Washington Redskins 2017 Draft Profiles: Davis Webb, QB

Davis Webb, WB
School: California | Conference: PAC-12
College Experience: Senior | Age: 22
Height / Weight: 6-4 / 229 lbs
Projected Draft Status: 2nd or 3rd Round
NFL Comparison: Matt Schaub

College Statistics

Player Overview

Davis Webb started his career at Texas Tech and battled with potential 1st rounder Patrick Mahomes before transferring to Cal as a Graduate transfer. Personally, I believe every single QB in this draft class will be over drafted due to lack of depth and overall talent at the position. While Webb would likely be a 4th round pick in a typical draft class the young man does possess some NFL-caliber tools. The most obvious is his arm strength. Webb arguably has the biggest arm of all the QBs in this draft. It allows him to make many throws the other guys can’t and opens up a world of possibilities in the aerial attack. At times, Webb also shows the ability to stand tall in the pocket in the face of pressure, good accuracy on short to intermediate throws and he also has the ability to get into a positive rhythm with his passes. What Davis lacks is consistency in almost all areas of his game. Lack of vision, improvisation and anticipations skills. Traits that are critical for a QB.

For what it's worth there are at least a couple of NFL front offices that are very high on Webb. They believe he offers the most upside and best intangibles of any QB in the class. A positive about Webb is that he plays with a chip on his shoulder and seemingly is always studying to make himself better. I think Webb could, with time and patience, develop into an average NFL starter. The question for Webb is if he will go to the right team that will allow him to do that.

Strengths

• NFL level arm talent.
• Has decent ability to read the field and is willing to let routes develop.
• Can get into a destructive rhythm (good) if given time to operate from the pocket.
• Feel for time, space, and movement around him evident in the tape.

Weaknesses

• Inconsistent across the board but maybe most damaging is his accuracy.
• A tendency to stare down receivers and predetermine throws.
• Mechanical issues to work on with his throwing motion and footwork. Balls sometimes inexplicably dive or sail to weird hitch in his motion that affects velocity and accuracy.
• Will get in trouble due to the ability to not read the field. Not sure if he is overconfident or if his vision is faulty but a good number of his deep throws were picked off due to him over or underthrowing his deep route and a waiting safety feasts.
• Played in an Air raid and “Bear raid” offenses at both Texas Tech and at Cal will need time to adjust to pro-style systems and concepts.

Let’s see his work:

How He Would Fit On The Redskins

Webb is definitely an interesting developmental prospect. He checks off several prototypical boxes you want to see out of an NFL QB including his size, arm strength, and pocket awareness. He also needs most likely years of work of development to improve his mechanics, consistency issues, and to familiarize himself with a pro style offense and its related concepts. Webb needs to go to a team with an established QB where he has the latitude and time to improve himself until he is given his opportunity to start in a few years. If the Redskins are able to lock up Kirk Cousins on a long term deal then I can see the idea of Webb riding the pine a bit for a number of years better on this team. Colt McCoy would be a free agent in 2019, and Webb looks to be a better prospect than Nate Sudfeld.

Davis is a project and while he is one of the quarterbacks I actually like in this draft I can’t help but think the Redskins will go elsewhere in the 2nd and 3rd rounds if Cousins is indeed locked up before the draft. I think Webb can develop potentially into a high-quality backup maybe even an average level starter. The question is if a team is willing to allow him the time to develop and not throw him to the wolves before he has time to fix his fundamentals much less grasp the nuances of the NFL.