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See for yourself what makes Stanford’s Tanner McKee one of the top quarterback prospects in the 2023 NFL draft class
It’s officially NFL draft season, so it’s time to get to know the best players at every positions in the 2023 class.
What makes Stanford’s Tanner McKee one of this year’s top quarterback prospects?
Watch the tape and see for yourself:
The second 2023 NFL mock draft roundup includes a few new names
Mock draft season is upon us and that means our mock draft roundup is back!
What we do every week is track the mainstream outlets mock drafts and aggregate how many times a player gets selected. Last season, we tallied up 173 mock drafts and only 10 of them were on offense. This season could end up being much of the same.
We will track them and try to determine trends and patterns, along with giving my own analysis on how they could fit with the Minnesota Vikings
PFF has a shocking pick for the Vikings
On Monday morning, we released our first mock draft roundup with 14 different mock drafts that had the Minnesota Vikings selecting 12 different players. There were some really good picks and ones that left our heads scratching.
That is where the latest mock draft from Pro Football Focus comes in. It has a position that the Vikings do kind of need but a player that isn’t close to my radar in the first round.
Mike Renner released his first mock draft of the year and he has the Vikings selecting Stanford quarterback Tanner McKee. Here is what Renner had to say about the Cardinals quarterback.
“General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah is tied to Kirk Cousins for only one more season, and the Vikings’ roster is too good to where they won’t be getting the pick of the litter in a draft anytime soon. That could mean taking advantage of a deep quarterback class to start a year early on developing Cousins’ successor. McKee is one of the most accurate quarterbacks in the draft class but was put in a lot of unwinnable situations on tape at Stanford.”
Okay, let’s start here. Yes, McKee has a good arm and Stanford was not a great place for him. The program isn’t great, but at the college level, you want to see them overcome obstacles and elevate their team. That isn’t something that he did at the college level.
Do the Vikings need a quarterback of the future? Absolutely they do, but taking a player in McKee who likely doesn’t make my top five quarterbacks in round one is going to be a struggle for me to call a good pick.
Stanford quarterback Tanner McKee is a name fans should keep an eye on leading up to the 2023 NFL draft
Stanford quarterback Tanner McKee is not dissimilar from the current Houston Texans starter who came out of that same alma matter two years ago, Davis Mills. Both didn’t necessarily overwhelm on the stat sheet in their equal two years as starters within under head coach David Shaw, but both showed enough of a physical skill set to prove they’re capable of playing at a starter level in the NFL.
McKee managed to throw for 2,947 yards, 13 touchdowns and 8 interceptions with a completion percentage of 62.0 this year. The year prior, he completed 65.0 percent of his passes for 2,327 yards, 15 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. Neither stat line is eye-popping by any means, but he was a part of a not-so-great team, and often appeared as the best player on a rough Cardinal squad.
With a next-level arm, prototypical size (6-6, 230 pounds), and an opportunity to put that all together going into draft season between the combine and pro days, McKee could certainly launch himself as high as the end of the first round, given how thirsty NFL teams are for the next great quarterback.
Given how his predecessor has faired in Houston, it could send off a warning signal to the other 31 teams to avoid a similar pitfall in McKee, though it is worth nothing they are quite a bit different as physical prospects.
Look out for McKee to start making headlines around the combine, where he will show off his arm strength and size, and begin the process of vaulting himself into the minds of mock drafters and team big boards alike. He could land anywhere from the first round to the fourth, depending on if teams can convince themselves to look past his middling college career.
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Here are 10 players I’m focusing on with draft eyes on rivalry Saturday in college football
Thanksgiving weekend is a huge time for college football. Many historical rivalry games take place across the country, and those matchups will feature players who the Detroit Lions, among many NFL teams, will be watching keenly with an eye to the 2023 NFL draft.
Here are 10 players I’m focusing on with draft eyes on rivalry Saturday in college football. Special emphasis is on games where the Lions will have a scouting presence, confirmed to me by various sources.
These hidden plays made a big impact in the outcome
In every game, win or loss, there are plays that aren’t scoring plays that impact the outcome for both sides. For Notre Dame, it wasn’t unfortunately a losing effort but those plays still happened. Find out which five helped change the course of the game for the Irish.
Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.
Follow Mike on Twitter: @MikeFChen
Like what Drew has been able to accomplish?
Go back to when [autotag]Tyler Buchner[/autotag] first got injured. Did anyone honestly think that [autotag]Drew Pyne[/autotag] would be able to catch up to respectable numbers by the time Notre Dame faced Stanford? No, he’s still not blowing anyone away, but he’s putting numbers that objectively would put him in the middle of the current crop of college quarterbacks. Considering how hopeless the Irish’s quarterback situation looked a month ago, that’s progress.
Take a look at the Cardinal’s Tanner McKee, who will be facing the Irish for the second straight season. As far as his passing numbers, he’s probably only slightly better than Pyne would be right now if he had started the Irish’s first two games. Of course, the main difference here is that Pyne gets a lot more bang for his buck when it comes to rushing yardage. Don’t expect the Irish’s defense to make life any easier for McKee in that regard.
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Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.
Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89
Stanford is a familiar foe for the Ducks, but how much has changed since they beat Oregon in OT last season?
Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks are heading into their second Pac-12 conference game of the regular season, a bout with David Shaw’s Stanford Cardinal.
Stanford has played spoiler to Oregon in the past, and while this year’s squad is 1-2 with blowout losses to USC and Washington already, they’ll be more than prepared to try to take down the Ducks.
The new era of transfer portal mania means that many rosters around the conference are rapidly changed from what they were even one year ago, and for Oregon fans it takes a little extra research to see the new faces for each Pac-12 opponent as they make their way into Autzen Stadium this season.
Here is a look at what has changed, and what hasn’t changed, for the Stanford Cardinal heading into Saturday’s late night battle:
Stanford will bring in a banged-up offense to Eugene on Saturday, but quarterback Tanner McKee is still capable of winning.
This is usually the Stanford offense in nutshell: A capable quarterback protected by a huge line with good tailbacks and receivers with a great tight end mixed in.
That formula has worked for the Cardinal, but here in 2022, there’s been an unwanted element in that formula, the injury bug.
Head coach David Shaw announced Tuesday afternoon that tailback EJ Smith, the son of Emmitt Smith, is out for the season with an undisclosed leg ailment. The Cardinal could also be without right tackle Miles Hinton, who missed last week’s game at Washington. His absence was felt as quarterback Tanner McKee was sacked eight times in Seattle.
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When they can keep McKee upright and on his feet, he has proven a very capable passer. He completes 67% of his passes, averages 271 yards in the air, and has six touchdowns in their three games. But McKee has been picked off four times already.
Although they may not be 100% healthy coming into Autzen Stadium, Oregon coach Dan Lanning says the Cardinal present some unique challenges.
“They are certainly different. They have their own footprint. They’re a different team to prepare for in some of the packaging and personnel groups you have to get ready for,” he said. “The way they play and the style of play that they have is different. Again, they’ve had a lot of success, obviously over the last few years. We were able to hit on some of that history today (Monday) with our team and I think our guys are really familiar with the success that Stanford’s had in the past and have a lot of respect for that team.”
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McKee’s favorite target in the early going has been receiver Michael Wilson. The 6-foot-2, 210-pounder from Simi Valley, California, has 13 receptions with four of those for touchdowns. He also averages 96 yards a game.
Wilson is by far targeted the most, but Stanford, to no one’s shock, has a big tight end in 6-4, 242-pound Benjamin Yurosek from Bakersfield, California. He was a Pac-12 honorable mention last season.
If Stanford can get that offensive line in order, and the Cardinal almost always do, McKee should be able to do some special things. The line has five guys each over 300 pounds. The biggest is Hinton at 6 feet, 7 inches and 320 pounds. Should he not be able to go, he’ll be replaced by Connor McLaughlin who is “only” 6 feet, 7 inches and 300 pounds.
Washington was taking advantage of Hinton’s absence and staying away from the other side on the line where senior left tackle Walter Rouse resides at 6 feet, 6 inches and 318 pounds.
No doubt the Ducks will take a look at that game film and try to accomplish something similar. McKee, like every quarterback, can’t do a lot of damage if he’s laying flat on his back.
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#USC’s defense has a lot of obvious flaws, but the Trojans have been good at preventing 50-yard pass plays. Tanner McKee didn’t hit any home runs on Saturday.
Notice something about USC’s defense in the first two games of 2022? The Trojans are not giving up the home-run pass over the top. This defense has a lot of weaknesses, but allowing the deep ball isn’t one of them.
Stanford quarterback Tanner McKee was rated a four-star recruit by ESPN and was handed a four-star grade by 247Sports. He finished third in 2017 in the Elite 11 Finals behind future first-round picks Justin Field (Chicago Bears) and Trevor Lawrence (Jacksonville Jaguars).
In 2020 as a Stanford freshman, McKee played in one game for the Cardinal.
The 6-foot-6, 228-pound signal-caller is one of the more intriguing prospects in the nation. He beat cancer at 16 years old. After his freshman season at Stanford, he completed his two-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the Brazil Curitiba South region. After completing his Mormon mission McKee has set himself up for greatness on the field. His leadership and talent have given him a decent chance to be an early-round pick in the 2023 or 2024 NFL draft.
Last season, McKee completed 206 of 315 passes for 2,327 yards with 15 touchdowns and seven interceptions. McKee didn’t get much help in David Shaw’s offense as the Cardinal finished 3-9 in 2021.
McKee made some impressive back-shoulder throws against USC, but nothing on passes beyond the 20-25-yard range. He didn’t hit the 40- or 50-yard passes which instantly change field position and can provide the Trees with quick-strike points. USC’s secondary was able to shut off this line of attack, and it mattered.
Congrats to our 2022 Team Captains!
🌲 » @LevaniDamuni
🌲 » @OriginalMcGill3
🌲 » @McKeeTmckee
🌲 » @rickymiezan
🌲 » @drakenugent9
🌲 » @mikewilllyy #GoStanford pic.twitter.com/aLGrLtwLRw— Stanford Football (@StanfordFball) August 22, 2022
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