Christian Hackenberg is still in the 1st-round conversation

Oct 24, 2015; Baltimore, MD, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions quarterback Christian Hackenberg (14) pressured by Maryland Terrapins lineman Brett Kulka (96) and lineman Yannick Ngakoue (7) at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mitch Stringer-USA TODAY Sports

Most fans that are stat-nerds don’t like Penn State Nittany Lions quarterback Christian Hackenberg because he doesn’t have the shiny numbers. But most of your scouts, G.M.s, and personnel people around the NFL are high on him. That’s because he has the traits these NFL executives are looking for.

At 6’4″, 230 pounds, he has the size, the big arm, mobility and yes, he has the accuracy. It just doesn’t show up in his completion percentage because he doesn’t have the talent around him the rest of the quarterback prospects have. Another thing he has is the football I.Q. to run Bill O’Brien’s complex pro style system he did as a freshman.

As you know, O’Brien is now with the Houston Texans and Hackenberg has seen two offensive coordinators since. On Saturday, against the Maryland Terrapins, Hackenberg used his big arm to make big throws to sneak his Nittany Lions past the Terrapins 31-30. On the day, Hackenberg was only 13-29 but had 315 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions.

And the TDs were all big-time throws from 38, 27, and 20 yards out. To go with his big TD throws, he had an additional 38-yard completion and a 40-yard completion to display his deep ball accuracy. On the season, he’s only completing 50 percent of his passes for 1,836 yards but has 14 TDs to only two INTs.

This kid is making the best out of a horrible situation and executives know it. The team he’s least likely to get past is the Texans because he’s O’Brien’s guy and he knows his system. Either way, we’re going to hear his name called in the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft.

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