After lighting it up at Ole Miss last season, Jaxson Dart fell off the radar. Why? Despite a 9-3 record heading into the bowl season, the Rebels didn’t make the cut for the 12-team playoff. Lane Kiffin sure was upset about it, firing several trolls to the CFP committee. But now, on the grounds of Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, AL, for the 76th Resse’s Senior Bowl, Dart is back on the big stage. And Kiffin’s making sure everyone is learning a thing or two about his underrated star. 

What can NFL teams expect from Jaxson Dart? Lane Kiffin has the answer to that. “Well, I think he’s a phenomenal leader, one of the best I’ve ever been around. The way he took over and helped in recruiting and developing players, relationships with defensive players so, some teams are gonna be very lucky.” If you take a closer look at what the 21-year-old did at Ole Miss, he could “grow on you” just like he did with Todd McShay. “It’s interesting because I covered Jaxson Dart and Ole Miss and Lane Kiffin. I did games on the sidelines three years ago now….they were running the ball a lot,” McShay said on Todd McShay on January 30. “But he got better. The offense kind of evolved this season. I watched his tape and I’m like, ‘Oh, this is a different version. This is like the 4.0 version of Jaxson Dart.’”

McShay also brought up the mistakes that Jaxson Dart made in the Florida loss. With the Rebels’ CFP hope on the line, he threw two late-game interceptions, sealing their fate with a 24-17 loss. “At that moment, he’s not really who he is,” McShay said. “But what he is is the guy who was just laying it all on the line and just brought the competitive juice that you look for and it was the most important thing in the entire world to him.” Jaxson Dart didn’t hide from the loss either. Following that loss, he took full accountability with a sincere apology to his teammates, coaches, and fans. 

Still, one sore loss shouldn’t wipe away an entire season of high-level play. Jaxson Dart passed the season with flying colors throwing for 4,279 yards, 29 touchdowns, and just six interceptions. McShay is opening his eyes to the potential that this NFL prospect is — “It’s the best way I can put it, he’s growing on me and I’m excited to watch the rest of this process finish up… Because every step I go further down the road with Jaxson, the more I like the guy as a player.” And he isn’t the only one realizing Dart might be a hidden gem in this draft’s class. 

The rise of Jaxson Dart’s draft stocks 

The 2025 NFL Draft has Miami’s Cam Ward and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders as the top QB prospects. But Jaxson Dart is forcing his way into the mix. His draft stocks skyrocketed after a prominent win over Duke in the Gator Bowl. He threw for 400+ yards and four scores in the 52-20 win. Now, he’s risen from a late third-round prospect to a potential early second-round pick. And he’s continuing to boost his draft profile at the Senior Bowl. 

But it’s not just the postseason hype — his collegiate success is winning the interest of scouts. Jaxson Dart led the SEC with a 69.3 percent completion rate in the past season and topped the nation in yards per attempt (10.8). Per Pro Football Focus, Dart also leads the conference QBs with a 64.8 passing grade and a 9.0 percent BTT rate under pressure. 

Right now, projections have Jaxson Dart landing at Las Vegas Raiders with their No. 6 overall pick. Could he sneak into the first round? It’s not out of the question. Do you think he has a first-round upside?