The Baltimore Ravens have found themselves hard-pressed to find answers when starting quarterback Lamar Jackson has gone down with injuries in recent years — something that seems to happen with more and more frequency as Jackson’s career progresses.
What the Ravens might need to think about is what kind of better option they might be able to place at backup quarterback for the next few years. One that might represent less of the “falling off a cliff” scenario that’s happened when players like Tyler Huntley and Cooper Rush have tried to fill Jackson’s shoes.
NFL.com’s Chad Reuter’s latest 7-round mock draft has a specific player in mind, with 6-foot-6, 227-pound Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green predicted as Baltimore’s 5th round pick (No. 173).
Green was a revelation at the NFL scouting combine, where he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.26 seconds to go with a 43.5-inch vertical leap and 11-foot, 2-inch broad jump.
Pittsburgh sports talk radio host Andrew Fillipponi called Green the “greatest athlete at QB in NFL draft history.”
“No one this big has been this fast at the position,” Fillipponi wrote on his official X account. “I’d take him on Day 3 and turn him into Taysom Hill.”
Combine Performance Doesn’t Help Draft Stock
You simply can’t ignore the kind of numbers put up at the combine, as well as wonder why someone like that isn’t being projected higher than a 4th or 5th round pick.
“In an NFL combine already filled with eye-catching speed and explosiveness in the drills, Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green had a record-setting day Saturday in Lucas Oil Stadium,” ESPN’s Jeff Legwold wrote on February 28. “Green, who measured in at 6-foot-5⅞ inches tall and 227 pounds, ran a wide-receiver-worthy 40-yard dash in an official time of 4.36 seconds to go with a 43½-inch vertical jump and a broad jump of 11-2. All three are records for quarterbacks since at least 2003.”
Green Transferred From MWC Power to SEC
Green is a Lewisville, Texas, native who started his college career with 3 seasons at Boise State, where he redshirted in 2021, was MWC Freshman of the Year in 2022, and MWC Championship Game MVP in 2023.
He transferred to a Power Four school to play for Arkansas, where he threw for 5,868 yards, 34 touchdowns, and 20 interceptions to go with 1,379 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns over the last 2 seasons.
It’s impossible to deny Green’s offensive impact in college — at both schools — with a staggering 12,067 yards of total offense and 94 total touchdowns in 4 seasons as a starter.
“Taylen Green is a raw, toolsy dual-threat quarterback with a high ceiling, thanks to his outstanding arm talent and athleticism, but he needs significant development,” Bleacher Report’s Damian Parson wrote in his pre-draft evaluation.
Green made a massive impression on Super Bowl-winning head coach Jon Gruden in the “Gruden’s QB School” series ahead of the draft.
“I just don’t want you to be good,” Gruden told Green. “I want you to be the best QB in the league … I didn’t know the (expletive) I know now (about coaching quarterbacks. You’ve got it all. You’re just not seeing it yet.”
Ravens Urged to Draft ‘Greatest Athlete’ With 6-foot-6, 227-Pound QB