The Denver Broncos have met with every top quarterback prospect in the 2018 NFL Draft. Among this year's most intriguing players is Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield.
Despite being one of the most electrifying players in college football, there are some concerns surrounding his boisterous personality and, of course, his height. Fortunately, he still has a staunch believer in Broncos President of Football Operations/general manager John Elway.
According to ChareanWilliams of Pro Football Talk, Elway feels Mayfield's height will not be an issue when he plays in the NFL:
“He’s fine,” Elway said. “When you look at the guys that have had success that are his height and even a little bit shorter — I think Russell [Wilson] is a little bit shorter than Baker. I think that what he’s done, the numbers he’s put up and the success he’s had the last three years at Oklahoma, I think he’s overcome the size issue.”
Elway added that the biggest key to being a successful NFL quarterback is being able to play from the pocket.
“I’ve learned a lot since I’ve been doing this job as far as what certain quarterbacks have success with,” Elway said. “The bottom line is that I believe the one thing is that is that you got to be able to win from the pocket. No matter what you do, I think the one thing that I’ve learned is as a quarterback you got to be able to win it from the pocket. You can win games but you can’t win championships unless you have the ability to win it from the pocket. Then if you can get out and move around and create, and do those types of things then that’s an added bonus.”
It goes without saying that quarterbacks like Russell Wilson and Drew Brees have become exceptions to the league's desire for a gunslinger with prototypical size. Brees is recognized as one of the greatest pocket passers of all time while Wilson's mobility makes him one of the most dangerous weapons in football. Mayfield possesses similar qualities to both of these players. However, it remains to be seen whether he can take it to another level.
Mayfield is viewed by many as the biggest high-risk, high-reward players in the draft. As a result, there are skeptics who have compared him to the likes of former Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel. Fortunately, such praise from the likes of Elway should certainly go a long way in helping to boost his draft stock.
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