Michael Penix Jr. and Bo Nix are among the seven quarterbacks featured in this year's Reese's Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala.
This week's practices will be televised on ESPN leading up to Saturday's game at 1 p.m. ET on the NFL Network.
This year's quarterback class is more intriguing than usual. Penix – the Heisman Trophy runner-up, led Washington to the College Football Playoff championship game this season. Nix – who finished third in the Heisman voting – led Oregon to a 22-5 record the last two seasons.
They are among the six transfer quarterbacks at the Reese's Senior Bowl. Notre Dame's Sam Hartman, South Alabama's Carter Bradley, South Carolina's Spencer Rattler and Tennessee's Joe Milton III are the others. Tulane's Michael Pratt is the only quarterback at the Reese's Senior Bowl who stayed at one place.
A closer look look at the quarterbacks worth watching in Mobile this week:
Ranking Reese's Senior Bowl quarterbacks
1. Michael Penix Jr., Washington
Penix (6-3, 218) spent four seasons at Indiana before a brilliant two-year run with Washington the last two seasons. The left-hander passed for 4,903 yards, 36 TDs and 11 interceptions. He shows outstanding touch on deep passes. According to Pro Football Focus, Penix was 51 of 117 (43.6%) with 16 TDs and seven interceptions. He also had a 71.8% completion percentage with 13 TDs and no interception in play-action. Penix will impress with his ability to make all the throws necessary to be a NFL quarterback.
Penix's draft stock fluctuated in the CFP games against Texas and Michigan. He had one of the best games of his career against the Longhorns, where he hit 29 of 38 passes for 430 yards and two TDs and no interceptions. Penix struggled against Michigan, however, by going 27 of 51 for 255 yards, one TD and two interceptions. Penix struggled against pressure this season with a 41.8% completion percentage, six TDs and five interceptions. That is going to be the biggest nit-pick with whether he ends up being a first-round pick and a NFL starter in 2024.
Draft Grade: Round 1. SN's Vinnie Iyer has Penix landing with the Minnesota Vikings with the No. 11 pick in his latest 2024 NFL Mock Draft. Iyer writes: "The Vikings can move on from Kirk Cousins and they learned quickly that neither Josh Dobbs nor Nick Mullens nor Jaren Hall could be any kind of real answer beyond short-term injury fill-in. The Kevin O'Connell Rams-like system calls for more of a strong pocket passer first, and the downfield arm and accuracy of Penix should be a welcome get for Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison."
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2. Bo Nix, Oregon
Nix (6-3, 214) played three years at Auburn before a two-year stretch at Oregon. The increase in efficiency after his transfer was remarkable. Nix passed for 4,508 yards, 45 TDs and three interceptions and added 234 rushing yards and six TDs last season. The former five-star recruit took a while to develop, but he became the best intermediate passer in the college game last season.
Nix was 62 of 91 (68.1%) for 16 TDs and one interception on passes between 10-20 yards. That is the window for success at the next level, and he also was 85 of 125 (68%) with 21 TDs and no interceptions when facing the blitz. If those trends continue at the next level, then Nix will be a successful starter in the right system. One might accuse Nix of stat-padding, but he had a 75.5% completion percentage with 14 TDs and one interception against ranked teams. Yes, the Ducks lost to Washington twice, and that competition with Penix to be a first-round pick will spill into the Reese's Senior Bowl and NFL Scouting Combine.
Draft grade: Round 1. Iyer projects Nix will land with the Denver Broncos with the No. 12 pick in his latest Mock Draft. Iyer writes: "The Broncos will work to get out of the Russell Wilson contract in the offseason given Sean Payton benched him late in the season and should be looking for his own QB solution going forward. Nix is an ideal prospect for Payton's system with his arm, athleticism and accurate execution based on his experience."
3. Spencer Rattler, South Carolina
Rattler (6-1, 200) was the top pro-style quarterback recruit in the class of 2019, according to 247Sports.com. He played three seasons at Oklahoma before transferring to South Carolina. He was good in Lincoln Riley’s system with the Sooners (4,595 yards, 40 TDs, 12 INTs), but ultimately he lost his job to Caleb Williams. His production continued with Shane Beamer at South Carolina (3,186, 37 TDs, 20 INTs). The interceptions will be the first topic of conversation. Rattler is a risk-taker.
He was 18 of 41 (43.9%) for 726 yards, six TDs and five interceptions of 20 yards or more. He also has the reputation of being a streaky quarterback who did not play well against ranked teams (63.5%, 1 TD, 4 INTs this season). South Carolina was 0-5 in those games, and Rattler took 25 sacks.
