From now until the 2024 NFL Draft takes place, we will 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 Maryland QB Taulia Tagovailoa.
#3 Taulia Tagovailoa/QB Maryland – 5102, 200 pounds (Redshirt Senior)
MEASUREMENTS
| Player | Ht/Wt | Hand Size | Arm Length | Wingspan |
| Taulia Tagovailoa | 5102/200 | 9 5/8″ | 30 3/4″ | 74 1/4″ |
| 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 the statistical production along with the high school recruiting status to draw interest from teams
– Able to find a rhythm in the short passing game to methodically drive the ball down the field
– Takes command of the offense by making callouts on blitzers and audibles
– Flashes really nice touch to hit passes on the sideline
– Takes advantage of DB’s playing off in man coverage with his quick delivery
– Handful of times showed the ability to make throws on the run, which is needed at the next level
– Really solid throwing performance at his pro day, being able to complete passes on all levels
The Bad
– Lacks optimal quarterback age and frame with height in the 1st percentile while his weight falls in the 12th percentile
– Makes questionable throws by throwing into double coverage or with a lurking defender that leads to near interceptions
– Has shown to consistently be a one-read quarterback who stares his receiver down, which leads to questions on if he can handle running an actual NFL offense by going through reads
– Does not respond to pressure well by taking a ton of sacks and being unable to escape it
– Lacks the agility and speed you’d like to see in a modern-day quarterback to escape the pocket or use in designed runs
– Ball placement seems to be behind his receivers a lot, forcing them into tough catches
Bio
– 24 years old (February 26th, 2000)
– Five games played for Alabama in 2019 and 41 games played for Maryland from 2020 to 2023
– 11,582 total offensive yards, 90 offensive touchdowns, 37 interceptions, and a 146.1 quarterback rating in his college career
– 3,416 total offensive yards, 30 offensive touchdowns, 11 interceptions, and a 145.1 quarterback rating in 2023
– Was carted off after he aggravated a sprained medial collateral ligament against Indiana in 2022
– Four-star QB in his 2019 high school class from Alabaster, AL
– Younger brother to Miami Dolphins Pro Bowl QB Tua Tagovailoa
– Requested, but was denied, an extra year of eligibility due to playing five games in 2019, which is one more than the allowed amount to retain an extra year of eligibility. He played just two snaps in their 38-7 win over Mississippi State to honor his brother Tua, who suffered a hip injury in the game.
– Big Ten all-time passing leader with 11,256 yards, as well as holding school records for career passing yards, passing touchdowns (76), completion percentage (67.1), completions (955), total offensive yards (11,473), and 300-yard passing games (15)
– Played center from grades four to six while Tua was his quarterback
– Has two dogs named Dallas and Star since the family grew up Cowboys fans
Tape Breakdown
This is one of the better throws I saw Taulia Tagovailoa make on film. It’s a simple high-low concept on the right side of the field with the hitch and corner routes. Tagovailoa really doesn’t have to do any processing here since the corner is the first read, and the receiver wins right off the break. Despite not needing to process this read, Tagovailoa is able to throw a perfect ball on the sideline with a defender trailing and over-top of his receiver. This is also with two Penn State defenders creeping towards Tagovailoa which is something he has shown to struggle with mainly due to his small frame. More throws like this would have been great to see from him.
— Steven (@Elspedd2) March 29, 2024
Instead of more throws like the last clip, we got numerous ones like this. Tagovailoa really relied on his one-read short throws to march the ball down the field. So much so that he would even put the ball in harm’s way just to not go through progressions. In a throw like this one, he is trying to hit the out route as soon as his receiver makes the cut. We can see the Penn State linebacker read Tagovailoa’s eyes and nearly get a hand on this pass. A more instinctual pass-coverage linebacker in the NFL, like Fred Warner or Roquan Smith, is jumping this route and taking it back to the house. This was early in the Penn State game, so it was a worrisome introduction to Tagovailoa as a passer.
— Steven (@Elspedd2) March 29, 2024
Obviously, I was right to be worried about the last play, as we saw nearly the same sequence later in the game, and it was almost picked off. Abdul Carter (#11) learned from the previous play and you can see him read Tagovailoa’s eyes right off the snap. Carter jumps the slant route for the pass deflection but it easily could have been picked off. This shows if a sophomore college linebacker is able to read your tells, an NFL veteran is going to be able to do the same but make you pay for it more.
— Steven (@Elspedd2) March 29, 2024
This play shows a lapse in judgment on Tagovailoa’s part, considering the situation is 2nd and eight. Despite the relatively relaxed situation, Tagovailoa decides to test Penn State’s double coverage on the post route, making for an unnecessary risk. Even ignoring the down and distance, Tagovailoa has an open tight end running an out route at the bottom of the screen at the first down sticks. The ball being completed is almost irrelevant due to the unnecessary risk and weighing the risk-reward factor. A polished quarterback would’ve said that the receiver is covered, gone through progressions, and hit the open tight end for the same result.
— Steven (@Elspedd2) March 29, 2024
Here is an accurate representation of what will happen to Tagovailoa if he is thrown out onto an NFL field without more development. He takes the snap, looks at his first read, which is the hitch over the middle, and decides to throw it no matter what. This is apparent when sophomore linebacker Dominic DeLuca (#0) is already breaking on the route despite Tagovailoa not even getting into his throwing motion yet. This is very obvious on the scouting report Penn State is telling their defenders to just jump the first read Tagovailoa makes because that is where the ball is going. This is very troubling considering his older age, he should be well past this stage in his game.
— Steven (@Elspedd2) March 29, 2024
Conclusion
Unlike his brother Tua, Taulia Tagovailoa will not be taken in the first round of the NFL draft. Tagovailoa is well below the size looked for in a draft prospect as well as already being a ripe age of 24. With this older age, you’d expect a polished player who should be able to make an instant impact on the NFL field. However, Tagovailoa struggles with most of the important attributes scouts look for.
On film, it was very apparent his inability to consistently escape pressure and extend plays at a high level. There were flashes of him being able to spin out of the pocket with a defender breathing down his neck, but that was hardly duplicated from game to game. Maryland would use him in designed quarterback runs along with read options, and it was clear Tagovailoa was out of his element as he looked like a deer in headlights. From an accuracy standpoint, he is far from where he needs to be. There were great throws he made, especially on the sideline, that showed promise, but the consistency was not there. Maryland’s offense made Tagovailoa’s job very easy with short passes like screens, slants, ins and outs that relied on taking advantage of defensive backs playing off-coverage. He would get reckless when a defender would come around and throw up a prayer that had a low percent chance of being caught by his receiver and an even higher chance of being picked off by the other team.
Tagovailoa is no stranger to throwing dangerous passes, though. Multiple times, as shown in the film breakdown, he would miss defenders lurking around his receivers, resulting in unnecessary risks or turnovers. For his sake, I think the NCAA did him a favor in denying him an extra year of eligibility because coming out next year at 25 years old would’ve only hurt his draft stock more even if he did improve a little bit. I think Tagovailoa goes undrafted due to the overwhelming inconsistencies and lack of physical attributes.
Projection: UDFA
Depot Draft Grade: 6.0 – Undrafted Free Agent (Priority Undrafted Free Agent)
Games Watched: Penn State (2023), Indiana (2023), Michigan (2021)
