Analyst Todd McShay once said before. “Why is it that this 5-star recruit, at Ohio State and then at Texas, stars at the Manning camp, is great in 7-on-7 and beautiful throwing the football, why isn’t he elevating Texas? Why are we talking fourth round and not first round for Ewers?” Good question. Quinn Ewers was supposed to be that guy. You remember the hype? 5-star arm talent, mullet swag, Southlake Carroll prodigy, and early OSU enrollee. Fast forward a few seasons, and now we’re here, watching a once-certain first-rounder slide into Day 3 conversations. 

From high school golden boy to a Day 3 wild card, Quinn Ewers’ fall is forcing his former HC to do more talking than usual. Steve Sarkisian is now trying to remind NFL teams just how good his former 3-year QB is in an X post by Inside Texas on April 22. “We’ve been fortunate to have a good one here the past few three with Quinn,” he said. “Now we’ve got to recreate it here with Arch and then Trey and KJ. It’s all part of the process but I’m proud of Quinn. He’s worked really hard. Someone’s going to be a very good player.” The works of a HC! When your ex-QB is slipping like this before the draft, you got to start selling his stock again.

But the biggest question is — How did Quinn Ewers get to this situation? McShay broke down this million-dollar question with a simple X clip where the QB tossed an interception after bailing on a clean pocket. The failed pocket reading resulted in him trying to dump it quickly, which fell short of his receiver. So yeah, a turnover. And the problem is that it’s not a one-off, it’s a pattern. Even PFF’s Nick Akridge called out Ewers’ “consistent discomfort under pressure.” “He frequently abandons clean pockets, leading to the 11th-most quarterback-faulted pressures in 2024,” he added. And a concerning 23.2% pressure-to-sack rate? A brutal stat. 

And it’s not even just about pressure or pocket presence. Injuries have stalked him since high school, especially during crucial plays. Torn oblique against Michigan in Week 2 last season, which sidelined him for the next two games against UTSA and Mississippi State. In 2023, it was a shoulder injury (missed two games) and an injured clavicle in 2022 (missed three games). No wonder NFL teams are wary of this beaten-up guy at just 22. But Quinn Ewers remains hopeful.

Quinn Ewers makes a case for himself to 32 NFL teams

Through three years at Texas, Quinn Ewers put up solid numbers — 9,128 passing yards and 68 TDs. Last season, he finished with a 3,472-yard and 31 TD campaign playing through pain. But the ‘if he stays healthy’ tag has never gone away. So now, he’s trying to flip the narrative himself. “I’m the best quarterback in this draft because of my resiliency,” he said on Gruden’s QB Class. “I’m a super coachable guy. I can rip it around, for sure.” 

It’s the right message for sure. But you can feel the NFL hesitance. Scouts love traits and toughness, but they hate question marks. And with Quinn Ewers, there’s still plenty. ESPN’s Ben Solak even has him in the sixth round to the Dallas Cowboys. That’s a far fall from where his ceiling once was. Yet, some teams are still betting on what could be a diamond in the rough — the Las Vegas Raiders and the Indianapolis Colts. 

Maybe Steve Sarkisian’s pitch lands. Or maybe Quinn Ewers rewrites the script. But right now, he’s got more to prove than ever.