NFL Analysis
9/20/24
7 min read
2025 NFL Draft: How High Can Miami QB Cam Ward Raise His Stock?
Miami Hurricanes QB Cam Ward looks like this year's answer to one of the most critical questions in the draft cycle: what quarterback will change the narrative around their play and thrust themselves into the conversation at the top of the draft?
This happens annually — quarterbacks emerge out of nowhere to claim lofty draft spots. Last season, no one thought of Michael Penix Jr. as a top-10 draft choice going into his final season. Jayden Daniels had primarily been considered a reclamation project after three years of irregular flashes at Arizona State.
Florida's Anthony Richardson had 66 career passing attempts going into his third season with the University of Florida in 2022. His talent was evident, but his play had more questions than answers. Kenny Pickett was a revelation in 2021 for the Pitt Panthers and parlayed that into being the top quarterback drafted.
Zach Wilson went from being mired in a quarterback battle for a starting job at BYU entering his junior season to the No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. And, of course, Joe Burrow was a transfer portal jackpot for the LSU Tigers, coming to Baton Rouge from Ohio State and breaking out in legendary fashion in 2019 en route to the top spot in the 2020 NFL Draft.
A quarterback's sudden rise doesn't guarantee NFL success — few things do. However, NFL franchises remind us annually that late development will not be considered a deterrent to early draft decisions at quarterback.
This upcoming quarterback class spent the summer months centered around Georgia's Carson Beck, Texas's Quinn Ewers, and Colorado's Shedeur Sanders. And rightfully so, all are talented players. Each has a unique appeal, and it is easy to see why a team could attach itself to any of these talents in hopes of getting a franchise quarterback.
But none have played, at least thus far, to the level we're seeing from Ward.
>> READ MORE: See Where Ward Landed In Latest Mock Draft
Ward's Humble Beginnings
Ward is on a torrid pace as a passer — he declared himself the real deal with a defeat of the Florida Gators to open the season, and all we've seen from him since is more of the same.
As we enter Week 4 of the 2024 college football season, Ward ranks second in FBS in yards (1,035), first in FBS in touchdown passes (11), 10th among qualifying passers in completion percentage (73 percent), and fourth in passer efficiency. The Hurricanes look like CFB Playoff contenders, thanks mainly to a passing offense fueled by Ward's electric arm.
Outstanding play by Cam Ward. Has the mobility to avoid the rush & creativity to extend the play running to his left.
— WBG84 (@WBG84) September 17, 2024
Shows off his natural arm-strength & velocity whipping this throw on the move while displaying deadly accuracy to hit his WR in the back of the EZ. #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/v9nMpqDsTY
That's the part of Ward's play that is most exciting. He's a superbly gifted passer and has been since his time at Incarnate Word and Washington State. This is a player, however, that college football casuals may only have known well if they called the Pacific Northwest home.
Ward played high school football at Columbia HS in West Columbia, Texas. While one would assume that a gifted passer from the high school football powerhouse state of Texas would be easy to find, Ward was not. His offense was a Wing-T scheme, meaning Ward hardly ever threw the football.
Ward averaged 95 passing yards per game during his senior season at Columbia High, totaling 17 touchdown passes on 267 career passing attempts in three seasons.
Such a profile doesn't necessarily yield a bevy of recruiting letters. Ward's only scholarship offer came from Incarnate Word. The FCS schedule for Ward's freshman season would be played in the spring of 2021 thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, and Ward promptly threw for more touchdown passes that "season" than anyone else (24) en route to the Jerry Rice Award for most outstanding freshman in FCS.
By January 2022, Ward had announced his intent to leave the state of Texas and transfer to Washington State. For the next two seasons, Ward was a good PAC-12 quarterback who flashed desirable traits.
However, his play was marred by bad decisions with the football and poor ball security. Thanks to his lack of reps operating as a legitimate quarterback in high school and the needs of his offense, his footwork lacked the precision that leads to more consistent accuracy.
Yet the arm talent was obvious if you were lucky enough to be able to find a Washington State game on your television.
Sadly, during the conference's final stages and its "television deals," PAC-12 games on television sometimes felt more like a concept than an actual thing. As a result, talents like Ward were flying under the casual football fan's radar despite their spectacular flashes of throwing talent.
>> READ MORE: See Where Ward Ranks on Our Big Board
Ward In The Spotlight
Not anymore. We're still waiting for the Miami football program to be "The U" again, but these Hurricanes look to have struck gold in more ways than one in the transfer portal. In today's college football landscape, that can thrust you into the spotlight and the national stage. Ask the LSU Tigers; they've done it twice during the last five years.
So, does Ward have staying power down the stretch? He and the Hurricanes must keep on their current trajectory for Ward to cement himself into the top of the first-round discussion.
They play South Florida this weekend before entering their ACC schedule — with just one currently ranked opponent awaiting throughout the rest of the regular season. That's an Oct. 19 date in Louisville with the Cardinals. It's hard to see things slowing down for Ward in the months ahead.
Hurricanes offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson came to the program as a key hire by Mario Cristobal in 2023 and figures to be a major factor working in Ward's favor as well.
Dawson has coached signal callers who would become NFL quarterbacks before, including Nick Mullens at Southern Mississippi and Geno Smith at West Virginia. Smith may not be a bad comparison to draw for Ward, either.
Both are above-average athletes who, more often than not, run to throw and offer elastic arms with ample power and the ability to push the ball to all field levels. It took Smith a while in the NFL to become the starter he is today — but the league trends appear more forgiving now than a decade ago with Air Raid quarterbacks.
Things are looking up for Ward. With more room to grow as a quarterback still behind on "reps" vs. fellow redshirt seniors quarterbacks for the 2025 class, a ceiling is left to be tapped into. That makes Ward the kind of player you should want to buy in on amid the hunt for the next quarterback with the right stuff to go toe to toe with the NFL's best.
Let's wait to see if the league agrees in the months ahead, mainly if the fall unfolds how it currently seems.
