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Karl B DeBlaker

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — The scenes on both campuses were similar: packed field houses, beeping stopwatches and booming speakers. NFL executives milled through the crowds, talking to agents, coaches and team staffers, mining for information on the prospects who could change the trajectories of their careers.

They were here for the small moments. They already had seen the talent during hours of film study, and they probably weren’t going to be surprised by the athletic performances, because pro days are just on-campus reruns of NFL combine drills. But this was a window into the players as people, leaders and communicators.

Last week, in a whirlwind, teams scouting the top quarterbacks in the NFL draft flew from the league’s annual meeting in Orlando to Baton Rouge to see <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/12/09/who-will-win-heisman-trophy/" target=_blank>LSU’s Jayden Daniels</a>, then to Chapel Hill to see <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/12/11/drake-maye-nfl-draft-bowl/" target=_blank>North Carolina’s Drake Maye</a>. The No. 1 pick <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2024/03/16/justin-fields-trade-bears-steelers/" target=_blank>appears to be a foregone conclusion</a> — Southern California’s Caleb Williams — so the Washington <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2024/03/27/commanders-no-2-pick-draft/" target=_blank>Commanders’ choice at No. 2</a> will become the most important domino to fall for teams early in the draft, and Daniels and Maye are seemingly vying for the spot.

Several people around the league said they believe the Commanders will select Daniels, but given how tight-lipped the team has been, it’s difficult to parse whether those people are making astute observations or repeating a rumor.

“I don’t think anyone in here knows exactly what Washington is going to do,” New England Patriots Coach Jerod Mayo said at the league meeting last week.

Commanders General Manager Adam Peters, assistant GM Lance Newmark, Coach Dan Quinn and offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury led Washington’s scouting team at the pro days. They spent most of their time talking with those who know the quarterbacks best, including their coaches and support staff, and they met with both players. In interviews, the quarterbacks were vague about those conversations.

“I have a whole bunch of teams [to talk to], so I’m not going to [put] too much information out there,” Maye said.

The pro days started with measurements, which were important for Daniels. He opted out of all measurements and testing at the combine, saying he wanted to wait for his pro day so he could get his teammates more exposure. Some skeptical scouts suspected he wanted more time to put on weight; even though he’s a game-changing runner, many worry his thin frame won’t hold up, given his reckless running style and repeated exposure to big hits.

In Baton Rouge, Daniels measured 6-foot-3⅝ and 210 pounds. Over the past two decades, only three quarterbacks drafted in the first round have been roughly as tall and light: Teddy Bridgewater (2014), Alex Smith (2005) and Robert Griffin III (2012).

Now, teams must ask themselves: Does Daniels need to gain weight? If so, can he remain a dynamic runner? And regardless, can he better protect himself? LSU Coach Brian Kelly said the No. 1 question he has gotten from teams has been this: “Will he slide?”

“What I say to them is, ‘Look, you have a guy who’s incredibly tough and competitive,’ ” Kelly said. He pointed out that Daniels was hit hard by Alabama and then set a record the next week against Florida, becoming the first player in Football Bowl Subdivision history to throw for at least 350 yards and rush for at least 200 yards in the same game.

In Chapel Hill, Maye confirmed his prototypical size: 6-foot-4⅛ and 227 pounds.

During non-throwing drills, Daniels and Maye wore sweats and watched. Daniels paid only loose attention to most teammates except star receiver Malik Nabers. Daniels locked in on his every rep, delivering a steady stream of motivation, and after Nabers ran a blazing 40-yard dash, Daniels sprinted the length of the field to celebrate with him.

In Chapel Hill, Maye was more even. He watched nearly every teammate closely and offered subtle encouragement via fist bumps and pats on the back.

Then the quarterbacks started warming up. Daniels changed into a purple hoodie with the No. 3 in honor of LSU safety Greg Brooks Jr., who is battling <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/09/20/lsu-greg-brooks-brain-tumor/" target=_blank>a rare form of brain cancer</a>. He grabbed a basketball and started practicing his jump shot, emulating the cross-sport pregame routine of <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/11/09/cj-stroud-rookie-of-the-year/" target=_blank>Houston Texans star C.J. Stroud</a>.

Generally, general managers don’t put a lot of stock into pro-day throwing sessions. Carefully choreographed throws mean far less than hundreds of live attempts against a defense. Quinn, who came up as a defensive coach, said he recently learned from Peters and Kingsbury that it isn’t even enough to study throws from a player’s college tape.

“With the quarterback, you really have to watch every single play,” Quinn said. “Did he get them out of a bad play here in the run game? Did he [audible a route] outside? … Sometimes a throwaway was the best decision right here. It wouldn’t show that on the stat sheet, but that was actually a really good decision.”

But the throwing session still seemed important. The Commanders gathered right behind each quarterback; Quinn put on his glasses. In Chapel Hill, he and Peters stood with Mayo and Eliot Wolf, the de facto GM of the Patriots, who hold the No. 3 pick.

Gerald Herbert

The quarterbacks ran through scripts of 50 to 70 throws. They called most of their own plays in the huddles, though occasionally their private coaches issued instructions. Daniels looked loose; Maye seemed more on edge. Maye airmailed a few out-breaking routes near the sideline and was visibly frustrated, slapping his thigh. He redid those throws immediately for completions.

One of the biggest questions about Maye is his footwork. It sometimes hurts his accuracy and leads him to miss short and intermediate throws. Some analysts, such as ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky, believe it’s bad enough that Maye should sit his rookie year. But others believe it can be corrected quickly.

North Carolina offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey, who arrived for Maye’s final season, blamed some of the inconsistencies on his system. He said he changed Maye’s footwork out of the shotgun from a backpedal to a “more traditional” three-step drop.

“He could have been a guy that [said], ‘Hey, I’ve already had success doing things the way I’ve been doing it, and I don’t really want to change that,’ ” Lindsey said. “He wasn’t that way at all. I’m telling you, the best thing about him is the off-the-field stuff, the intangibles.”

Both passers showcased their mobility. They dodged mock pass rushers, moved around and reset their feet or threw on the run. Once, Daniels rolled to his right and threw an incredible corner route about 45 yards away on the sideline. Maye showcased his elite arm strength with 60-yard bombs that hit receivers in stride.

“The main thing was to try to show my consistency within the pocket, my footwork moving off platform, [staying] in rhythm, progressions coming back to a third read,” he said. “Just moving around and making sure I get my feet back under me. And the other stuff was kind of just fun.”

Maye was confident, too. He believed he had proved he is “a big dude that can move,” not a statuesque pocket passer. But he was also fiery about his overthrows.

“Just competitive, man,” he said. “Anytime you miss something, shoot, [you’re] just mad. Not mad, but just frustrated. I’ve made that [out-breaking] throw a million times. I want to get it back and show them … [I’m] able to bounce back from misses. I missed a few that I thought were pretty easy.”

Both quarterbacks complimented the Commanders’ new regime. They mentioned Peters, Quinn and Kingsbury. But they were vague, knowing the pre-draft circuit wasn’t quite finished.

For most top executives, these pro days were the end of a long two months on the road that included all-star games, the combine and other workouts. Afterward, they returned to their team facilities, and they’ll host prospects on “top 30” visits before the draft kicks off April 25. They’ll see the quarterbacks again and inch closer to finalizing decisions that will reverberate for years to come.

Syracuse University, B.S. in magazine journalism

Sam Fortier is a beat writer for The Post covering Washington's NFL team.

Sam Fortier

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Drake Maye and Jayden Daniels are vying to be the No. 2 pick

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