From now until the 2024 NFL Draft takes place, we hope to scout and create profiles for as many prospects as possible, examining their strengths, weaknesses, and what they can bring to an NFL franchise. These players could be potential top 10 picks, all the way down to Day 3 selections and priority undrafted free agents. Today, a scouting report on South Alabama QB Carter Bradley.
#2 Carter Bradley/QB South Alabama – 6030, 218 pounds (Senior)
Senior Bowl
MEASUREMENTS
| Player | Ht/Wt | Hand Size | Arm Length | Wingspan |
| Carter Bradley | 6030/218 | 9 3/8″ | 31 1/2″ | 77″ |
| 40-Yard Dash | 10-Yard Dash | Short Shuttle | 3-Cone | |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | |
| Broad Jump | Vertical | Bench Press | ||
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
The Good
– Has NFL frame
– Throws a tight spiral and shows zip/velocity on the football
– Willing to make tough, NFL throws over the middle
– Flashes a pretty deep ball
– Willing to hang in a muddy pocket against the rush, solid presence and plays from within the pocket
– Just mobile enough to scramble for first downs when he needs a couple yards
– Shows toughness and willingness to play through pain
– Displays downfield/outside numbers accuracy
– Winner who helped lead South Alabama to overall success and upsets (beat Oklahoma State on the road in 2023)
– Football bloodlines
– Production increased throughout career
The Bad
– Slightly thinner frame than listing suggests
– RPO/horizontal-heavy offense that didn’t often challenge him
– Quick and simple reads and usually didn’t have to push the ball past 5-7 yards
– Shows tunnel vision and will be too aggressive trying to fit the ball in, leading to bat downs and interceptions
– Elongated and lower release point, leads to far too many tipped and batted balls at the LOS for his height
– Misses too many lay-ups over the middle. Passes can sail/be behind on digs and slants, can overstride and widen base
– Accuracy falls off when on the move
– Marginal athlete who isn’t a serious threat to gain more than what’s there
– Played in shotgun-exclusive offense
– Older prospect
Bio
– Two-year starter for South Alabama (24 games)
– Career: 678-of-1078 (62.9 completion rate) 8,372 yards, 61 TDs, 27 INTs
– 2023: 221-of-326 (67.8 completion rate) 2,660 yards, 19 TDs, 7 INTs
– Transferred from Toledo to South Alabama ahead of 2022 season
– Three-star recruit from Jacksonville, Florida, chose Toledo over Cincinnati, Colorado State, Florida Atlantic, Pitt and West Virginia, among others
– Son of Colts defensive coordinator Gus Bradley
– Turned 24 on March 9
– Attended Elite 11 HS football camp alongside Trevor Lawrence, Justin Fields and Dorian Thompson-Robinson
– Benched mid-way through 2021 season at Toledo, transferred after the year
– Torn labrum in spring of 2019 while at Toledo (had surgery in April), returned for fall
– Missed 2023 bowl game due to knee injury suffered in regular season finale
– Favorite athlete is Brett Favre
– Friends with Philip Rivers and his family
Tape Breakdown
Carter Bradley packed up from Jacksonville to Toledo despite offers to attend essentially every part of the country, including staying in the Florida area. But his time with the Rockets was largely unsuccessful, transferring to South Alabama ahead of 2022. He helped turn the program around, a losing record the year before he arrived with winning records in his two seasons at the helm. That included a 10-win outcome in 2022 and their first-ever bowl win in 2023 (though a knee injury held him out).
Bradley effectively managed the offense, an RPO and horizontal-heavy system. But he flashes zip and velocity on his throws, displaying touch and placement on his deep ball with a serviceable arm. He’s also willing to put the ball in tight spaces over the middle. It can get him into trouble, but there’s enough oomph to make it work, at least in the Sun Belt.
Bradley is tough and willing to hang in the pocket, not bothered by the rush around him. Overall, his pocket presence is sound, something not seen in many college quarterbacks.
But his offense was very quarterback-friendly. That’s not inherently a bad thing, and it worked. South Alabama put up points and won games, but it’s hard to see it translating to the next level. So much of it was RPO and screen based, and you could be waiting a while to watch him actually drive the ball downfield on tape. Mostly, that happens on third and long when the offense had no choice. A lot of it looked like this.
His release is going to be a problem. It’s funny he’s friends with Philip Rivers because they are cut from a similar cloth with funky-releases. Bradley’s probably isn’t as pronounced as Rivers, but it’s elongated and low, leading to far too many batted passes at the line of scrimmage. In the 2022 bowl game against Western Kentucky, Bradley had at least three batted or tipped at the line of scrimmage. Check out his release. I added another clip of a batted pass from that game, and there was at least one more.
His accuracy can fall off over the middle and while on the move with some flat out bad misses. One of these is caught, but behind over the middle (unless you want to argue he was trying to avoid the ref).
On the move, it also drops off.
And he can miss underneath or zone defenders and make risky throws because of it. There were flashes of good tape, but not seen frequently enough.
Conclusion
Bradley turned into a successful college quarterback who found a good system for him. While he shows developed pocket presence, and there’s zip on his passes, his offense isn’t translatable and his downfield tape is too scattershot to trust him to become an NFL starter. Even as a No. 2 backup, I’m not sure if it’s there with him. Pittsburgh’s shown interest as a potential late-round flier, but his tape was underwhelming. My NFL comparison is Ryan Finley.
Projection: Late Day Three-Undrafted Free Agent
Depot Draft Grade: 5.8 Priority Undrafted Free Agent (Undrafted Free Agent)
Games Watched: vs Western Kentucky (2022), at Tulane (2023), at Oklahoma State (2023), vs Southern Miss (2023)
