Stetson Bennett NFL Draft Overview
Position: Quarterback
Height: 5’-11”
Weight: 185 Pounds
School: Georgia
2023 NFL Draft: Stetson Bennett Scouting Report
Experiencing highs and lows, Stetson Bennett has experienced a true Odyssey in his collegiate career. After being just a two-star recruit out of high school, Bennett opted to join Georgia. The quarterback room however was a bit crowded, prior to Justin Fields transferring to Ohio State. To get a better crack at an opportunity for a starting job Bennett attended Jones County College. After producing at the JUCO level Bennett would return to Georgia, with the intention to make an impact.
In the following years, Bennett would be regulated to the backup role and didn’t have many opportunities to see the field. In 2021 Stetson Bennett would get the opportunity he was looking for and from that point on he wouldn’t look back. After then-starter JT Daniels went down with an injury, Bennett was given the keys to the offense. His completion percentage took a massive leap of almost ten percent throwing for almost thirty touchdowns and 3,000 yards. Bennett also put up an impressive 259 rushing yards on the year. His greatest accomplishment however was taking down the goliath of college football in Alabama and leading his team to a National Championship.
The next season Bennett again improved his completion percentage to almost seventy percent. Throwing for over 4,000 yards, twenty-seven touchdowns, and still managing to minimize his interception totals. He ran for 205 yards but exploded with an additional ten rushing touchdowns once again leading his team to the National Championship. Stetson Bennett became one of the few quarterbacks in history to win back-to-back National Championships, and while he had elite talent surrounding him on both sides of the ball, the performance on the biggest stage should speak for itself.
Strengths:
- Superb anticipation, can throw receivers open with ease;
- More athletic than his frame would lead you to believe, can be more of a capable runner with the ball in his hands;
- What he lacks in arm strength he makes up for in accuracy;
- Good feel for the pocket and uses his mobility to get out of trouble;
- Being a walk-on player that won back to back national championships should be all the proof teams need to know this kid is a winner.
Weaknesses:
- His frame and size could lead to durability concerns how he will hold up at the next level;
- He is about to turn twenty six during the NFL season, older than most would want in a rookie;
- Simply put, he benefited largely from the talent that surrounded him on both sides of the ball. He was asked more so to manage the game rather than go out and put the team on his back;
- Character concerns have been validated with his recent arrest in January;
- Questions on whether he has a strong enough arm to put the proper touch on deep passes.
NFL Comparison: Seneca Wallace
Teams With A Need: Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Baltimore Ravens, Los Angeles Rams, Detroit Lions, Seattle Seahawks
Projection: Seventh Round
Bottom Line on Stetson Bennett
Stetson Bennett has gone his entire life having people doubt him and yet rising to the challenge every time. He was too small to play quarterback and yet he succeeded. He wasn’t good enough to start for Georgia and yet he led them to back-to-back National Championships. Now the argument has shifted towards he is too old to start a career in the NFL, yet he may be drafted.
There are character concerns for Bennett which come from team’s interactions with him as well as the incident in January. On the 29th he was arrested in Texas for public intoxication which was shown on a leaked video. The video has damaged his reputation perhaps more than the arrest report could have done but to his credit, Bennett has addressed and owned the mistakes that he has made. Had he been younger this may have been easier for teams to look past it. Being the age he is though, some teams may have him completely off their board not wanting to have a distraction in a backup quarterback.
A team that drafts Bennett is getting a proven winner on the biggest stage. He may not be the most athletic, have the best intangibles, or is the best sized in this year’s draft yet somehow, he continues to play winning football. Teams are likely all over the board on him ranking him as poorly as Johnny Manziel all the way to the next Brock Purdy. He will likely become a back up quarterback in the NFL if he can continue to keep his nose out of trouble and say the right things.
Main Photo: Joshua Jones – USA Today Sports
