2019 Heisman Finalists: How do they project to the NFL?

When it’s all said and done, Jalen Hurts will have participated in the College Football Playoff in each of his four seasons. The first three with Alabama and then this season after leading Oklahoma to the number four ranking. That alone should help tell you just how incredible of a leader he is to his teams. Even when relegated to backup duty at Alabama behind Tua Tagovailoa, he never wavered and waited to transfer until after he had graduated. It paid off too as Hurts was able to lead the incredible comeback for Alabama in the SEC Championship versus Georgia last season after Tua had gotten injured.

While any team will be glad to have a person and leader like Hurts on their team, he also has some on-the-field skills that will translate to the next level as well. Namely, his powerful running style from the quarterback position. He has a thick, strong build that he utilizes well as a powerful runner who initiates contact and punishes defenders on a regular basis. That helped him account for over 1,200 yards and 18 touchdowns on the ground in 2019.

Hurts also made a noticeable leap as a passer this season at Oklahoma under head coach Lincoln Riley. Nobody had ever questioned his upper-echelon arm strength, but his accuracy and ball placement had left a lot to be desired. In 2019, Hurts had much better footwork and mechanics in the pocket which allowed him to surpass 70% completion percentage on over 300 pass attempts for the first time in his career. He also parlayed that into career highs in yards, touchdowns, and quarterback rating as a passer.

While he still has some room to grow as a pocket passer, Hurts biggest question mark after this season is in regard to his turnovers. He was responsible for some close games and precarious situations for the Sooners due to interceptions and/or fumbles. Especially in November, he had three straight games in which he had an interception and at least one fumble in games that Oklahoma was lucky to come out on top.

Right now, Jalen Hurts is projected to be picked somewhere in the middle of the 2020 NFL Draft, likely around the third round. As a rookie, he projects as a backup who can play in certain packages and situations to utilize his powerful running style and dual-threat ability. Think goalline or short-yardage situations. If he can further develop his decision-making skills and take better care of the football, Hurts could become a starter down the road. However, it would be a surprise to see him become much more than a league-average quarterback.