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 to Day 3 selections and priority undrafted free agents. Today, a scouting report on Wisconsin QB Tanner Mordecai.
#8 Tanner Mordecai/QB Wisconsin – 6015, 210 pounds (Redshirt Senior)
MEASUREMENTS
| Player | Ht/Wt | Hand Size | Arm Length | Wingspan |
| Tanner Mordecai | 6015/210 | 8 7/8″ | 31 5/8″ | 74″ |
| 40-Yard Dash | 10-Yard Dash | Short Shuttle | 3-Cone | |
| 4.53 | 1.63 | 4.23 | 7.00 | |
| Broad Jump | Vertical | Bench Press | ||
| 9’11” | 36.5″ | DNP |
The Good
– Well-built frame, not tall, but has size and bulk
– Live arm, throws a pretty deep ball, and passes display excellent zip and spiral
– Velocity to fit passes into tight windows along the sideline and over the middle of the field
– Flashes plus placement to fit passes over defender’s heads; makes NFL throws
– Enough mobility and to rush for yards when needed
– Can make throws under pressure and in a muddy pocket
– Productive prior to Wisconsin, had a consistently high completion percentage despite different schools and systems
– Good starting experience
– Shows toughness and leadership, praised and well-liked by coaching staff
The Bad
– Smaller hands for the position
– Streaky player with highs and lows
– Accuracy can wane and prone to missing, especially when off-base/platform; ball can die on sideline/comeback throws
– Can get skittish against the rush and begin to drift
– Not quite as athletic as he tested
– Needs to show better carriage of the football when on the move, will allow ball to swing loosely down by his hip, and fumbled too often on sacks
– Shows windup and tendency to pat the ball before release
– Poor TD production in final season
– Primary shotgun-based offense
– Can make poor decisions and take bad sacks
– Older than most prospects
– Battled injuries throughout his career
Bio
– Turns 25 in November
– Attended three different schools (Oklahoma 2018-2020, SMU 2021-2022, Wisconsin 2023)
– 34 career starts
– Career: 850-for-1,281 (66.4 completion percentage), 9,857 yards (7.7 YPA) 85 TDs 27 INTs
– 2023 at Wisconsin: 204-for-314 (65 percent), 2,066 yards, 9 TDs, 4 INTs, named team captain
– Recorded ten touchdowns in 2022 win over Houston (nine passing, one rushing)
– Three-star recruit from Waco, Texas, chose Oklahoma over Baylor, Georgia, Oklahoma State, among others
– Accounted for 71 total high school touchdowns (51 passing, 20 rushing)
– Missed one month after breaking right hand (metacarpal bone) against Iowa (stayed in for one more play before coming out)
– Played through broken ribs in 2022 and had an undisclosed fall 2020 injury, broke nose as senior in high school
– Regarded as quiet and introverted, doesn’t have a flashy personality
– High school coach who coached Derek Carr believes Mordecai was better HS QB
Tape Breakdown
Tanner Mordecai is a well-traveled man. From Waco, Texas, he started at Oklahoma, battling Kyler Murray, Jalen Hurts, and Spencer Rattler throughout his time there. He had some wins, replacing Rattler during his time there, but couldn’t keep the job and transferred though head coach Lincoln Riley spoke his praises on his way out the door.
SMU was his next stop, and he put up impressive numbers over the next two years before he spent 2023 at Wisconsin. He still threw the ball a lot, but his production dropped, going from 39 and 33 touchdowns in 2021 and 2022 to just nine in 2023.
Mordecai has a very live arm and spins it well with great velocity. He’s able to dot the ball downfield and, at his best, pinpoint it over underneath defenders. There’s some impressive tape. This guy doesn’t just dink and dunk, and you can understand why he was highly recruited out of high school.
Coaches seemed to love him. His work ethic, demeanor, attitude, and team-first mentality. He’s tough, and though not as athletic as he tested, which was very impressive, he can run a little bit. Saw it more at SMU against weaker and more wide-open defenses than the Big Ten, but he’s got a solid frame and is a tough customer.
On the negatives, his accuracy is scattershot. At Wisconsin, he struggled more on the move and he was prone to missing pretty wildly. His overall completion percentage is strong and he can fit the ball into tight windows but he’s streaky with a base that’s perhaps a little wide. The ball tends to die when he’s off-platform and his accuracy can fall off. Little bit of a gunslinger whose trust in his arm might get him into trouble at the next level.
His tough and fearless attitude exposes him to hits, and he takes too many bad sacks, including three straight, to end their bowl game loss to LSU (fumbling on all three of them, too). His game has highs and lows and comes with frustration.
Conclusion
Overall, I want to like Tanner Mordecai. He’s got the physical tools, he’s tough, he’s well-liked by the coaching staff. But most often, the backup types are the high-IQ, smart quarterbacks who make consistently good decisions, limit negative plays, and usually don’t wow with physical traits. Guys like Mordecai become hard to trust as the backup trying to get the team through a game, even if he’ll flash from time to time.
Mordecai has talent—a lot of it. But his game is streaky, and that’s a problem. He’ll be a fun No. 4 in a camp who won’t shrink to the moment and become Checkdown Charlie, but he has to be more consistent, accurate, and smarter to stick. My NFL comp is a throwback, J.P. Losman.
Projection: Late Day Three-Priority Undrafted Free Agent
Depot Draft Grade: 6.1 – End Of Roster/Practice Squad (Sixth/Seventh Round)
Games Watched: vs Houston (2022 – with SMU), at Washington State (2023), vs Iowa (2023), vs LSU (2023 – bowl)
