By Jeremy Hritz
| Height: 6’3 Weight: 226 40 (est.): 4.9 College: University of Nevada |
| Career Stats 853 completions, 1252 attempts, 9379 yards, 74 touchdowns, and 19 interceptions |
| Strengths – Consistent production over three seasons at the University of Nevada, stats validate he can play – Strong, NFL-caliber arm to make every required throw of a professional offense – With time, is accurate throwing to all areas of the field, including deep balls – Shows awareness situationally of when to put touch on the ball and when to sling it |
| Areas for Growth/Concerns – Very limited mobility, no threat as a runner – Knee-injury concerns dating back to his senior year of high school – Gunslinger-mentality can at times result in mistakes, precarious situations – Accuracy decreases when forced to throw on the move, when pressured |
| Best-Case Scenario – Strong’s knee injury history is behind him, and he finds a way to be sufficiently mobile to buy time to make plays in the passing game when protection breaks down. Though drafted later than the other QBs in this draft, Strong is a find, and puts together a productive career as a result of his old-school, traditional down-the-field passing acumen. Will need time to adapt to the pro game. |
| Likely Reality – Shows glimpses of brilliance, but is limited by his mobility, and for every 10 solid plays, his athletic limitations result in a play that hinders his offense. Needs a great offensive line in order to truly showcase his talent. |
| Projected Round – Early second round, but has a chance to creep into the basement of round 1 if a team has enough belief. |
| Potential to Land with the Steelers– I am not a believer in speaking in absolutes because anything is possible, but the Steelers are in the market for a mobile quarterback, and Strong does not fit that mold. While I’m not saying it couldn’t happen, as the Steelers will do their due diligence on all of the available QBs, the other mobile prospects in this class will get their attention first. |
Promising. AND
Thank you guys going to the Pro Bowl for extending my “Steeler Watching” … I m sure you will proudly carry on the Black & Gold. GO STEELERS!