Student Scholarship
The Transition of the College Quarterback to the NFL: Why the Hardest Position in Sports is Getting Easier
Abstract
The NFL is changing. Score boards are being lit up by young quarterbacks like never seen before. Rookie quarterbacks are playing like 10 year veterans. Offenses are playing at light speed paces. But why? This Thesis paper looks to uncover why college quarterbacks are playing at MVP caliber levels at such a young age. With research in multiple fields such as analytics, neuroscience, youth football developmental leagues and artificial intelligence,, this paper seeks to determine the relationship between what strategies front offices and coaching staffs are using and the high success rate of young quarterbacks in the National Football League. This paper hypothesizes that NFL manipulate the rookie salary cap to their advantage, a direct correlation between teachings in at grassroots football programs and accelerated development of players, and changes to NFL rules allowing for a more open game, is helping assisting young quarterbacks develop in healthy, stable environments.