ESPN analyst Paul Finebaum had expressed some serious concern about DJ Lagway. Given the mystery surrounding Lagway’s injury, Finebaum said, “I think we need to find out exactly what is going on with Lagway. To put it mildly, I’m pretty concerned.” After being the superman for Billy Napier and potentially saving his head coaching role last season, Lagway reportedly has been dealing with a shoulder injury to start the offseason. This was then topped with a lower-body injury that resulted in him wearing a walking boot. But who would have thought that ESPN would come with such a blow for Napier just while stepping into a new season?

Back in June, the Lagway craze doubled when NFL Rookie Watch dedicated a post only to the Florida quarterback. The caption said it all, “DJ Lagway is built like an absolute TANK at the QB position.” It also had an NFL scout’s view, who said, Lagway is one of the ‘scariest built’ QB prospects to ever play the game. But after the ESPN announcement, we need to find that scout to see whether they still hold the same view on Lagway or not.

On September 2, an X user posted a screenshot of Lagway’s profile on the ESPN page. The caption read, “Derek Lagway had a 29 QBR vs FCS opponent LIU. Off-season lies will be addressed accordingly this season.” In the screenshot, apart from Lagway’s measurements, there are his 2025 season stats. Napier’s quarterback threw for 120 yards and came up with 3 touchdowns. The concerning part is his QB rating. ESPN gave Lagway a rating of 29.8, which stands at the 104th rank. This is what might upset the fans.

QB rating does not solely depend on touchdowns. The other factors that determine it are whether the quarterback completed passes at a high percentage and whether he performed well on high-leverage downs, along with others. Now, what makes Lagway drop in the ratings?

During their 2025 opener against the LIU Sharks, the Gators quarterback was sacked on Florida’s first play and he threw two errant passes early. Lagway himself admitted, “It felt great to be back out there. Felt like, just as a group, it was very sloppy. I feel like we weren’t playing our brand of football.” The sophomore completed 15 of 18 passes for 120 yards, with TD passes to Eugene Wilson III, Hayden Hansen, and J. Michael Sturdivant. While Lagway will be looking to improve his QB ratings, he has already made his family proud. 

DJ Lagway’s new NIL gains 

On August 31, Lagway’s proud dad, Derek Lagway Sr. posted a clip of the family boarding a private jet. A whole jet to the Lagway fam? UNIMAGINABLE! The first thing Lagway’s father did was to share a note of gratitude. He wrote, “God is good” and “Blessed by the best. Gainesville here we come”. 

As per On3, Florida’s star sophomore quarterback currently has a $3.7 million NIL valuation. This makes Lagway the sixth-highest paid player in college football. Florida alum, Chris Doering, has already been the quarterback’s biggest fan as he said, “For DJ Lagway, I look at this guy, he is the real deal.” In no time, the quarterback became the attention magnet. So much so, that renowned brands started to flock around him. 

His latest NIL success came in July as Lagway signed a deal with T-Mobile. Apart from the monetary compensation, it came with a big bonus. Lagway got lucky to share the screen while filming the commercial with Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and former NFL star tight end Rob Gronkowski. The college football star and the NFL legends came together for a special cause. The trio were part of T-Mobile’s “Beyond The Game” campaign. “To see everybody come together as a community, and I’d say that really stuck out to me, you know, being able to represent my city and my community,” shared Lagway.