On the surface, Zach Mettenberger and Aaron Murray are similar. Both are seniors at the helm of an SEC team, both had improved from their junior year, and both ended this season with a lower body injury. Sadly, the injuries will hurt both of their draft stocks and hinder them from attending any post-season games, such as the Senior Bowl. Nonetheless, they are each talented in their own right, but the question is, who has more potential?
Murray is the safer, more pro-ready prospect. He does a more efficient job going through his progressions and finding the correct read in Georgia’s rather simplistic system. Murray has a better understanding and ability to lead his receivers to a spot as opposed to throwing directly at them, holding the receiver back from gaining yards after the catch.
Despite limitations, Murray is one of the more efficient quarterbacks in the class. Within the confines of a structured offense, Murray can thrive and get into a nearly unstoppable rhythm.
The problem with Murray is that when the offense is not structured, when all does not go according to plan, he panics. Murray is a poor improviser and the situations in which he is asked to do so are often where his mistakes come. In the NFL, “structured” offense will become less of a common occurrence. He will be asked to do more improvising in the NFL and that will certainly cause growing pains for Murray.
Murray has more polish than Mettenberger and is already the more NFL-ready quarterback, but if groomed, Mettenberger can be better.
Mettenberger is taller and has a larger, more durable upper body frame than that of Murray. It may seem like a miniscule detail, but it allows Mettenberger to more easily see the field and withstand NFL caliber hits to his torso.
While he is rather slow in everything he does, such as footwork, Mettenberger’s arm is much better. He can push the ball downfield better and with more velocity than Murray can. Although, Mettenberger struggles with accuracy. He has little understanding of how to lead receivers and allow them to gain yards after the catch.
On a tangent to understanding the game, Mettenberger has issues reading the field. With Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham being such talented receivers, Mettenberger can almost always attack his first read, but when it is not open, he tends to throw it anyway. He forces the pass because he does not know how to quickly process the situation and handle it another way.
Both quarterbacks are talented in their own different ways. They are polar opposite prospects, yet similar in overall talent level. While Murray is the less risky choice, from a pure potential standpoint, Mettenberger gets the edge due to his frame and rocket of an arm. If a GM plans on taking a project quarterback under a solidified veteran to learn, Mettenberger is the obvious choice because his tools are much more moldable.