What is the justification for a Day 2 pick? Remember how he closed 2022? He averaged 348 passing yards and threw 10 TDs and three interceptions in a memorable three-game stretch against Tennessee, Clemson and Notre Dame – one where he took just eight sacks. He’s the best play-action quarterback among this bunch – with a 79.4% completion percentage in that concept.
Draft grade: Rounds 2-3. Rattler has been in the spotlight since high school, so the process at the Reese’s Senior Bowl and NFL Scouting Combine should come easy. Don’t be surprised if Rattler shines in these situations and makes a push to be a second-round quarterback.
4. Michael Pratt, Tulane
Pratt (6-2, 200) is the only quarterback on this list who did not transfer. He had a brilliant four-year career at Tulane, where he passed for 9,611 yards, 90 TDs and 26 interceptions. Pratt also added 28 rushing TDs. He was 21-3 as a starter the last two seasons and elevated the Green Wave program in the American Athletic Conference. He had a 45.3% completion percentage with nine TDs and two interceptions on passes of 20 yards or more, which isn't that far off from North Carolina's Drake Maye.
Pratt faced only one ranked team this season, and he took seven sacks in a 26-14 loss to SMU in the AAC championship game. Jordan Love was the last Group of 5 quarterback to be selected in the first round in 2020, and he was a riser after the NFL Scouting Combine that year.
Draft grade: Rounds 2-3. Pratt will be a solid fit for an NFL team, but he likely will start his career as a high-end backup. We still think a team will take its shot on Day 2 at the right value.
5. Sam Hartman, Notre Dame
Hartman (6-1, 208) played five seasons at Wake Forest before transferring to Notre Dame, where he passed for 2,689 yards, 24 TDs and eight interceptions. He is fifth all time in FBS history with 15,656 passing yards. There is a lot of experience, and Hartman graded out as the fourth-best deep ball passer in the FBS behind Jayden Daniels, Jalen Milroe and Drake Maye last season. Hartman had a 43.9% completion percentage with 15 TDs and two interceptions on passes of 20 yards or more. Hartman was outstanding when throwing in the middle of the field, too.
So, what's the problem? Hartman had a 59.8% career completion percentage. Even for a high-volume passer, that's a concern. Hartman had a 59.3% completion percentage with five TDs and three interceptions in four games against ranked teams last season, and Notre Dame was 2-2 in those games. Can he elevate a team at the next level? Hartman likely will start in that range where Stetson Bennett (No. 128) and Aidian O'Connell (No. 135) were drafted last year, but the accuracy on the deep ball might bump him up a bit if that pops in Mobile, and there is a huge opportunity to move up with a strong performance.
Draft grade: Rounds 4-5. Hartman is the perfect career quarterback at the next level, and that might allow him to make the move up to Day 2.
6. Joe Milton, Tennessee
Milton (6-5, 244) spent three seasons at Michigan and three at Tennessee. He was touted as a first-round pick before the 2023 season after the 2022 Orange Bowl performance against Clemson where he hit 19 of 28 passes for 251 yards and three TDs. Milton passed for 2,813 yards, 20 TDs and five interceptions and added seven rushing TDs in Josh Heupel's quarterback-friendly offense at Tennessee. In the games against Georgia and Alabama, Milton finished 45 of 71 (63.9%) with two TDs and no interceptions. He is effective in the short passing game.
After that, there are question marks. According to PFF, Milton was 49 of 127 (38.5%) on passes of 10 yards or more. That number dropped to 18 of 61 (29.5%) on passes of 20 yards or more. Milton has the most arm strength of any quarterback in this group, and that will be on display in Mobile and later at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine. Until that accuracy improves, however, he has the look of a Day 3 backup quarterback.
Draft grade: Rounds 4-5. Maybe he jumps to Day 2 with a lights-out performance. All it takes is one team to fall in love with that arm strength. It will be a topic of conversation.
7. Carter Bradley, South Alabama
Bradley (6-3, 215) is playing on his home field, and he put together a productive two-year run with the Jaguars with 5,995 passing yards, 47 TDs and 19 interceptions after transferring from Toledo. Bradley had consistent splits and is strong in the intermediate and middle-of-the-field passing game. The scouts are going to watch Bradley on the outside right – where according to PFF he was 16 of 36 on throws past the line of scrimmage. That did include five TDs on passes of 20 yards or more, so the potential is there if he stays accurate outside the pocket.
Bradley did take five sacks in losses to Louisiana, James Madison and Tulane, so pocket presence will also be watched closely. He could emerge as a late-round sleeper with a strong week.
Draft grade: Rounds 6-7. Everybody is looking for the next Brock Purdy. We're not going to put that on Bradley, but he will be a late-round pick with upside.