CBS Sports ranks Anthony Richardson among QBs from 5 draft classes

Anthony Richardson was a top-five pick in the 2023 draft, but how does he compare to other quarterbacks drafted over the past five years.

The quarterback position is usually the most talked about during any draft cycle, and with Caleb Williams dominating the headlines ahead of the 2024 draft, CBS Sports is ranking the five most recent QB classes — including this year’s group.

Florida fans only care about the two Gators quarterbacks drafted over the past five years — Anthony Richardson and Kyle Trask — so we’ll cut to the chase. Richardson is ranked No. 13 by writer Chris Trapasso and Trask didn’t make the list as a depth player in Tampa.

Richardson might have more talent than his ranking on this list suggests, but Trapasso notes that he’s hurt by playing in just three games before getting injured as a rookie.

“Richardson probably gets an artificial boost because he hasn’t played, and sometimes not playing is better than playing for the reputation of NFL quarterbacks,” Trapasso wrote. “But this was my QB1 in the 2023 draft, ever-so-slightly ahead of C.J. Stroud. We saw Richardson for 2.5 games, and, after his season-ending shoulder injury, his head coach Shane Steichen nearly got a Gardner Minshew-led Colts club to the playoffs.”

There is plenty of optimism surrounding Richardson, but a weak receiver corps makes for a tough comeback from injury. Trapasso suggests addressing that concern in the draft, but the Colts could go in a different direction.

QBs drafted better than Richardson

Joe Burrow (Bengals), Jordan Love (Packers) and C.J. Stroud (Texans) make for a strong top three, but there’s a surprise in North Carolina’s Drake Maye at No. 4. Caleb Williams will go first overall in this upcoming draft, but Maye might have more talent. Trapasso seems to think so. Rounding out the top five is Justin Herbert of the Chargers.

The rest of the list can be found here.

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Florida football’s biggest question this spring, per CBS Sports

Who is holding the Gators’ reins on offense? That is CBS Sports’ most pressing question for Florida this spring.

The spring practice season is in full swing as Billy Napier and his Florida football program begin their preseason journey toward the 2024 campaign, which begins on Aug. 31 at home against the Miami Hurricanes.

Of course, there is still the Orange and Blue game in mid-April and a full summer’s worth of training ahead. Plus, there are still a myriad of questions that need to be answered during the spring season.

CBS Sports’ Will Backus recently took a look at all 16 Southeastern Conference schools, providing what he thinks is the must-answer question for the Gators during the spring practice schedule.

Who’s calling the shots on offense?

“Florida coach Billy Napier was adamant in February that he wants to retain his offensive play-calling responsibilities,” Backus begins. “However, he also shifted his offensive staff this offseason with the clear implication that some duties would change.

“The Gators promoted tight ends coach Russ Callaway to co-offensive coordinator,” he continues. “He has a background as a play-caller at Samford, and early indications are he will have a hand in shaping Florida’s passing game. Rob Sale is back as offensive coordinator, though that’s mostly a nominal title and he has a more direct hand in the offensive line’s development.

“Maybe Florida integrates a system where Napier has a final say on the actual play, but he leans more on assistants for input during the game. Whatever it may look like, spring is the perfect time to iron that structure out ahead of what will be a crucial season for Napier,” Backus concludes.

Orange and Blue game

Florida’s annual Orange and Blue game will be played inside of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on Saturday, April 13. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. ET and the action will be broadcast on the SEC Network+.

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Where Jayden Daniels goes as CBS Sports projects QB trade in top five in latest mock draft

Could trades in the top five affect Jayden Daniels’ landing spot?

As we approach the 2024 NFL draft, the stakes for the quarterback position seem clear.

The top three teams in the draft all need signal-callers, but there are no guarantees all three of those teams stay in place. In the latest NFL mock draft from CBS Sports’ Tom Fornelli, he projects the Vikings trading up to take a passer.

It’s not [autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag], however, as he’s already off the board by the third pick. Fornelli has Washington staying in place at No. 2 to draft its quarterback of the future in Daniels.

Here’s Fornelli’s breakdown of Daniels’ fit with the Commanders and offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury.

I’m confident Caleb Williams will go first, but as for the second QB off the board, it’s anybody’s guess. Opinions vary across the league on who the best QB is in this class after Williams. In this mock, the Commanders are lured by the tantalizing playmaking and potential of Jayden Daniels.

Fornelli projects [autotag]Malik Nabers[/autotag] going a few picks later to the Giants at No. 6.

I don’t know how Giants fans would feel seeing this flurry of action in front of them, but when the dust settles, they still have excellent options available to fill multiple needs. For me, the value of adding Malik Nabers to an offense with a serious devoid of playmakers is too much to pass up.

Meanwhile, he has [autotag]Brian Thomas Jr.[/autotag] falling to the New England Patriots, who trade back from No. 3 to No. 23 in this mock.

