When I wrote-up the 2025 quarterback a few weeks ago, my main takeaway was that it’s currently a deep but fairly underwhelming class and there’s very much room for a player (or players) to elevate their stock.
For a team like the Seahawks without an obvious long-term answer at quarterback, it’s difficult to point to one or more of the 2025 quarterbacks and state ‘this is the one to watch’. I can imagine there are players who intrigue the Seahawks, for a variety of reasons, but no stand-out prospect at the moment.
However, one unique option could emerge.
When I wrote about Jalen Milroe I noted the following:
I’ve never watched Jalen Milroe and felt like I was watching a NFL starter. He has a decent arm but his accuracy can be an issue. His footwork and mechanics need major work. There’s no evidence of an ability to go through progressions and he looks like a good college athlete playing quarterback.
It’s not a glowing review, to say the least. However, there’s an angle to this that needs to be considered.
Kalen DeBoer, working with Ryan Grubb, had success in college with two very different players in Jake Haener and Michael Penix Jr. It’s a small sample size but they showed at Fresno State and Washington that they are adaptable and their scheming can deliver mass-production and results.
Milroe is another very different player to Haener and Penix Jr. However, the noise coming out of Alabama has been very positive about his development this year. You might expect that and it could just be the typical PR from the team.
That said, there have been numerous rumblings — including from people not directly working for Alabama — that Milroe has taken a big step forward technically. Big plays were never an issue, as we’ll come onto shortly. It was the technical aspect of the position. The word on the street is that his footwork is much better, as is his processing.
DeBoer addressed this himself back in May:
“I think processing [is where he’s improved]. Whether it be processing and going through progressions and being more disciplined with his footwork, and really paying attention to his footwork — tying the footwork to the timing and just that clock that you need to have in your head as a quarterback.”
“I think there were times when it was really good, and then all a sudden you add some more install, then it kind of drops off a little bit. I think as the spring went on again, he continued to elevate just playing ball. Just moving the chains and playing ball and not trying to run a play, but run an offense. I thought he did a good job of that.”
DeBoer then followed this up during fall camp:
“Today, he came out again, really he threw the deep ball probably as well as I’ve seen him throw. That’s a lot of guys and the timing, his rhythm and all of that coming into play. He’s getting more comfortable.”
It’s unlikely that Milroe is going to suddenly turn into a tremendous pocket passer. As noted, at times last season he didn’t really look like a NFL passer — rather he looked like someone with great athletic qualities to play off-platform at a high level in college. However, we’ve seen what DeBoer can do with players. Nobody anticipated Penix Jr’s 2022 season until it happened, or that by 2024 he’d be a top-10 draft pick.
Milroe doesn’t have to suddenly turn into a complete pocket passer anyway. His 96.9 passing grade on 20+ yard throws per PFF was the highest among returning QB’s this year. He had 27 ‘big time throws’ — the same number as Caleb Williams in 2023 (good for seventh most in college football). His ‘big time throw percentage’ of 9.1% was second highest among all college quarterbacks last season.
He also had 35 10+ yard runs, fourth most among quarterbacks (behind only Jayden Daniels, Thomas Castellanos and Kaidon Salter). While there’s room for improvement as a conventional passer, it’s clear Milroe possesses the kind of X-factor that can deliver chunk yardage.
Daniels is perhaps a good reminder of how a player can elevate his stock in a single season. I remember thinking after LSU’s week one loss to Florida State that he was unimpressive and that talk of being a mid or even late round pick was fair. By the end of the season he was the Heisman favourite and a lock to go in the top-five.
Milroe may not manage that kind of elevation but he has a lot of things stacked in his favour. His coach, for starters, and the track record he has for producing a great offense. Milroe has weapons, an excellent offensive line and he plays for Alabama who will be favoured in most games.
He’s even more intriguing from a Seahawks perspective because of the DeBoer connection. Ryan Grubb will presumably get an honest and detailed assessment from DeBoer on his pro-prospects. Their relationship could be critical here. If DeBoer offers his seal of approval, Milroe would then be well placed to transition to the Seahawks and play for Grubb. The terminology would be similar, their coaching style and system would have some crossover. It would be a good fit, especially if Milroe thrives this season and takes a technical step forward.
His arm strength would appear to fit a system that requires attacking every area of the field. His arm, big-play numbers, creativity and elusiveness may also appeal to John Schneider who has tended to prefer that type of skill-set.
I also think Schneider is big on the type of person/character he has at quarterback. Milroe is A+ in that regard. He is incredibly charismatic, personable, well spoken and has received the highest praise from everyone at Alabama for his character. He handled being benched last season superbly, fought back to regain his job and then finished strongly — leading Alabama to the SEC title.
I don’t think it’s beyond the realms of possibility that Milroe could be a similar type of pro to Jalen Hurts. Lest we forget, it was a bit of a surprise when the Eagles took a chance on him in round two. He wasn’t even really considered in that range until after the combine, where he performed well. Although Hurts is far from perfect, he has quarterbacked Philadelphia to a Super Bowl, almost outgunning the Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes for a title.
This was Lance Zierlein’s write-up of Hurts pre-draft:
Like Tim Tebow, Hurts is a winning dual-threat quarterback known for his strength, toughness and character. Hurts is a more accurate passer and better runner than Tebow but is inconsistent as a decision-maker and tends to break the pocket when throws are there to be made. His deep-ball touch and intermediate accuracy improved this year so teams may see him as a developmental talent who will keep getting better in the right scheme. He’ll struggle to beat NFL defenses from the pocket, but his ability to grind out yards on the ground and make off-schedule plays should make him a solid backup with upward mobility.
That review of Hurts is comparable to Milroe. If the Alabama quarterback can end his college career in a similar fashion (Hurts led Oklahoma to the BIG-12 title, a playoff berth and he finished second in the Heisman race behind Joe Burrow) then it’s possible his stock could similarly rise up.
Milroe’s physical talent, the fact he’s working with DeBoer and his maturity all work for the Seahawks if/when they finally decide to take a shot on drafting a quarterback. He is definitely one to watch when the college season begins.
There are others too — I suspect John Schneider might appreciate the natural talent of Quinn Ewers, for example. But Milroe is someone who might just be worth a bit of extra attention if he can produce for a coach in a system that Seattle’s offensive coordinator knows very well.
He’s not the only Alabama player to keep an eye on. If you missed my glowing report on left guard Tyler Booker, check it out here.
