Sam’s Film Room: Does Sam Darnold’s upside warrant a top pick in the NFL Draft?

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In this scouting report, I wanted to look at Sam Darnold, QB out of USC. Based on my film study, he’s my number two quarterback in the class. How he improvises, throws with good anticipation, and has the upside with a mixture of size and intangibles, I think he could make for a top tier quarterback in the NFL. He does have weaknesses, though. He has serious ball security issues with 24 turnovers last season alone and awful mechanics that will need to be fixed. However, he still has a lot of upside to warrant a top pick in this draft.

For his pro comparison, I think Darnold is most similar to Andrew Luck. Coming out of college, I thought Luck was the superior prospect, and actually one of the best prospects I’ve scouted, but both do a great job of improvising with their feet and creating plays down the field.

How this might affect the Seattle Seahawks

Similar to my last two scouting reports on Baker Mayfield (here) and Josh Rosen (here), there are potentially five quarterbacks that could be drafted in the first round. These picks could push non-QB positions later in the draft. This scenario would give the Seahawks an ample opportunity to take one of the falling players in this draft. I think there is a good chance Darnold is going in the Top 3, so while I don’t think he’s going to playing in the NFC West, Seattle could still see him next season if a team like the Denver Broncos takes him early in the the first round.

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