Is Stetson Bennett the Next Brock Purdy?

That’s the big question surrounding Georgia’s Stetson Bennett right now.

Is it possible this Bulldogs’ quarterback (QB) can turn out to be as good as Purdy has been for the 49ers this season?

No.

Why not?

As someone who evaluated and compared Purdy pre-draft to 2002 NFL MVP QB Rich Gannon, I feel I can speak to this.

When I watch Stetson play, he reminds me more of former Gator’s signal caller Danny Wuerffel or former Seminoles’ QB Danny Kanell.

I know I’m jumping into a proverbial time machine making these comparisons, but these are the guys that went through my mind when watching Bennett move around and throw.

What does Bennett look like when throwing?

I’m not sure what game film Falcons’ cornerback Casey Hayward is referring to with that statement, but on the film I watched, Bennett threw a ton of short screen passes, that his talented skill position players turned into much longer gains.

I wish I could find a statistic, but just from observation, I would say most of his “passing yardage” in these three embedded games below came after the catch.

Outside of the short-range slam dunks, Stetson relies on throwing touch passes with fairly good downfield ball placement at the intermediate to deep route levels.

Stetson’s noodle arm is a very real concern

However, there are other concerns as well:

• Holding the ball too long in the pocket before throwing
• Hard-starring receivers before throwing downfield
• Patting the football pre-delivery

Stetson (like all college quarterbacks) can get away with this at the intermediate route level against their level of competition, which often provides loose man and zone coverages with huge throwing windows (sometimes the receivers are literally wide open), but those large throwing windows don’t exist much where he’s going.

Floaters like he throws often turn into highlights for cornerbacks at the next level on Sports Center.

Off-scripted stuff is a concern

This is another area of concern that popped on the game film – – when things break down Stetson gets inaccurate. He has the mobility to move around, but it doesn’t result in much if he ends up throwing.

He’s great if it’s a designed roll-out and throw, but not if things break down.

Things tend to break down a lot around quarterbacks in the NFL, and having the ability to create and extend plays is a huge plus Stetson doesn’t have.

A question to ponder?

Would Bennett be as “good” if he was playing at Iowa State like Purdy did?

The thing that struck me watching Purdy play at Iowa State was how determined and efficient he looked on game film.

I’m not seeing either of those qualities in Bennett.

Projecting Bennett to the NFL

Bennett is going to struggle at the next level, due to the fact he is so dependent on the short passing game and having receivers who excel at picking up a lot of yardage after the catch.

He can run around and generate some excitement doing that and maybe hang around on a practice squad because of who he is. Plus, he’s a winner, which helps to move the meter by adding him to the mix.

I kind of cringe at the thought of him trying to do this with a larger-sized regulation football in the NFL than he threw in college.

#13 Stetson Bennett 5-foot-11, 190 pounds

Daniel Kelly’s Final 2023 NFL Grade: Seventh-Round (I would not select him)

First Round Mock Big Board: TBD

Projected by 0.0% of the NFL Draft Community to be a first-round pick as of January 18, 2023 (nflmockdraftdatabase.com)

2022 game film reviewed: Tennessee, Oregon, and South Carolina (click to view games watched to form this evaluation)

Level of competition: High

2021 stats: 185/287 (64.5%) 2,862 yards (10.0 avg.), 29 TD, 7 INT., 14 sacks

2022 stats: 310/454 (68.3%) 4,127 yards (9.1 avg.), 27 TD, 7 INT, 9 sacks

2023 NFL Draft Scouting Report

Frail looking signal caller with average arm strength and decent mobility. Throws a lot of short screens and excels on routes he can lay it in there with touch. Decent placement at all three route levels, but noticeably hesitant on intermediate routes. Doesn’t throw a tight spiral. Relies on mechanics that make him look like he’s pushing the ball downfield (which gets him off-target on the move). Runs around and good escapability to pick up some yardage on the ground. Limited upside.

Final words

Stetson Bennett is no Brock Purdy.

Daniel Kelly is a former NFL Scout with the New York Jets. He was hired on the regime which featured Bill Parcells, Bill Belichick, Scott Pioli, Mike Tannenbaum, and Dick Haley. He currently writes for Sports Illustrated New York Jets and he is the Editor-in-Chief for First Round Mock. For more information about him visit his website at whateverittakesbook.com. He can be followed on Twitter @firstroundmock.