Jake Haener shows glimpses at 2023 Senior Bowl

The quarterbacks have largely underwhelmed at the 2023 Senior Bowl, but Fresno State’s Jake Haener has shown some potential worth considering.

MOBILE — Very little about getting to this point has been easy for Jake Haener.

Coming into the NFL Draft process, Haener isn’t considered a top prospect. At 23 years old and measuring out at 6-foot and 208 pounds, he lacks ideal size and age. Most talent evaluators want someone a year or two younger and four inches taller.

In 2018, Haener was a freshman at the University of Washington before transferring to Fresno State. By rule, the three-star prospect missed all of 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic cut his ’20 season down to six games.

Finally, Haener started two full seasons for the Bulldogs between ’21 and ’22. In those campaigns, he threw for 53 touchdowns against 12 interceptions, limiting his turnovers despite an aggressive, swashbuckling style.

At the Senior Bowl, Haener has shown why he’s an intriguing bet in the later rounds. On Wednesday morning in the Mobile Convention Center, the quarterback gave insight into the way he’d like to play at the next level.

“I always looked up to Drew Brees when I was growing up,” Haener said. “I knew I wasn’t going to be more than 6-foot, so I had an idea I was going to have to model my game after a shorter quarterback. He was always one of those guys I modeled my game after, or at least tried to. I just want to throw with accuracy and timing like he did.”

At Fresno State, Haener was usually on-target. He completed 64.7 percent of his attempts as a junior before seeing that number increase to 67.1 and 72 percent respectively over his senior and redshirt senior campaigns. All this while keeping his yards per attempt at 8.3 or above.

Throughout his time with the Bulldogs, Haener helped them go from a 4-8 program to one which went 23-10, including being ranked at times. The signal-caller, asked to scout himself, believes much of his talent comes from within.

“With me you’re going to get a competitor,” Haener said. “Someone who is a competitor, playing with tempo and urgency all the time. Commanding the best out of the guys around him.”

Talking with talent evaluators, Haener is a likely Day 3 pick due to his size and raw talent. It’s going to take some time before he’s able to step into a starting role should the opportunity ever materialize. Of course, these things happen. Last year, the Washington Commanders took Sam Howell in the fifth round, and are now considering him for the starter’s seat in 2023.

If Haener can get into the right building and be coached up, he could provide someone with a quality addition to their quarterback room.