Moving down from the third spot nets the Patriots a new left tackle in Olu Fashanu and a deep threat in the passing game who could evolve into much more in LSU’s Brian Thomas. In this scenario, it’s possible the Pats would take a quarterback with their second-round pick.

Things could get wild with trades in the first round, but it seems the general draft range for the three LSU stars is set.

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CBS Sports gives its pick for Florida-Colorado in NCAA Tournament

Ahead of the action, CBS Sports published its picks for the day’s games, including the Gators-Buffaloes affair in Indianapolis.

The Florida Gators are getting set for their NCAA Tournament first-round matchup with the Colorado Buffaloes on Friday afternoon in what should be a fierce battle between two talented teams.

Ahead of the action, CBS Sports published its picks for the day’s games, including the Gators-Buffaloes affair in Indianapolis covered by Kyle Boone. Here is what he had to offer.

“A team from the First Four has made the second round of the NCAA Tournament in three of the last four years, and the Buffaloes seem best-equipped to keep that trend rolling,” Boone notes. “They scooted past a really talented Boise State team in the First Four on Wednesday with one of their best defensive outings of the season and have a number of weapons inside and out to keep Florida on alert.”

As a result, he is taking the Buffaloes by two points over the Gators.

“I like the Buffs by a smidge here, so I’ll take the free points.”

The Gators take on the Buffaloes in the first round on Friday, March 22, at 4:30 p.m. ET inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. The game will be broadcast on TBS.

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CBS Sports ranks Florida among top-25 NCAA Tournament teams

Now that we know what the 2024 March Madness brackets looks like, CBS Sports has re-ranked all 68 teams invovled in the tournament.

The NCAA Tournament field is set and the Florida Gators are the No. 7 seed in the South Region, but how does the Orange and Blue stack up against the rest of the competition?

The fine folks at CBS Sports asked that question for all 68 teams after taking a gander at the bracket, and the result is another re-rank featuring this year’s NCAA Tournament field.

Basic math says that Florida should fall in the 25-28 range as a No. 7 seed, but the Gators check in at No. 23 on this list. That might not surprise many after the Gators claimed the same spot in the most recent USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll, but there are extenuating circumstances to consider.

“The Gators have been one of the hotter teams of the past month, but they’re also entering the tournament down a big man,” the excerpt reads. “Micah Handlogten suffered a broken leg in the SEC title game, which lowers UF’s ceiling, of course.

“Todd Golden’s bunch can get buckets in a variety of ways and through a lot of guys, but to me, it’s Walter Clayton Jr. who will dictate this team’s chances at making the second weekend. The never-satisfied guard has a tough competitive streak. His addition this season altered Florida’s trajectory.”

The loss of Micah Handlogten isn’t great, but the Gators do have SEC All-Freshman forward Alex Condon to step into his role. Fellow freshman Thomas Haugh will step up as a bigger piece in the rotation, too, but there’s no reason to expect Florida to lack a competitive drive without Handlogten.

The full re-rank can be found here.

Florida begins tournament play against either Boise State or Colorado on Friday, March 22 at 4:30 p.m. ET. The game will broadcast on TBS.

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Notre Dame earns No. 2 seed in NCAA Tournament, hosts Kent State first

Did you expect them to be seeded this high?

Not long ago, Notre Dame was seen as nothing more than a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Some bracketologies had the Irish as low as a No. 6. Since then, the Irish have won eight straight games and the ACC Tournament championship. That was enough for the selection committee to make them the No. 2 seed in Albany Regional 1., the highest seed for any ACC team.

The result is the Irish will get to host the first two rounds of March Madness. They’ll begin their run to a national championship against No. 15 seed Kent State. The winner of that game will face the winner of the other first-round game in South Bend between Ole Miss and Marquette. The Irish’s only previous meeting with the Golden Flashes was a 66-41 victory in the first round of the 1996 WNIT.

While the seeding isn’t a complete surprise, it’s an improvement from most bracketologists’ final projections. One of, if not the only one that had the Irish as a No. 2 seed was College Sports Madness. ESPN, CBS Sports and Her Hoop Stats all projected the Irish as a No. 3. Needless to say, the Irish did everything they needed to be a tournament host and then some.

The one hiccup for the Irish is that they were seeded in the same bracket as South Carolina, the top overall seed and heavy favorite to win the national championship. Perhaps seeing the Gamecocks in the season opener in Paris will give them an advantage for what to expect. But they have a few other games to win before it gets to that point, and that’s why they play them.

So make your plans to be in South Bend this coming weekend. The Irish will need all the support they can get as they begin that national title run.

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Florida falls in CBS Sports bracketology despite UGA tournament win

The Gators lost a seed spot and moved to another region in Jerry Palm’s most recent update.

