Mason Rudolph is the quarterback no one is talking about who will shoot up the draft boards of NFL teams and fantasy teams alike. Here, I make the case he should be a top ten draft pick in 2018.
Recruiting
Out of high school, Rudolph was a four-star recruit from Rock Hill, South Carolina. He was ESPN’s eight-ranked overall quarterback and 161st-ranked prospect. A three-year varsity starter, Rudolph finished his career with 10,986 yards and 132 TDs, while throwing just 29 interceptions on 942 attempts. He also showed off his ability to use his legs rushing for 32 touchdowns in 42 career games.
Athletic Profile
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Rudolph has the prototypical size you look in a quarterback. He stands 6’4” and weighs in at 230 lbs. He is projected to run the 40-yard dash in the 4.7-4.8 range and should test out as a similar if not slightly better athlete to DeShone Kizer.
Injury History and Off-field
Rudolph played the 2016 season with a broken rib. He noted, “It was so frustrating. The rotation (of the torso in the throwing motion) would just kill me. I couldn’t throw it that far. That whole game was a struggle.”
In 2015, he had a broken foot that required surgery. However, he has not had any off-field issues.
Career
A two-year starter, Rudolph has played in 29 career games, completing 597 of 958 attempts for 8,714 yards, 55 touchdowns, and 17 interceptions. If he stays healthy, he will have played in over 40 career games by the time his senior season is over and he will have the experience that NFL teams look for.
While Rudolph’s numbers are gaudy, they are inflated by playing in the worst defensive conference of any of the Power-5 schools; the Big-12. However, Rudolph has shown the ability to perform against some of the country’s top defenses. In the bowl game versus Colorado, a team that ranked 27th in passing yards per game against and that had three players in the secondary drafted in the first four rounds, he finished with 314 yards and three touchdowns on just 32 total attempts.
Bama’s Bo Scarbrough edged out teammate Joshua Jacob, averaging 4.75 yards after contact, per carry in 2016 – tops among returning SEC RBs. pic.twitter.com/EsbTfE7Q75
— PFF College Football (@PFF_College) June 29, 2017
What the Film says
Rudolph has all the arm talent one can look for. There isn’t a throw on the field he can’t make. So often big-armed quarterbacks don’t know when to take something off the ball and make touch passes, but Rudolph consistently is able to do that. Rudolph combines his big arm and touch with pinpoint accuracy. He can drop the ball in the bucket 40 yards down the field and has a 62.3% career completion percentage. He is excellent in giving his receiver a chance to make a play for him while also protecting the football. He had only four interceptions on 448 attempts in 2016.
This play is everything, defender bearing down on him, perfect ball placement and the ball beats the safety pic.twitter.com/bPO52MOdoJ
— Eliot Crist (@EliotCrist) March 20, 2017
An important aspect for success at the next level is being able to take advantage of when a receiver is open down the field by delivering accurate deep passes. Below is an example of his arm strength and placement on deep passes.
Beautiful deep ball pic.twitter.com/yaKsMtHheO
— Eliot Crist (@EliotCrist) March 20, 2017
While arm talent is incredibly important for a quarterback, obsessing over it often leads to people missing on players. What is between a quarterback’s ears is incredibly important — how he reads the defense and his ability to move in the pocket.
Rudolph has excellent movement in the pocket. He has a great feel for the rush, has subtle movements to avoid it, shows a great spin move to avoid rushers, and isn’t scared to stay in the pocket and take a hit. He can run the ball, but is always keeping his eyes downfield when moving in the pocket.
Rudolph shows good escapeability here pic.twitter.com/Ncz5ontF7Z
— Eliot Crist (@EliotCrist) March 20, 2017
Rudolph’s ability to read a defense will be a question mark, like all Big-12 quarterbacks before him. He plays in a spread system where there are a lot of first read throws. This can be a sign of his ability to make good pre-snap reads or it can be strictly play design. While his ability to go through multiple reads isn’t a strength, it is something I think he will continue to improve and be able to do at the next level.
Rudolph works his way across the field and delivers a dart that is dropped pic.twitter.com/JSol1MubGz
— Eliot Crist (@EliotCrist) March 20, 2017
The biggest criticism of Rudolph is likely to be his arm strength. He often relies on his touch when he shouldn’t, which can lead to putting receivers in bad positions. It is a fair criticism, and something I want to keep an eye on this year. Is it a sign of things to come? Or, were his broken ribs and the pain that came with them the reason he didn’t put more power into his throws?
I don’t think this much air under the throw on a back shoulder helps pic.twitter.com/eNOBeZpfhb
— Eliot Crist (@EliotCrist) March 20, 2017
Bottom Line
Rudolph is an under-the-radar prospect who has been picking up steam. He would have been my #1 quarterback in 2017 and he’s my #1 quarterback going into 2018. He has the prototypical size, touch, pocket presence that will have teams excited. He has shown the ability to play through pain and if fully healthy this year I expect him to improve on putting more velocity on the ball. He is one of the cheaper quarterbacks in Devy right now, but I expect that to change by the end of the 2017 season.
Projected Round – Top ten pick
Player Comparison – Tony Romo
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- Devy Profile: Sam Darnold, QB USC - September 8, 2017
- Devy Profile: Lamar Jackson, QB Louisville - August 21, 2017
- Devy Profile: Mason Rudolph, QB Oklahoma State - August 20, 2017
