2017 NFL Draft: Mason Rudolph Scouting Report
By jonfox
Where does Mason Rudolph stand headed into the 2016 season?
In the land of the blind, the one eyed man is king. Mason Rudolph is going into a draft which is lacking in pro ready pocket passing quarterback talent. And because of this, he’ll get vastly overdrafted. He also looks the part of an NFL quarterback: he’s 6-5 230 lbs and his stats jumps off the page.
The problem I have with him is after you get past the hype of his stats, he’s just another weaker armed quarterback who’s flaws are being hidden in a quick decision veer/spread offense.
He’s at his best with the Cowboys when he play actions out of a shotgun set and then finds a open receiver for a quick hitter between the hashmarks. He doesn’t have the arm strength to throw a deep out or go deep on a consistent basis.
His mechanics seem functional, so this is more a matter of sheer lack of arm talent. He’s also rather immobile in the pocket so if he has to go through his progressions, the chances of a sack increase.
This is why he lights up the Big-12 defenses, which would struggle to cover a tortoise on a passing route, and struggles against a quality defense who have a well coached secondary.
Draft grade: 5th
And that might be generous. I just don’t see it with him but I’m sure that he’ll be a day 2 pick. He has to show me during the 2016 season that he can consistently place his deep ball well and consistently show that he has the arm strength to hit those long outs.
Otherwise, I don’t see him as anything more than a backup in the NFL. Like I said earlier, the dearth of pure passing quarterback prospects in the 2017 draft means that he’ll probably go much higher than the 5th round.