NFL Draft Player Profile: Aaron Murray of Georgia

by Derrik Klassen

(Murray #11) Photo credit: OnlineAthens.com  

Big time school equals big time talent, right? Wrong! None of the SEC QBs, yes, that includes Manziel, are worth more than a 4th round pick. The notion of Murray, McCarron, Manziel, etc. are worth even a 2nd round pick, let alone a 1st round choice, is absolutely absurd. All of the SEC QBs are products of the system as the talent that surrounds them makes them look good and enables them to put up solid stats, but raw stats are a deceiving and flawed system. Every SEC QB is over-rated and Murray is not an exception.


The most aggravating and reoccurring flaw with Murray's game is the fact that he throws behind the WR quite often. Had Murray not been equipped with Tavarres King and Malcolm Mitchell, his completion percentage would have plummeted. Even when he doesn't throw behind them, he will make the WR dive or leap for the ball even when a DB couldn't have made a play on the ball either way. Murray also leads WRs rather poorly and doesn't allow them to stay in full stride to catch the ball.

Murray doesn't move around and perform actions, such as play-action, with urgency. He takes his time and slows down. He needs to play with a higher tempo and get the ball out much quicker. While he tends to move rather sluggish, he is also a robot of the system. Murray doesn't scan the field with urgency or effectiveness. It seems as though he already knows who will throw to before the ball is even snapped. Murray almost always stares down the primary WR and throws to him, even if he isn't open at all,  or simply checks down.  Sticking to a single WR, regardless of how the play develops, tends to leave WRs vulnerable. Murray do things such as throwing a slant to a WR, even though there is clearly a safety about to destroy that WR. It's almost as if Murray doesn't care what happens to his WR as long as his completion percentage goes up.

There isn't too much to like about Murray other than impressive velocity on his throws. Nothing else he does is anything more than average, if it is even that good. Murray is purely a product of his system and media hype. Murray is my No.15 ranked QB out of the 17 that I have studied. The fact that Murray is considered top-tier talent, yet small school guys such as Brett Smith, Blake Bortles, Jeff Matthews, etc. are going unnoticed is absolutely criminal.