariota completed 68.3 percent of his passes, bettering his mark of 63.5 percent from 2013. His mechanics and footwork are outstanding, which isn’t always the case with tall, long-armed quarterbacks. He is accurate at all levels, including on his deep throws (a big improvement in 2014) and is accurate to all quadrants of the field, even over the middle where many young quarterbacks struggle.
Additionally, Mariota is very accurate when on the move, which will certainly help him at the next level. His ball placement isn’t perfect, but should get better with time.
Neither guy is perfect with his accuracy, but that is the area most young quarterbacks have issues with. While Winston is certainly the more prototypical NFL quarterback, Mariota surprisingly gets the nod in accuracy.
Advantage: Mariota
Next: Mobility