Top 5 Possible Destinations For Terrelle Pryor

Over the past few weeks, the football world has watched the Terrelle Pryor saga play out. After head coach Jim Tressel was fired, Pryor had a big decision to make. Should he stay for his senior year, or should he leave early and declare for the NFL’s Supplemental Draft? Pryor opted for the latter and he is now tasked with rebuilding his image in hopes that an NFL team will spend a pick on him in the Supplemental Draft. He has a lot of work to do. Pryor leaves Ohio State University among allegations that he violated NCAA rules several times and worst of all, he leaves Ohio State with no certain NFL position. Pryor played quarterback at Ohio State, but he has been heavily scrutinized and many do not believe he is an NFL quarterback. He boasts a 6 ft 6, 233 pound body as well as fantastic athleticism. He has drawn comparisons to players such as Vince Young. Pryor has never been a drop back passer. He played in a spread style offense at Ohio State. He’s extremely raw when it comes to his drops, mechanics, and reading defenses. If he wants to be a successful NFL QB, he’s going to have to really work hard at it. There lies another problem. Pryor is not known for his incredible work ethic or for being a great student of the game. How his future plays out is entirely dependent on how hard he wants to work to achieve his success. With all that being said, if Pryor does get his head on straight and work hard, he can be a successful QB. He’s got all the physical tools. He will draw interest so lets take a look at the teams who could take a look at him in the Supplemental Draft.

Oakland Raiders
Many people believe the Raiders to be the favorites to acquire Terrelle Pryor and it doesn’t take a genius to understand why. The Raiders current QB is Jason Campbell who is quite average. Behind him are a bunch of journeyman with no real player as a potential long term starter. Pryor could become a Raider and sit behind Jason Campbell while he works on all the areas that he needs to work on. When he is ready, he can take over the starting spot however many years down the road that may be. Oakland is a strong possibility for Pryor and wouldn’t be the worst place for him to go. However, the only real question is who is going to teach Pryor how to be a better QB in Oakland?

Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins are going into the 2011 season with Chad Henne as the starting quarterback. Henne had a below average year last year and there really is no other quarterback on the roster for the Dolphins to develop. Pryor could come in and sit while the Dolphins decide if Henne is their solution or not. If Pryor doesn’t work out as a quarterback in Miami, they might try him out as a receiver. The Dolphins receiving corps isn’t particularly strong and Pryor could be a low risk, high reward option. I list the Dolphins as a medium possibility.

Washington Redskins
Washington is going into the year with Jon Beck as the projected starter. If that doesn’t signify a need at QB, I don’t know what does. Head Coach Mike Shannahan decided to bypass drafting a quarterback this year and now must decide between Beck or Rex Grossman as his starters. Neither of them fit the mold of a mobile QB that Shannahan likes to utilize. Pryor, on the other hand, does fit that mold. However, Pryor is not ready to start. He will take several years to be ready to compete for a starter position and there is a risk that Shannahan will throw him into the fire. I can see the Redskins being medium interested, but it might not be the best situation for Pryor.

Cleveland Browns
Cleveland drafted Colt McCoy in the 2010 NFL Draft. He started 8 games as a rookie and enters his second year as the projected starter. However, there is doubt as to whether he is the long term starter for the Browns. Pryor could come into Cleveland behind McCoy and backup Seneca Wallace and learn from head coach Pat Shurmer. Pryor would be the 3rd quarterback on the roster and continue to work until he was able to challenge for the starter spot. If he were to flop as a QB, the Browns could also try to use him as a WR since their WR corps is brutally awful. The one thing that causes me hesitation is that the Browns might not want to take on a head case like Pryor. Nevertheless, Cleveland is a strong possibility.

Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles are my sleeper team in the Pryor race. The Eagles have someone to mentor Pryor in starting QB Mike Vick who is a very similar athletic QB like Pryor. They currently have a backup in Kevin Kolb, but he will likely be traded which would move up Mike Kafka to backup. Pryor would enter as the 3rd QB, learn from one of the best athletic QB’s and potentially start for the Eagles one day once the wear and tear catches up with Vick. Philly is trying to win a Super Bowl so they may not want to use the resources it will require to pick Pryor, but I see them as a medium possibility.

I think Terrelle Pryor will definitely be selected in the Supplemental Draft. The only questions are who will draft him and in what round. While his agent believes Pryor will be drafted in the 1st round (yeah right) and Mike Mayock thinks he is a 4th round prospect, I don’t think anyone touches him before the 5th round. Pryor is extremely raw and there is a good chance that he won’t see an NFL field for at least 3 years. Pryor is a big time QB project and is incapable of being a starter or even a back up at this time. He projects to be a 3rd quarterback early in his career and his development will determine if he ever becomes a backup or a starter. 5th round is my mark for where he gets picked up. If I had to make a guess, I would say Oakland drafts him in the 5th with Cleveland drafting him with the 6th as the next option. What do you think?