Overview
Position: Quarterback
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 217 pounds
School: West Virginia Mountaineers
Combine Performance Data
40-yard dash: 4.84 seconds
Vertical jump: 34 inches (second-best among quarterbacks)
Broad jump: 9 feet, 4 inches
Three-cone drill: 7.09 seconds (fifth-best among quarterbacks)
20-yard shuttle: 4.28 seconds (fifth-best among quarterbacks)
Will Grier 2019 NFL Draft Profile
North Carolina is considered a hotbed for producing professional athletes across all major sports. Athletes such as Stephen Curry, Mia Hamm, Julius Peppers, Lawrence Taylor and Michael Jordan all hail from the state and quarterback Will Grier is hoping to add his name to that list. Grier grew up in Charlotte, NC, moved by the time he went to high school and played at Davidson Day High School. He was coached by his father Chad Grier, who was a standout quarterback at East Carolina University.
With his father as his coach, Grier excelled throughout his high school career and became a hot commodity at the quarterback position. As a junior, Grier made national headlines after breaking the national single-game record for throwing 837 yards and 10 touchdowns in a playoff game. Grier threw for 4,989 yards and 77 touchdowns his senior year and was named the national player of the year and one of the nation’s top prospects by five different publications. He participated in the 2014 U.S. Army All-American Bowl Game and eventually committed to the Florida Gators.
Grier wound up redshirting his first season at Florida and then started in five games in 2015. The North Carolina native flashed his potential throwing for 1,204 yards, 10 touchdowns and only three interceptions on the way to an SEC East title run. However, Grier tested positive for an illegal substance and was suspended by the NCAA for the entire 2016 season. After complications with head coach Jim McElwain, Grier decided to move on from Florida and entered the transfer portal.
After getting recruited by some of the nation’s top programs such as Ohio State and Oregon, Grier eventually chose to transfer to West Virginia. The quarterback wanted to be as close to home as possible and felt a strong connection with Mountaineers head coach Dana Holgorsen. Grier was eligible to play in 2017 season and he lit up the stat sheets. He threw for 3,490 yards, 34 touchdowns and posted a completion percentage of 64.4 percent. Grier missed the final two games of the season due to a hand injury he suffered while playing Texas. The quarterback was named the Big XII Newcomer of the Year and earned All-Big-12 honorable mention honors.
Grier improved his game and threw for 3,864 yards, 37 touchdowns and only eight interceptions his senior year while finishing fourth in the Heisman Award voting. He was named fourth team all-American and ranked third in the nation with the most passing yards per game. After the season, Grier accepted his invitation to play at the Senior Bowl where he participated on the South roster.
Strengths
- has great pocket awareness;
- senses pressure early and usually has an escape route;
- not crazy athletic but can move well enough in the open field;
- very accurate when throwing deep, intermediate and short routes;
- has the ability to look off defenders in coverage before throwing to the desired target;
- throws with an exceptional touch on deep routes;
- high completion percentage throughout his collegiate career;
- kept his interception numbers fairly low;
- a proven leader in the locker room;
- very confident in his throwing abilities.
Weaknesses
- lacks the elite arm strength to make throws in tight windows;
- a benefactor of playing in West Virginia’s RPO offense;
- struggles when throwing outside the pocket;
- threw a lot of 50/50 balls that his receivers won more often than not;
- needs to improve decision making;
- looked uncomfortable in a pro-style offense at the Senior Bowl;
- struggles to go through progressions in a pro-style offense;
- overconfident at times in his athleticism and arm talent;
- relies on his upper body and arm strength when throwing instead of driving off his legs;
Player Comparison: Derek Carr
NFL Teams with a Need at the Position: Arizona Cardinals, Carolina Panthers, Cincinnati Bengals, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, New York Giants, Pittsburgh Steelers
Projection: Fourth to fifth round
Bottom Line
At the beginning of the college football season, Grier was receiving plenty of love from scouts across the league and many thought he had a shot to become a first-round pick. However, Grier failed to ‘wow’ us against better competition and struggled at the Senior Bowl in a pro-style offense. Scouts are now second-guessing his potential as an NFL quarterback due to the inconsistent decision making and the lack of elite arm strength. Grier does have a lot of likable traits such as his accuracy, his pocket awareness and his ability as a leader.
Grier will be drafted in the latter portion of the draft and should compete for a backup spot his first year in the league. However, depending on which coaching staff gets to work him, he could find himself in a starting role by year three or four of his career. If he were to sit behind the likes of a Tom Brady, Drew Brees or Philip Rivers, Grier could make vast improvements to his game and wind up having a productive NFL career.
