2021 NFL Draft: BYU quarterback Zach Wilson scouting report

The Good

Interested parties in the 2021 NFL Draft will be looking at film from last season, trying to extrapolate what Wilson did better this season than years before. While part of his 2019 regression can be blamed on injuries to his hand and shoulder, 2020 ended up being such a marked improvement for the BYU junior, in terms of production and form.

NFL scouts will wonder how he took his play up a notch in such an off-year and whether those improvements can be maintained long-term in the NFL. It may be tempting to explain this rise in production due to a reduced toughness of schedule: with inter-conference college football suspended due to COVID-19, Wilson faced a much weaker lineup of opponents. But this is a lazy excuse, as Wilson’s improvement in 2020 is noticeable in more than just the stat column.

For starters, Wilson improved passing outside the pocket on off-platform throws. More than anything else, this quarterback skill is what is most exciting about Wilson in the 2021 NFL Draft and is a big part of why Wilson’s draft stock has risen so high. These types of skills are in high demand nowadays, as quarterbacks like Patrick Mahomes and Kyler Murray have been making whole careers out of making accurate, vertical passes outside the pocket.

Part of Wilson’s appeal is his ability to throw on the run. Whether it’s after pass-rushers have circumvented the offensive line or on roll-out plays, Wilson has shown a consistent ability to get the ball out to receivers downfield with a high level of accuracy. Wilson can throw the ball at unique angles to receivers with a high level of accuracy as well.

Sidearm throws, no-look passes, curving the ball around defenders, all these are game highlight passes Wilson performed at one time or another in 2020. These types of throws should be exciting to NFL coaches and receivers alike, as they spur hope that a play is never dead so long as the quarterback has the ball.

The fact that these off-script throws traveled sizeable distances in the air with a high level of accuracy in 2020 should have NFL front offices interested in Wilson. Against zone-coverage last season, Wilson was one of the most effective quarterbacks in the 2021 NFL Draft, a skill that is almost mandatory for the modern quarterback.

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Wilson is a dual-threat quarterback, giving his opponents another element to defend against on gameday. His elusiveness and speed will make him a zone-read threat on nearly every play, especially if he lands on an NFL team with a solid running back or two. Having a quarterback that can make plays with his legs and arm opens up all sorts of plays and offenses for coaches to use, giving them an edge against defenses with a strong front-seven.

While Wilson isn’t as fast as, say, Lamar Jackson, he has enough burst once clear of line defenders to give safeties a run for their money. And unlike Jackson, Wilson tends to avoid contact once he has firmly committed to the run, hopefully saving himself from the real nasty hits that can disrupt a professional career.

BYU used a good amount of movement prior to the snap, giving Wilson plenty of experience using motions as a way to disrupt defensive coverages. Managing motions has also become a key tool of the modern NFL quarterback and will be a skill highly prized in the 2021 NFL Draft.

Wilson’s ability to run and throw off-platform are just sideshows from the real show stopper: he is a fantastic pocket-passing quarterback as well. If general managers are looking for a quarterback who can air the ball out on vertical passes and make chunk plays, Wilson has plenty of tape doing that as well.

He throws with anticipation and has a good sense of timing when receivers will be finding space to catch the ball. Wilson’s highlight reel might be dominated by him making plays off-script but he is also a quarterback who can read coverages and anticipate a receiver getting open.

His game footage from 2020 is chock full of effective comeback and hitch throws that lead to first downs. This type of outside receiver route is clearly Wilson’s favorite and BYU coaches were sure to give him plenty of opportunities to take advantage of his accuracy and timing.

This may cause some analysts to attach the once-dreaded “system quarterback” label on Wilson. It can be concerning, especially when it’s easy to see BYU opponents noticed this tendency as well and started dropping flat defenders as the season progressed.

Fortunately for Wilson, he showed he can adjust on the fly several times in 2020, making him a quarterback who isn’t afraid to deviate from the script but isn’t foolish enough to stop what is working.

Whether it was airing the ball out to a receiver on a post route or checking the ball to an in-route, Wilson made smart throwing decisions, neither playing it too risky nor too safely. His eye movements indicate a quarterback who can move on from first-reads quickly, an invaluable skill in the NFL. His throwing mechanics are solid. While he isn’t the most technical quarterback ever seen, he has enough of the fundamentals down to make any discrepancies a non-issue.