Former NFL QB predicts prospect not named Cam Ward or Shedeur Sanders will get drafted in Round 1

It's not uncommon for quarterbacks to start to rise up draft boards this time of year. Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders remain the consensus top two signal-callers in this year's draft class, but as the Senior Bowl wraps up this weekend, a third quarterback is threatening to crash into the bottom of Round 1.

Former NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky has gone on record with his belief that former Ole Miss star Jaxson Dart will hear his name called before day one ends. The prolific passer raised his stock during Senior Bowl workouts this week. Scouts were initially concerned with how he might transition from a quarterback-friendly system at Ole Miss to a pro-style system, but he answered a lot of those questions during practice sessions leading up to the Senior Bowl game itself.

Bo Nix's rookie success for the Broncos is one reason why scouts are starting to warm up to Dart. Both quarterbacks flashed real ability to make throws from multiple arm angles at the college level. That skill is becoming more and more value in the modern NFL due to the exotic blitz packages that are en vogue around the league. But while Dart is starting to look better and better to teams who might not be able to trade up for Ward or Sanders, we might be putting the cart before the horse a bit here.

NFL teams should tread carefully falling in love with Jaxson Dart

Teams will need to get more comfortable with Dart's processing speed as the pre-draft process rolls along. He benefited from a lot of simple reads in Lane Kiffin's offensive system with the Rebels. NFL defenses do not allow young quarterbacks to sit back in the pocket and only read part of the field. Dart will need to prove he can get to secondary and tiertiary reads if he wants to duplicate Nix's success at the next level.

It's also fair to point out that Dart is benefiting from a weak group of quarterbacks in this draft class. Even Ward and Sanders have significant flaws that concern a lot of scouts. Jalen Milroe's inability to allay concerns about his accuracy in the pocket has opened up the door for Dart to grab the No. 3 quarterback spot as his own.

It would be a major surprise if Round 1 ends without at least three quarterbacks being drafted. As long as Dart holds off the competition, he should prove Orlovsky right and hear his name called in the 20s. But that doesn't mean that he's anything near a sure thing to pan out at the next level.