2013 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Geno Smith, QB, West Virginia

by Cory J. Bonini on April 17, 2013 @ 17:43:18 PDT

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West Virginia quarterback Geno Smith is the de facto No. 1 signal caller of the 2013 NFL Draft class, largely because of how meager the upper end of the position is this year.

Pass-first athletic quarterback

He completed at least 64.8 percent of his throws in each of his three seasons as a starter, improving each year. Smith has thrown 73 touchdown passes to just 13 interceptions in the last two years, throwing for at least 4,205 yards in each of those seasons.

Strengths

Strong arm - throws a catchable ball with a tight spiral within intermediate ranges
Adequate size at 6-foot-3, 220 pounds
Above-average mobility - throws a good ball on the move
Places the ball in position for yardage after the catch
Compact, over-the-top release
Eyes stay downfield in the face of a pass rush
Has experience adjusting his receivers at the line and seems to do a capable job of making defensive reads at the line
Displays the ability to manipulate safeties
Rarely makes dumb decisions with the ball - understands when a play is lost

Weaknesses

Struggled to dig the Mountaineers out of big holes versus Kansas State and Texas Tech in 2012
Questionable mental toughness
Sometimes unloads too much heat on what should be touch passes
Inconsistent footwork
Has taken mostly every snap out of shotgun and pistol formations
Inflated statistical production based on West Virginia's high-flying system

Expected draft placement

Smith does not have much competition for the top spot at quarterback this year. He needs to show more consistency, after jumping out to a torrid start in 2012 and failing to capitalize on it with any evenness the rest of the season.

It would be surprising to some if Smith fell past the Arizona Cardinals (No. 7) or Buffalo Bills (No. 8), but there is a reasonable chance that he slides out of Round 1 entirely.

About Cory J. Bonini

Cory is KFFL's General Manager. In late 2002, he joined the KFFL staff as a research analyst and has been involved in fantasy sports since 1996. A member of the Fantasy Sports Trade Association, as well as Fantasy Sports Writers Association, Bonini has been featured in print, on radio and on scores of websites. Bonini co-hosted Big Lead Sports on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio from 2011 to 2012.

Bonini was recognized with the 2010 Best Article in Print Award from the FSWA and was a finalist for the same award in 2011. In '11, he finished first overall in the FSWA NFL experts challenge that featured 60 of the industry's best competitors. Follow @CoryKFFL