2020 NFL Draft: Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa scouting report

Physical

Tagovailoa is not a running quarterback. He is not going to wow you with his speed, strength, or cannon for an arm. He is not that type of player. What Tagovailoa does best is stay within the gameplan and do his job. He makes smart reads and delivers the ball where it needs to be.

Since Tagovailoa is not going to be a standout athlete, he needs to produce from inside the pocket with elite efficiency. Plenty of pocket passers have continued to be successful in today’s game of high mobility and versatility, but it relies upon their ability to deliver perfect balls every time and have a near-perfect sense of the game. If a quarterback is unable to improvise, they need to be able to have the perfect play picket out before the snap.

I have already discussed how Tagovailoa is extremely polished for a college quarterback when making reads, but his pre and post-snap judgments are what is going to make or break his professional career. Being able to take care of the ball not only with your arm but your head is crucial, and many have gone before him with greater physical gifts and failed due to their inability to prepare mentally (ex: Jamarcus Russell).

At 6-foot-1, 218 pounds, any reasonable person would not expect physical growth from Tagovailoa. What he needs to learn to do is use what size and speed he has to extend plays and force secondaries to stay in coverage for an additional two or three seconds.

This time often breaks defenses and produces improv football, because staying in coverage for any more than ~4 seconds (an NFL pass rush is expected to pressure within three seconds) is going to yield results for an offense.