Three-point stance: Top QBs, new five-stars and Baylor boosters

ATLANTA -- Today's edition takes a look at the 2017 quarterback pool, some Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge players who could get that fifth star and a succinct response to Baylor boosters.

Watching some of the top quarterbacks in the country this past weekend and with our analyst team scouting major quarterback events already this summer, the 2017 quarterbacks are interesting group to look at. I’ve always said it would be interesting if we just made a quarterback the No. 1 player in the country every year and had five or six five-stars at the position just to cover our butts. After all, a quarterback usually goes No. 1 in the NFL Draft (this year and in some other years 1st and 2nd overall) and the desperation for teams at quarterback has led to first-round selections ranging from Akili Smith to Johnny Manziel in the last 20 years or so.

But, the Rivals rankings aren’t based on team needs like the NFL, so doing that, while a smart strategy come NFL Draft time, just doesn’t make sense. Right now the only five-star quarterback in the 2017 class is Clemson commitment Hunter Johnson and he has lived up to that billing recently.

But after Johnson, there are only a couple of players at this stage of the game you could consider for that fifth star. One of them, Tate Martell, just committed to Ohio State and is a dynamic playmaker who is a perfect fit for what Urban Meyer likes to do. But, despite being listed at 5-foot-11, Martell is a tick shorter than that and it’s hard to pull the trigger. Yes Russell Wilson was a two-star out of high school because of size, but that was a different time and age at the position (2007 seems like 100 years ago when it comes to offensive style in the NFL) and of course Johnny Football won a Heisman and was a first-rounder as well. Drew Brees is about 6-foot tall and he’s an NFL star and Aaron Rodgers is a shade over 6-foot as well. So do those extra few inches really matter? The answer is no, but remember these are exceptions to the rule. Martell likely won’t get any taller but that doesn’t mean he won’t be a five-star before all is said and done.

The other is Davis Mills, the Stanford quarterback commit who just impressed at the Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge. He’s tall, he has a great frame and he does everything well but perhaps nothing in spectacular fashion. If you put me in a time machine and told me Mills would be the NO. 1 pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, I wouldn’t be surprised at all.

Of course, we know there could be a three-star out there lurking right now who will turn into a star (Marcus Mariota, Blake Bortles) and for every five-star we hit a home run with when projecting to the NFL (Matthew Stafford, Cam Newton, Jameis Winston), there are four-stars who we underranked (Jared Goff, Andrew Luck come to mind). But right now, midway through the ranking cycle for 2017, these are the three that stand out and will lead to interesting discussions over the summer.

With Mills putting himself in the five-star debate, here are the guys at each position from this weekend’s Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge presented by Under Armour who did the same. Keep in mind, this is based solely on this event. Many other summer events will factor into our next rankings release.

RB – Cam Akers – Akers is a beast with speed, explosiveness, soft hands and the ability to get upfield in a hurry. We discussed him as a five-star during our most recent meetings but wanted to see him on the big stage. Now we will clearly discuss again, with even more intensity.

TE – none – This is not a great year at tight end when it comes to potential five-stars. Matthew Dotson was clearly the best at the Georgia Dome, but he’s not in the league of Isaac Nauta, OJ Howard and some others who dominated at past events.

WR – Tyjon Lindsey – Lindsey, Martell’s best buddy, is another tough one for us because he’s about 5-foot-9 tops, maybe 5-foot-8. So this goes back to our debate last year about Sam Bruce. Smaller wide receivers are all the rage in college and the NFL is clearly starting to come around as well, but how short is too short? That will be the debate. Lindsey is an exceptional talent as a slot receiver, no doubt about it.

OL – Alex Leatherwood – Leatherwood looks the part physically but has been up and down overall in person. Did he just take that next step to potential dominance we’ve been waiting for this weekend? That will be a very interesting debate.

DL – none – This defensive line group disappointed overall. There are already a few five-stars in the group –- Marvin Wilson, Tyler Shelvin and Jaelan Phillips –- but there weren’t many four-star guys within range, so it would have taken a dominant performance for someone to be considered for that big bump. That clearly didn’t happen.

LB – Vandarius Cowan – Cowan disappointed me a bit at our Miami Regional because he didn’t seem to have the hunger to dominate despite looking like a million bucks. Of course the talent was there, but where was the desire? In Atlanta, that desire was off the charts and it showed in his play. He’s a huge linebacker and, as expected, has trouble with smaller backs, but between his film, his frame and the improvement I just saw in a few months, he’ll be discussed.

DB – none – There are many 2018 prospects I liked a ton who will be discussed for a fifth star or at least pushing up the rankings, but for 2017, I didn’t see any. Five-stars Lamont Wade, Jeffrey Okudah and AJ Terrell all lived up to the hype and some guys did very well, but 2018 appears to be deeper.

Finally a quick note here. To the Baylor donors pushing to have Art Briles suspended for a year and to return in 2017, shame on you. It’s reportedly a small minority, but still makes me wonder how college football has slipped so far from the game I loved as a kid.