On Wednesday afternoon, Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback C.J. Stroud conducted his Pro Day workout in front of NFL Scouts and media. And from the sound of it, he put on an absolute show.
According to a report from ESPN draft analyst Todd McShay, CJ Stroud was “as close to perfect as he could have been” during his pro day throwing session.
“I’ve called Stroud the most pure pocket passer in the 2023 draft class, and we saw why on Wednesday,” McShay wrote for ESPN. “Yes, it was a scripted pro day with no defensive backs jumping routes or pass-rushers barring down on him, but Stroud was about as close to perfect as he could have been during his throwing session. It was almost like he was walking the ball directly into his receivers’ hands at times. We saw excellent ball placement over and over.”
McShay went into a little more depth about what made the performance so spectacular.
“He has a smooth delivery and enough arm strength to fit the ball into windows. We saw some of that arm strength at the pro day — and he wasted no time in doing so,” McShay explained. “Normally we see quarterbacks work their way up to downfield shots and warm up a bit with shorter throws, but Stroud sent the first 20 or so passes to the intermediate or deep levels of the field. He was hitting throws on the rails down both sidelines, changing trajectories and hitting the strike zone with regularity. Scouts loved it. It was really impressive stuff.”
We’ll have to see if it was enough to convince the Carolina Panthers to select him with the No. 1 overall pick.
[ESPN]
