Ohio State football: Justin Fields is the second coming of Dak Prescott

Justin Fields is the next Dak Prescott.

If not for Trevor Lawrence, Justin Fields would be strong in the conversation to be the No. 1 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. As it is going into this year’s draft, Pro Football Focus tabbed Fields as a better pro prospect than Lawrence.

Barring a major injury during the coming season at Ohio State where he is the Heisman favorite, it will be an upset if Fields falls out of the top handful of picks next spring. Even if he does suffer a significant injury, like Sam Bradford, did early in the 2009 season after returning to Oklahoma but still went No. 1 overall in 2010, Fields still may not wait long to hear his name called.

Even just under 11 months ahead of next April’s draft, prospects will start being compared to those who are already in the NFL. NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah took a closer look at Fields, studying three game tapes from 2019, and likens him to former Mississippi State and current Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott.

“Dak made tremendous strides as a passer during his final season in college, and I expect to see similar improvement from Fields in 2020, Jeremiah said.”

Fields threw for 3,273 yards with 41 touchdowns, just three interceptions along with a completion rate north of 67 percent last year. He also added 484 yards and 10 scores on the ground.

Physically, the comparison of Fields to Prescott (6-foot-2, 238 pounds) is a good one. During his junior season at Mississippi State (2014), Prescott’s passing yardage (3,449) and completion rate (61.6 percent) were pretty comparable to Fields’ last year. The difference in touchdown-to-interception rate (27:11 for Prescott) can be partially chalked up to a difference in surrounding talent. Prescott also ran far more in his penultimate college season, rushing for 986 yards and 14 touchdowns on 210 attempts.

From his junior to senior season, Prescott’s completion rate jumped to over 66 percent (on 81 more pass attempts) as he had 3,793 yards with 29 touchdowns and just five interceptions. He naturally ran less (160 carries for 588 yards) but found the end zone 10 times on the ground. The common tie to Dan Mullen drew convenient comparisons to Tim Tebow for Prescott, but he dismissed those during his final college season. It helps that he is a better thrower.

With that 41:3 touchdown-to-interception ratio last year, it’s hard to see how Fields can improve a lot as a passer in his what should be his final season at Ohio State. But Jeremiah pointed to a need to improve his vision, blitz recognition and footwork. Refinement in those areas should come somewhat naturally in his second season as a starter, even if it doesn’t show in some raw numbers.

As an all but certain first-round pick, Fields won’t have to wait for a notable payday like Prescott has had to as a former fourth-rounder. But in a more specific sense, a comparison to Prescott is as flattering and it is apt.

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