Todd Golden’s Gators made it past the Georgia Bulldogs on Thursday night in the second round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament, but it was not pretty. After a tug-of-war between the two rival schools, Florida ultimately prevailed, 85-80, but it was far from a pretty affair.

Following the Orange and Blue’s first win in the SEC Tournament, CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm released his latest bracketology update, in which Todd Golden’s team fell a spot to No. 8 while shifting over to the South Region. They are now matched up with the No. 9 Nebraska Cornhuskers, with the top-seeded Houston Cougars and No. 15 Longwood Lancers also meeting up in Memphis, Tennessee.

The Southeastern Conference is also represented by the top team in the West Region, the Tennessee Volunteers, followed by the Kentucky Wildcats (No. 3, South), Alabama Crimson Tide (No. 4, East), Auburn Tigers (No. 5, Midwest), South Carolina Gamecocks (No. 5, West) and Mississippi State Bulldogs (No. 11, West).

The Texas A&M Aggies are among the first four out while Mississippi State is among the first four.

The Gators will face Alabama in the final game of Friday’s third-round SEC Tournament slate with a tipoff time estimated around 9:30 p.m. ET. The game will once again be broadcast on the SEC Network.

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Gators a No. 7 seed in CBS Sports bracketology at regular-season end

Florida gained a spot in Jerry Palm’s bracketology after beating ‘Bama but also losing at Vandy.

The final week of the regular season for Florida basketball was a rollercoaster ride, stretching from the highs of the win over the Alabama Crimson Tide at home and the lows from the road loss at the Vanderbilt Commodores. Nonetheless, the Gators wrapped up a successful season that has them heading to the Big Dance for the first time since 2021.

Following the final week of action, CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm released his latest bracketology update, in which Todd Golden’s team rose a spot to No. 7 while shifting over to the Midwest Region. They are now matched up with the No. 10 Nebraska Cornhuskers in the opening round, with the No. 2 Baylor Bears and No. 14 Sam Houston Bearkats in Memphis, Tennessee.

The Southeastern Conference is also represented by the top team in the West Region, the Tennessee Volunteers, followed by Alabama (No. 4, East), the Kentucky Wildcats (No. 4, Midwest), Auburn Tigers (No. 5, South), South Carolina Gamecocks (No. 5, West) and Mississippi State Bulldogs (No. 10, East). The Texas A&M Aggies are among the first four out. 

Florida is a No. 6 seed in the Southeastern Conference Tournament, giving it a first-round bye and matching the Gators up with the winner of Game 2 on Thursday, March 14, inside Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. Tipoff is slated for a late 9:30 p.m. ET start on the SEC Network.

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Florida falls out of CBS Sports power rankings after losing to Vanderbilt

The Vandy loss sent the Gatos packing in CBS Sports’ power rankings.

A strong second-half surge by the Florida basketball team came to a screeching halt on Saturday as the Gators failed to finish the season on a high note. Instead, the Vanderbilt Commodores eked out a 79-78 victory on its home floor to give Todd Golden’s team their only Quadrant 3 loss this season.

CBS Sports’ Gary Parrish has been tracking the top teams in college basketball this season with his top 25-and-one power rankings, which had the Orange and Blue at No. 25 in the previous update. Now, thanks to the defeat at the hands of the second-worse team record-wise in the Southeastern Conference, Florida is no longer among the upper echelon of schools in his rankings.

The Gators are a No. 6 seed in the Southeastern Conference Tournament, giving it a first-round bye and matching the Gators up with the winner of Game 2 on Thursday, March 14, inside Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. Tipoff is slated for a late 9:30 p.m. ET start on the SEC Network.

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Florida inches up ESPN’s bracketology ahead of regular-season finale

Gators still rising in the NCAA Tournament projections with a final regular-season game remaining.

The men’s college basketball season is wrapping up for the Power Five conferences this weekend with a slate of games including the final Southeastern Conference matchup for the Florida Gators on Saturday.

Thanks to a second-half surge by Todd Golden’s gang, the Orange and Blue are firmly in the NCAA Tournament discussion and are ostensibly a lock for the annual Big Dance. CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm agrees, promoting the program a spot to No. 7 in the East Region — up one rung from the last update.

Florida is lined up to face the No. 10 Nebraska Cornhuskers in the opening round played in Charlotte, North Carolina, with the No. 2 North Carolina Tar Heels and No. 15 High Point Purple Panthers also joining them at that location.

The Southeastern Conference is also represented by the top team in the West Region, the Tennessee Volunteers, followed by the Alabama Crimson Tide (No. 4, South), Auburn Tigers (No. 4, Midwest), Kentucky Wildcats (No. 5, East), South Carolina Gamecocks (No. 5, West) and Mississippi State Bulldogs (No. 10, Midwest).

Florida wraps up its regular-season schedule on Saturday, March 9, in Nashville as the Gators travel for a rematch with the Vanderbilt Commodores. Tipoff is slated for 4:30 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on the SEC Network.

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