QB Rankings: CJ Stroud

Updated: 01/18/2022

With the season underway players have had the opportunity to raise their stock and move up the rankings. Before we jump into CJ Stroud, here’s a few reminders about the rankings themselves:

• The rankings will be updated throughout the season.
• Players who have not played college football are not eligible for the rankings.
• Players are graded on their college ability, not their pro potential.
• We are judging players on their film, production and physical tools.

You can view the College Football QB Rankings here.

Ohio State quarterback, CJ Stroud was hindered by a shoulder injury early in the season and had to miss a game, but has been on fire since returning. He established himself as the Buckeyes’ starter leading an offense that averaged 45.7 points per game and 8.0 yards per play. He saved his best performance for last with a record setting Rose Bowl game where he passed for 573 yards and 6 touchdowns in a comeback win. For the season, Stroud completed 72 percent of his passes and averaged 10.1 yards per attempt with a 44 to 6 touchdown to interception ratio. Stroud is prolific passer who has proven he is one of the best quarterbacks in college football.

Stroud plays with excellent anticipation. He understands the route concepts and how they are designed to attack the coverage he is seeing. This helps him to throw the ball before the receiver is actually open, instead throwing the ball into the pocket in the coverage that his receiver will be in when the ball gets there. Stroud’s anticipation makes it difficult for defenders to react to these passes in the intermediate part of the field because the ball arrives before the defender can attempt to make a play on it. As he has gotten more and more comfortable, these anticipation throws are becoming more and more common in the intermediate and deep passing game.

Stroud also shows the accuracy needed to be a successful quarterback. Particularly after he sat out the Akron game to rest his shoulder, Stroud has been excellent with his ball placement. He allows his receivers to make a play on the ball and normally hits them on the move so they can get yards after the catch as well. Stroud has good pace on the football and has been fitting it into the windows in the secondary with greater consistency. Stroud made several “wow” throws this year and more appear to be on the horizon.

CJ Stroud developed his game over the course of the season and is primed for a big second season in Columbus. He has a strong arm that allows him to stretch the defense vertically and squeeze the ball into tight windows. Stroud is a solid athlete who can move around in the pocket and has shown the ability to scramble for yardage when he needs to, though he prefers to make plays with his arm. The tools are obvious and he showcased them more and more as the season progressed. Few quarterbacks have the natural passing ability Stroud does, his confidence in those abilities makes him one of the best in the country.

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