Nick Saban says Bryce Young plays QB 'like a point guard,' calls height non-issue
Nick Saban is a pretty nice voice to have in your corner, and the Alabama head coach has been making the media rounds this week going to bat for his Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback.
Bryce Young was sensational as a college quarterback. As an NFL prospect, his size is being talked about seemingly every hour by draft experts as the April draft approaches. At the NFL Scouting Combine, he measured in at 5-foot-10, 204 pounds.
If taken in the first round, he’d tie Kyler Murray as the shortest quarterback drafted in the opening round in the history of the NFL Draft.
“I don’t think it’s an issue,” Saban said on Stephen A. Smith’s Know Mercy Podcast on Wednesday. “I think you have to look at each individual player. This guy plays quarterback like a point guard in basketball. He’s got eyes all over. He knows where everybody is. He can extend plays. He creates throwing lanes for himself, which is important for a guy at his size. He can make all the throws. He’s smart. So, he has a lot of the attributes — from a psychological disposition standpoint — that are necessary to excel at this position.”
Talking heads have brought up durability concerns given Young’s size. Smith himself opened the conversation by telling Saban he wished Young was a little bigger.
But the Alabama quarterback only missed one game this past season after suffering a shoulder injury in Week 5 against Arkansas. Saban called it a self-inflicted issue, with Young trying to do too much at the last second instead of just protecting himself and going down with the ball.
“I think history is the best indicator of what the future is going to bring,” Saban said. “Bryce is not (the) ideal height that NFL folks would like to see for that particular position, quarterback, but I think Bryce has played extremely well. He has no history of being injury-prone. There’s a lot of folks in the SEC that end up playing in the NFL, and he plays against those guys every week. He’s never had a problem with injuries.”
And the mental makeup of Young’s game, Saban says, will translate.
“We’ve all seen the 6-4, 225-pound guy that can throw it like a bazooka, but he can’t make the choices and decisions, he can’t distribute the ball, he can’t throw it accurately,” Saban said. “So who’s the better bet? I’m going on history, production, performance, and Bryce Young’s done it about as well as anybody.”
You can hear the full episode with Saban below.
“calls height non-issue”
He would know all about that.
Neither does Drew Brees or Lamar Jackson. I see Saban still lives in your head. Poor Ron, consumed by Bama jealousy. Saban controls you.
“We’ve all seen the 6-4, 225-pound guy that can throw it like a bazooka, but he can’t make the choices and decisions, he can’t distribute the ball, he can’t throw it accurately,” Saban said
Sounds like he’s talking about Anthony Richardson.
AR or JaMarcus Russell
He is.
I think he’s talking about more than just AR. He’s talking about Will Levis, AR, Sam Darnold, Josh Rosen, Daniel Jones, Mitch Trubisky, Blake Bortles, Carson Wentz, Blaine Gabbert, etc.
All QBs who weren’t that great in college and had major flaws but they had the measurables, athleticism, or looked good in shorts to get drafted early.
All of them, with maybe the exception of Daniel Jones and his absurd new contract, ended up being busts at the next level.
Perhaps but AR meets all those criteria and is in the current draft.
Yes AR15 & Joe Milton can throw it into the 3rd row. But the receivers cannot leave the playing field to catch it.
Remind me which Ag U QB is in the draft? Did yella wood tell you to post?
If the production is there, so what about the height.
I remember the comments of Joe Burrow’s hands, so he began to make fun of those people. “I’m retiring from football because of my tiny hands.”
Young should make fun of those same people knocking his height.
Saban was clearly speaking of Richardson because that’s who is is going up against Young, Levis, and Stroud.