How does Tyler Shough compare?
When the NFL draft occurs, comparing prospects’ success in the league is the standard. This comes naturally when you have a favorite team, play fantasy football, or just look around the league. It is always nice to see a rookie on your favorite team doing better than the other players in the respective position or the round the player was drafted in. It sometimes becomes too much, but it can also be a great way to see how the overall draft class is doing in the league. Arguably, the main position where these comparisons can get heated and filled with passion from fans is with the quarterbacks.
In the last NFL Draft, the main conversation with the prospects was about comparing the extreme success of Jayden Daniels with the disappointing season of Caleb Williams. This conversation was a bit unfair to Williams, who is allowed to have growing pains as a rookie, but the season Daniels had just made things worse. It got to the point where people started to redraft the 2024 class and had Daniels as the 1st overall pick instead of Williams. It is just too early to make this decision, but this is what happens when comparisons happen. Still, when the team you write for (talking about me) drafted a quarterback in the second round, it is natural to see how the other rookies are doing, so let’s get started.
Cam Ward – 1st overall pick by the Tennessee Titans
Mark Zaleski / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Being the 1st pick in the draft always brings high expectations and hope to elevate a franchise. We just saw this type of pressure with Caleb Williams, but for some reason, the NFL world has not talked about Ward enough. When the Titans selected Ward, the conversation was short and morphed into discussing fellow quarterback prospect Shedeur Sanders. Since then, the NFL did not give the Titans any primetime games, which is irregular with a number one pick QB prospect, and there still has not been enough talk about the rookie. In my opinion, the league will regret this fast, because Cam Ward is a franchise quarterback and should be in the NFL for a long time.
The Quotes
Jim Wyatt, Tennesseetitans.com
Observations from @Titans minicamp on Tuesday, when QB @Cameron7Ward ended practice with 18 straight completions.
After an early INT in 7-on-7, Ward went 14-of-14 in the three team periods.
MORE https://t.co/Tum2iDboHx pic.twitter.com/vvCTgoS23f
— Jim Wyatt (@jwyattsports) June 10, 2025
Will Boling, Will-Boling.com
Cam Ward read the blitz, made a check at the line, got Ridley one-on-one and delivered this bomb perfectly.
Impressive for anyone. Especially for a rookie in his first minicamp.
One of the best plays I’ve seen from him so far. pic.twitter.com/hdbterQJPU
— Will Boling (@will_boling) June 12, 2025
Justin Garver, @titansfilmroom
Brian Callahan on Cam Ward talking trash while receiving the play call:
“I thought that was actually kind of remarkable.” pic.twitter.com/5hbR1WEhBi
— Justin Graver (@titansfilmroom) June 11, 2025
Jaxson Dart – 25th pick by the New York Giants
John Jones-Imagn Images
The only other quarterback prospect that was selected in the first round was former Ole Miss signal-caller Jaxson Dart. Throughout the draft season, the Giants were believed to be poised to select a quarterback early. They tried to trade up with the Titans for the first pick, but Tennessee’s price for that selection was way too expensive. The next question was whether New York would pass up on one of these top prospects to reach for another quarterback, but instead, they stood strong and decided to trade up later in the first round for Dart. After signing Russell Wilson in free agency, whichever quarterback prospect the Giants drafted would likely be sitting for a year, so going for a high-potential prospect made sense. Head coach Brian Daboll is the correct person to have as a quarterback developer, and he finally has his rookie quarterback, but let’s see how Dart has been doing so far.
The Quotes
Connor Hughes, @Connor_J_Hughes
Jaxson Dart rough in the team period here. He had two pass breakups at the line, threw an interception, took a sack. 0/3 with INT the stat line. #Giants
— Connor Hughes (@Connor_J_Hughes) June 5, 2025
Giant Insider, @GiantInsider
Slayton on Dart:
“You can see the arm talent, he can spin it.”
— The Giant Insider Podcast and Newspaper (@GiantInsider) June 12, 2025
Ryan Dunleavy, nypost.com
I was at 2/3 of open OTAs.
My main Jaxson Dart takeaway is there’s no window too small for him to try to throw into. Leads to some pretty highlights and some tipped ball INTs. Believes in his arm. Not always looking for easy completion#Giants https://t.co/tIurnzYp5r
— Ryan Dunleavy (@rydunleavy) June 13, 2025
Tyler Shough – 40th pick by the New Orleans Saints
Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
Leaving the first round, the next quarterback selected was at pick 40 by the New Orleans Saints. Tyler Shough was a surprise pick by many outside of the Saints world, but for people closer to the team, this was a pick waiting to happen. The Saints slowly became enamored by Tyler Shough’s playmaking ability, arm talent, and overall character throughout the draft process. New head coach Kellen Moore wanted to get his quarterback, and he found it in the second round. Still, there were many concerns with the selection, primarily due to Shough’s age, but the Saints needed to find a starting quarterback, and they believed they did just that. In practice, Shough has been in a heated quarterback battle with Spencer Rattler for the starting spot, and as of now, it is still too close to call.
