For around the next two months or so, one of the major topics of discussion surrounding the sport will be the comparison of some of the top quarterbacks in the 2024 NFL draft. Earlier this week, former NFL GM Mike Tannenbaum elected to join the conversation and immediately made some notable comments comparing Jayden Daniels out of LSU to JJ McCarthy out of Michigan.
Former NFL GM makes curious comments on LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels and Michigan’s JJ McCarthy
There’s no question about the kind of quarterback talent that’s joining the NFL this year through the 2024 NFL draft. In fact, there are at least five or six who are consistently being included in first round discussions.
With that said, one of the best parts about the group is how different they all are. From running ability, to football IQ to just pure arm strength, they all bring something unique to the table. Unfortunately, when it comes to making comparisons, it’s slightly more difficult because of the differences.
Still, when former NFL GM Mike Tannenbaum joined Get Up on Monday morning, the variation in skills didn’t stop him from making some interesting comparisons.
“We can talk about wins being a quarterback statistic, but I fell in love with JJ McCarthy in 2022 when he’s down two points against Illinois at home, and it was a freezing cold day,” the former New York Jets GM began. “He went down and got the game winning field goal with his feet with passing, drawing pass interference. He is a winner, he can make all the throws and what’s really interesting to me Greeny is if he had played for LSU, What would his stats look like?
“They’d look a lot closer to Jayden Daniels. If Jayden Daniels was at Michigan, his stats would look a lot closer to JJ McCarthy. And that’s where this debate is so much fun and so interesting, but he can do everything, like that workout shows he can make every throw with great anticipation and really good arm strength.”
Discussions of who would translate better to the NFL are nothing new. However, what makes his comments so notable is that he brought college statistics and overall offensive playstyle into the mix.
Comparing the two
Both Jayden Daniels and JJ McCarthy were incredible college-level quarterbacks. Coming out of high school as five-star recruits in the class of 2019 and 2021, respectively, they both made major impacts during their time at this level.
As far as comparisons between the two go, that’s about it. From a playstyle standpoint, the two couldn’t vary much more. While both are some of the more athletic players in the cycle, they use their athleticism and speed in very different ways.
In his three years with the Wolverines, JJ McCarthy threw the ball 713 times for 6,226 yards and 49 touchdowns, while adding 632 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground. He’s about as efficient as it gets, makes excellent use of play action passing to get his wide receivers open downfield and can use his athleticism to compliment his overall arm talent.
In just two years at LSU, quarterback Jayden Daniels threw the ball 715 times for 6,725 yards and 57 touchdowns, while adding 2,019 yards and 21 touchdowns on the ground. The former Arizona State transfer has one of the most accurate deep-balls of the 2024 class and uses his next-level speed to keep defenses on their toes.
While the argument for comparable stats from a passing standpoint might have some grounds to stand on, former NFL GM Mike Tannenbaum’s comments became questionable when he failed to mention running ability. JJ McCarthy has some of the best arm talent in the country, but when it comes to running to ball and making people miss in the open field, there’s simply no one who compares to the 2023 Heisman Trophy winner.
At the end of the day, both players had fantastic college careers and have the potential to be stars at the next level. Hypotheticals comparing the offenses they came from don’t necessarily do much outside of creating questions that we will never have an answer to.
The 2024 NFL draft will get going later next month from April 25 until April 27 in Detroit, MI and will be available to watch live on NFL Network, ABC and ESPN. Until then, don’t be surprised to see plenty more hypotheticals coming out, as fans and media alike continue to debate who the best 2024 NFL prospects truly are.
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