NFL Draft content may ease off during the summer, but certain analysts will still look at early rankings before the college football season starts. Phil Steele has ranked his top ten quarterbacks that could enter their names into the 2025 NFL Draft.
Regarding 2025 draft-eligible quarterbacks, one guy is leading the group: Georgia's Carson Beck. Behind him, there is a big group of evenly-matched guys. Phil Steele believes that Ole Miss's Jaxson Dart is the best in that group.
Dart was ranked ahead of Colorado's Shedeur Sanders, Penn State's Drew Allar, and Alabama's Jalen Milroe. With an entire football season, these rankings could change by January 2025. However, Dart's high ranking shows how much improvement we saw during the 2023 season.
Top 2025 NFL Draft QB Prospects per @philsteele042🎯https://t.co/qD3dkDRqRi pic.twitter.com/RCOZ7iHvrR
— On3 (@On3sports) June 26, 2024
Dart finished the 2023 season with a passing completion rate of 65.1%, throwing the ball 358 times and completing 233. His completions went for 3,364 passing yards, 23 touchdowns, and five interceptions. Dart also had 391 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on the ground.
What makes Jaxson Dart stand out from other quarterbacks?
Dart has the mental and physical toughness that NFL scouts love to see. He is not scared of hanging in the pocket until the last second, making a play despite getting drilled. Mentally, he has shown the ability to bounce back after interceptions and bad plays.
He is also a good athlete in the pocket; he is willing to step up inside it and make decisions about when to run the ball or make the pass. He has improved drastically by passing out of his pocket and on the move.
Dart has a few areas that he needs to clean up. Going through his reads is one, which is difficult to show in the Lane Kiffin system. One thing is for sure: If he takes a further step in 2024, Dart has the ability to be a first-round draft pick.