While Bryce Young didn’t participate in any on-field drills at the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis last week, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that people around the NFL Draft circuit are starting to draw comparisons to the Alabama quarterback and NFL stars. What should come as a surprise, though, is the player that the former Heisman Trophy winner is being compared to.
ESPN’s lead draft analyst Todd McShay set the bar high on Tuesday when he compared Young to Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
Yes, you read that correctly.
It should be noted here with a caveat that Young measured in at 5-f00t-10 1/8 and 204 pounds last week. Mahomes is a couple of inches taller and has some weight on Young, but McShay thinks they play with a similar style.
“I love his poise. I think he plays the game so under control,” McShay said during an appearance on ESPN’s Get Up. “It’s so slow to him. To me, he’s a smaller Patrick Mahomes. But, if you’re sitting there at number one or you’re trying to trade up top get him, the only concern you have is, is he gonna be on the field? Can we keep him on the field or is it gonna be a Tua Tagovailoa-type situation?”
"To me, [Bryce Young] is a smaller Patrick Mahomes."
👀 @McShay13 pic.twitter.com/1vjaU2i0pf
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) March 7, 2023
McShay raised some concerns about Young that have been widely shared in the draft community, regarding his size. Still, that doesn’t mean he won’t be among the draft’s top picks come next month.
“204 [pounds] shows the importance he’s put into nutrition and getting bigger and stronger,” McShay said. “He took a beating in the SEC. Had the shoulder injury that bothered him for a few weeks, other than that though, was durable. You go back though, to 2006 when we started researching this. He would be the player that had the least weight — at 204 pounds — of any first-round quarterback taken.”
Comparing Bryce Young to Patrick Mahomes comes with a lot of expectations. We’ll have to see if Young lives up to that comparison.
