While he’s coming off a rough performance in USC’s 48-20 drubbing at the hands of Notre Dame, there’s little doubt that QB Caleb Williams will be one of the top two quarterbacks selected in the 2024 NFL Draft, along with North Carolina QB Drake Maye. Earlier this week, ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky went on The Dan Patrick Show and compared Roethlisberger to Maye.
“I’ve called a couple Drake Maye games, I will not be alone in thinking he’s going to be in conversation for the No. 1 pick, I promise you that. He’s got a lot of Big Ben in his game…big time. Big, athletic, powerful dude. Still sloppy mechanically a little bit, but great vision, great feel. Throws a beautiful different leveled or layered football. He’s awesome…I think he’s a superstar in the NFL, I really do,” Orlovsky said.
While Orlovsky said Maye will be in the conversation, he did say that without doing a full breakdown he would probably favor Williams to go No. 1 overall.
Up until last night, Williams had USC rolling and was considered one of the favorites to win the Heisman Trophy, an award that the Oklahoma transfer won last season, as well. Both Maye Williams is a near-lock to be a top-five pick, and potentially the No. 1 pick, in the 2024 NFL Draft. Orlovsky said that he thinks it’s between Williams and Maye to go No. 1 in the 2024 NFL Draft. Roethlisberger wasn’t drafted as high as Maye will be, as Pittsburgh took him at No. 11 overall in the 2004 NFL Draft and he was the third quarterback off the board, behind Eli Manning (who current Steelers QB Kenny Pickett drew a comparison to) and Philip Rivers.
But Roethlisberger went on to have a stellar career in the NFL, winning two Super Bowls and throwing for 64,088 yards. He’ll be a first-ballot Hall of Fame selection to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio and I’m sure Maye would be more than ok if he was to have that type of NFL career.
Maye has UNC rolling right now at 6-0, and they just beat Miami (FL) last night. Williams had his worst game of the season in USC’s loss to Notre Dame, throwing just 198 yards and three interceptions, so it’ll be interesting to see if public favor shifts toward Maye when it comes to being the No. 1 pick in the draft. So far this season, Maye has 1,902 yards and 12 touchdowns. He also just got star receiver Tez Walker back after he was initially ruled ineligible for the season, and Walker’s return should help give UNC and Maye a boost.
Bot Maye and Roethlisberger are bigger quarterbacks, with Maye standing at 6’4 and Roethlisberger at 6’5. They’re similar in their builds as well, and both are capable of making plays when things break down around them. Similar to 2004, the 2024 NFL Draft is projected to have a loaded quarterback class at the top, and Maye is going to be one of the first players to hear his name called.
Watch the full segment with Orlovsky below:
