2018 NFL Draft QB stock report – Week 11: Baker Mayfield a first round talent?

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Josh Allen

QB, Wyoming

Wyoming’s Josh Allen once again remains the Jekyll and Hyde of 2018 quarterback prospects, following up a stellar four touchdown performance in Week 9 against New Mexico with a zero touchdown clunker against Colorado State in Week 10.

Though the numbers have been wildly inconsistent, it is still pretty remarkable that Allen has the Cowboys off to a 6-3 start despite losing its three best offensive players (WR Tanner Gentry, RB Brian Hill, OL Chase Roullier) to the NFL after last season. As a result, Wyoming has featured one of the worst rushing offenses in all of college football this season, meaning they have had to live and die on the play of their star quarterback.

Allen has continued to display outstanding velocity on his throws, both in and out of the pocket, and his game against New Mexico is a great illustration of what he can bring to the table when he puts it all together. He also shows great toughness as a runner and is comfortable improvising and throwing from outside the pocket when he needs to.

At times, Allen can lag in making the right read and will put too much air on the ball once he’s identified his target. In the NFL, these throws usually lead to turnovers and it’s something he’ll have to correct if he wants to be a starter at the next level.

Because the Cowboys live and die by the play of Allen, he can sometimes get too creative when scrambling, running around aimlessly but somehow managing to get away with it. Scrambling 30 yards behind the line of scrimmage isn’t going to be an option at the NFL level, so Allen will need to do a better job of learning when to just get rid of the ball and live to see another down.

All in all, I still feel Allen has the most upside of any quarterback in this class but his inconsistency is going to continue to cause a lot of variance in the opinions of scouts and front office executives in the coming months.