The Quotes
Ross Jackson, louisianasports.net
#Saints rookie QB Tyler Shough’s arm continues to stand out, even on incomplete passes. He can push the ball downfield with seemingly little effort. Pretty impressive.
— Ross Jackson (@RossJacksonNOLA) June 11, 2025
Nick Underhill, neworleans.football
Tyler Shough showed it today. Hit two bombs for TDs, real nice layered throw going to the sideline and had an incomplete pass on the move that barely missed but athleticism flashed. Encouraging performance
— Nick Underhill (@nick_underhill) May 29, 2025
Matthew Paras, nola.com
I don’t mean to upload only Shough incompletions on here, but what a throw this was (even if it was incomplete) pic.twitter.com/Nm049Gyzo3
— Matthew Paras (@Matthew_Paras) June 10, 2025
Jalen Milroe – 93rd pick by the Seattle Seahawks
Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images
The next quarterback selected in the NFL draft was Jalen Milroe in the third round by the Seattle Seahawks. Milroe was known as the biggest project in the draft. This was due to his issues with passing consistency, decision making, and overall real quarterback mechanics, but a team would take a chance. Milroe has extraordinary athleticism and a beautiful deep ball, which makes him very intriguing to teams. Teams who needed a QB immediately stayed away, but the Seahawks, who do not need Milroe for at least this upcoming season, selected Milroe. This is a perfect opportunity for Milroe to sit for at least a year and learn behind Sam Darnold. Doing this allows Milroe to work on some of the scouts’ worries, and the good news for the Seahawks is that the rookie quarterback is already improving.
The Quotes
Gregg Bell, thenewstribune.com
Rookie Jalen Milroe throwing today to end #Seahawks minicamp.
These last 2 practices his best so far.
Coach Mike Macdonald told his 3rd-round pick from Alabama during practice how much better he looks now compared to rookie minicamp in May. Milroe flashed him a beaming smile. pic.twitter.com/lh06J9Zpt7
— Gregg Bell (@gbellseattle) June 12, 2025
Corbin K. Smith, emeraldcityspectrum.com
Thought Jalen Milroe had his best practice so far for #Seahawks today. Had a beautiful touchdown pass to undrafted rookie Tyrone Broden in 7-on-7. pic.twitter.com/LtVVJfat39
— Corbin K. Smith (@CorbinSmithNFL) June 11, 2025
Austin Abbott, @AustinAbbottFF
Seahawks GM (John Schneider) on Jalen Milroe:
“He’s got some of those wows and woes and then all of a sudden he takes off, scoring from 50, 60, 70 yards and running 22 MPH.”
“He’s a special man.. he’s been great so far, everyone RAVED about his work ethic and his personality.” pic.twitter.com/qoiLKcOi1v
— Austin Abbott (@AustinAbbottFF) May 29, 2025
Dillon Gabriel (94) & Shedeur Sanders (144) – Selected by the Cleveland Browns
Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
For the last quarterbacks, I decided to combine them into one spot due to them both being drafted by the same team. Starting with the earlier selection, Dillon Gabriel was a surprise pick at 94. Shedeur Sanders was still on the board, and with Cleveland’s rumored interest in Sanders, it was a shock to see them go with a different quarterback. What might have been even more shocking was the Browns returning to the quarterback pool and selecting Sanders at 144. It’s not uncommon for teams to select a particular position twice. Still, with the media pressure a pick like Sanders brings to a quarterback competition, they should have drafted him at 94 or selected a different player there. Still, this is a very open quarterback competition, and either prospect could separate and become the starter by week 1.
The Quotes
The Dawgs Podcast, thedawgspodcast.com
Here are the combined numbers for each Browns QB through OTAs and minicamp (according to the official ESPN Cleveland QB stat trackers).
Joe Flacco
– 18/35 (51.4% CMP), 2 TD 0 INTKenny Pickett
– 38/63 (60.3% CMP), 7 TD 0 INTDillon Gabriel
– 48/83 (57.8% CMP), 8 TD 0 INT… pic.twitter.com/EafkKBjQVa— The Dawgs – A Cleveland Browns Podcast (@thedawgspodcast) June 12, 2025
John Sabol, fox8.com
Shedeur Sanders spent 15-20 minutes after today’s 2nd #Browns minicamp practice working on passing drills.
His mechanics have already improved since rookie minicamp. @fox8news pic.twitter.com/NaukS1hpqB
— John Sabol (@John_Sabol) June 11, 2025
Jori Epstein, sports.yahoo.com
Browns putting a lot on rookie QB Dillon Gabriel’s plate but he wants that starter-like treatment. Gabriel says everyone in the NFL, which would of course include himself, believe they’re starter-caliber: pic.twitter.com/Tz4GbbBs0J
— Jori Epstein (@JoriEpstein) June 10, 2025
ESPN Cleveland, @ESPNCleveland
“I saw it the two days I was there, and what I saw was Shedeur Sanders was consistently delivering the ball and making plays,” – @JRCherry3 on Browns minicamp. pic.twitter.com/Lf69RDj3vG
— ESPN Cleveland (@ESPNCleveland) June 12, 2025
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below on any other rookie quarterbacks or if you want to see more positions, rookies from certain rounds, or even NFC South rookies.
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