Jake Browning NFL Draft Profile

Jake Browning NFL Draft Preview. Photo Credit: Scott Eklund | Red Box Pictures | Sports Al Dente Illustration
Jake Browning NFL Draft Preview. Photo Credit: Scott Eklund | Red Box Pictures | Sports Al Dente Illustration

Jake Browning – Quarterback

School: University of Washington

Class: Senior

Height: 6’2

Weight: 209 pounds

Jake Browning NFL Draft Profile

Top 3 Player Traits

Accuracy

Jake Browning has always had the touch to put balls into tight windows. His arm strength has always been questionable, but we’ll get to that later. He has a career 64.6% completion percentage, with a career-high of 68.5% in 2017. He was the number one quarterback in the Pac-12 in passer efficiency rating in 2016 and 2017 as well, so he’s a very effective passer.

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Football IQ

Browning had the full trust of Chris Petersen and the rest of the Husky offensive staff, which speaks volumes of his football IQ. Petersen gave him free rein to make changes at the line of scrimmage off of his own reads, which is something that you don’t see very often at the college level. He has the intelligence to catch on and adapt to an NFL offense very quickly, and shouldn’t skip a beat after being a four-year starter.

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Escapability

I didn’t want to use the word mobility, because that really isn’t what I would define this as. Browning has great pocket awareness and knows how to get away and avoid a sack. He also has the ability to take off and run to pick up a first down when a play breaks down, and he can run the option effectively as well.

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3 Player Traits In Need Of Improvement

Arm Strength

Browning has below average arm strength, and while he has the touch to make every throw, they usually arrive with below average velocity which at the NFL level will lead to a lot more tipped balls and interceptions. It shows up the most on his deep balls, for example, the throw here to John Ross. It ends up being a touchdown, but that’s strictly due to Ross’ rare speed and athleticism. And if you watch more of Browning’s tape, you’ll see tons of open receivers have to slow down to be able to make a play on the ball.

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Doing Too Much

One thing that frustrated every Washington fan was when Browning tried to do too much. And after film review, there are far too many examples of Browning trying to force the ball away when it would just be easier to take the sack. Browning is so lucky this play didn’t turn into six points the other way, and the scariest part is, that was the fifth time in this game that he did that.

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Production Drop

During their 2016 run to the College Football Playoff, Browning had some elite receiving talent around him in Ross and Dante Pettis. Ross left for the NFL after the 2016 season and Pettis after the 2017 season. Since then, we’ve seen Browning’s numbers fall from 43 touchdown passes in 2016, to 19 in 2017 and 16 in 2018. That’s a pretty significant drop.

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NFL Team Fits

New England Patriots

While the Patriots aren’t currently in the market for a starting quarterback, Browning is a proven winner who could be a stopgap for a year or two when Tom Brady retires (if that’s any time soon). He has the intelligence to learn their system and could succeed with the right head coach and quarterback showing him the way.

New Orleans Saints

See the above statement, just substitute Drew Brees for Brady.

Round Projection

Round 6