NFL Draft Player Profile: Bryn Renner of North Carolina

by Derrik Klassen

(Renner #2) Photo credit to CollegeFootball.org

Last season, UNC produced Jonathan Cooper, Brennan Williams, and Giovani Bernard, all of which were offensive players. Another key player in UNC's offensive success was QB Bryn Renner. While he may not be at the caliber of Bridgewater or Fales, there is still a considerable amount of NFL potential in Renner. He flashes more than enough arm talent for the NFL, but I question some of the finer parts of his game.


The most impressive part about Bryn Renner is his throwing motion and release. He thrusts forward with the ball as he releases, adding more velocity and accuracy with a sound follow-through. Even more impressive is that he goes through this motion rather quickly and releases rapidly. Renner's velocity, partly due to his quick release, is solid. He won't throw lasers like Kaepernick can, but he does a solid job of getting the ball where it needs to be on time. While it may not seem important, an extra half-second could be the difference between a touchdown and an interception. Flashes of elite touch pop up on occasion when watching Renner, but it isn't consistent enough yet for it to be considered one of his strengths. The mechanical aspect of Renner's game that aggravates me is his footwork. He never appears to be planted correctly or with any stability. His lack of stability leads to a handful of unbalanced throws that could have been quite easily avoided.

Mental make-up is the most crucial trait to look for in QBs. Unfortunately, Renner struggles in this category and it is his biggest inhibitor. While he tends to know to throw at the WRs' route breaks, he often holds on to the ball. Renner seems to not trust his arms at times where he should, yet he forces an uncountable amount of passes. He will try to force passes to WRs that are clearly covered well. It's so frustrating considering his solid arm talent.

The only factor holding Bryn Renner back is himself. His arm talent is impressive, but his sloppy footwork and questionable decision making slaughters his stock. Renner has the potential to be a lot better than he is and could end up having a solid NFL career. He currently ranks 12th out of the 19 QBs that I have studied, but has potential to crack the top 8, which would put him at a "starter-caliber" grade.