It happens every winter. First, it comes, as Ned Stark warned us. Then, the questions are raised regarding the crop of quarterbacks: Can they make all the throws? Do they have enough velocity? Last year the 49 miles per hour number dogged Deshaun Watson through his draft day and into his rookie season (more on…
In the Building Blocks series, writers from Inside the Pylon will discuss the current roster of those teams on the outside looking in of playoff contention in 2017. In a roundtable format, the writers will talk about what players currently look like keepers for the long term, with the potential for being key contributors to…
A strong rushing attack has been a focus of the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Kirk Ferentz Era. The Hawkeyes have averaged over 160 yards per game on the ground each of the last four seasons. A core component of their ground game has been a zone-blocking scheme, which Ferentz brought to Iowa City over 16…
Before Dak Prescott, there was Tom Brady. The mold that draft evaluators and scouts wanted to try and replicate each draft season. Who could identify the next late-round quarterback who would emerge as a star in the National Football League? But there’s another “Next” type out there, one that is harder to truly define, but…
Now things really get interesting. We’re moving into the Day Three type of players, quarterbacks who for one reason or another will probably wait a little bit longer to hear their name called. But there are some talented players in this class who are Day Three QBs, including some in this tier below who are…
Welcome to the debut of “Check with Me”, a semi-regular column on Inside the Pylon where former college quarterback, Mark Schofield, addresses topics, trends, and issues involving arguably the most important position on the field. Whether they are issues on the Twitter timeline, debates raging on network shows, or just QB-related topics that pop up,…
With the 2017 NFL draft quickly approaching, the scouts at Inside the Pylon are hard at work putting together scouting reports and breaking down all the tape on the next crop of NFL rookies. Over at our YouTube Channel, Mark Schofield has put together a number of videos on some of the quarterbacks in this…
Quarterbacks Winner: Nate Peterman, Pitt Loser: Sefo Liufau, Colorado Analysis: If anyone was good among this group, it was only relative to the others, as all six signal callers spent most of the week struggling or, at least, failing to stand out. Peterman displayed enough arm strength and a good command of the offense to…
The squads put on full pads for the second day of practice, and as far as the quarterbacks go, one name continued to shine while another rebounded from a shaky first day, perhaps raising his draft stock in the process. North Practice Under a sunny Mobile sky, the North team kicked off the day of…
With the caveat that the first day of practice at any event such as the Senior Bowl needs to be graded on a curve, I wanted to share some observations from the first day of practice for the six quarterbacks down here in Mobile. At the outset, when you remember that these are players throwing…
In a few days, the football world descends upon the Alabama gulf coast. While the seafood and nightlife that Mobile has to offer are wonderful, those who make the trip are looking to find the next gem in the upcoming NFL draft class. The quarterbacks heading to the Senior Bowl comprise an interesting group, and…
The Big Ten is shaping up be a highly competitive conference this year. Although much of the conference’s top talent left for the NFL Draft last season, new faces enter will soon be household names. Jeff Feyerer‘s 2016 Big Ten Preview focuses on those players and teams, and the schemes and strategies coaches will utilize…
With the 2016 NFL Draft in the rear view mirror, evaluators are already working through the next crop of young men hoping to realize their NFL dreams. Mark Schofield has started his process of quarterback evaluation for the 2017 draft and, after some preliminary film work, has identified 30 prospects he will be keeping an…
Mark Schofield breaks down Jordan Canzeri’s second touchdown run of the third quarter for Iowa against Nebraska, which took advantage of two poor pursuit angles, from two inexperienced Nebraska defenders, for a long scoring run. Iowa clinched the Big Ten West Division with their 40-20 victory over Purdue, and moved into fourth place of the…
In order to keep their division title hopes alive, the Wisconsin Badgers must rely on senior linebacker Joe Schobert to slow down the Northwestern Wildcats offense. Mark Schofield turns to the Badgers’ film this year to highlight how Schobert is an athletic veteran who flashes excellent pure strength. The Big Ten West division title is close…
Inside The Pylon works to deliver quality football content to our readers. This Week in Football Writing collects some of our favorite pieces from friends and colleagues last week and shares them with you. DeflateGate got Tom Brady mad, and the rest of the NFL is paying the price Sally Jenkins on Tom Brady the crazy driven person. Raises…