2019 NFL Draft Prospects: Quarterbacks - Jordan Ta'amu, Ole Miss
With the transfer of Shea Patterson to Michigan, expectations for the Ole Miss program and their quarterback situation were fairly low. So the emergence of Hawaiian native Jordan Ta’amu, who already played pretty well in mop-up duty the prior season, was all the more surprising. Ta’amu didn’t receive any FBS offers coming out of Hawaii’s Division 2. It took a strong year at junior college for the Rebels to recruit the young man. The senior signal-caller threw for almost 4000 yards and scored 25 touchdowns compared to eight interceptions, completing 63.6 of his passes in his one full year as a starter.
Ta’amu shows very clean drop-backs, consistent mechanics and a lightning-quick release to get the ball to his playmakers on hitch or short in-breaking routes. His accuracy on the short level is excellent and usually leads to yards after the catch. He can also throw with touch in-between the hashes and puts some beautiful arc on deep balls, which allows his receivers to run under it.
Ta’amu made several big plays down the field, completing 11 of 16 passes that travelled 20+ yards through the air, while finishing top ten among draft-eligible quarterback with an average depth of target of 11.7 yards. I thought the young man suffered a lot from playing in an offensive system that didn’t really allow the weapons around him to showcase their talents. He was asked to put the ball in the air a ton and rarely had the opportunity to come back to an easier option due to the route patterns Ole Miss ran.
The Hawaiian native displays an incredibly quick turn of the shoulders to revert to the opposite side of a concept or manipulate underneath defenders with pump-fakes and take the throwing lane he created for himself. He is light on his feet and slippery as a runner.
Ta’amu was used in the quarterback run game quite a bit, especially on draw plays, and he can make defenses pay when they leave a lane for him to tuck the ball. He can make some plays with his arm on the run as well, as he excels at leading receivers across the field when he is on the move himself and completes some pretty balls at the sideline.
If you take away the games against the top SEC defenses in Alabama, LSU and Mississippi State, Ta’amu completed 68 percent of his passes for an average of 391.1 passing yards, 24 total touchdowns and only four INTs. You can’t just remove those games, but when you see the amount of drops and pressure allowed by his offensive line, you understand that this was more of an overarching issue for the offense. Ta’amu is a quiet, hard-working, tough overachiever, who is highly regarded by his coaches and teammates.
However, the pocket presence Ta’amu showcases on the field is still a work in progress. You see his eyes drop to see the rush instead of feeling his way towards the open space and completely give up on working his progressions. He flat out misses on some simple reads with a seam route and an in-breaking route into the vacated area or refusing lo look towards a stick-concept against the short side with a safety 12 yards deep. Ta’amu cost D.K. Metcalf and DaMarkus Lodge several long gains and touchdowns with underthrown balls.
When there is a hole to take advantage of at the sideline in cover-two or a corner is missing blitzing and the safety shades over that way, Ta’amu needs to learn to drive those balls to the back-shoulder to protect his receivers from a hit downfield. He will allow safeties to enter the picture by staring down his primary receiver at times and needs to do a better job protecting the ball going into contact as a runner.
If you are looking for a developmental quarterback prospect on day three, this is the type of guy you should bring into your organization. We know he has all the intangibles and character positives teams are looking for, but he also has an NFL arm and athleticism. I think Ta’amu was really held back by Phil Longo’s scheme at Ole Miss, but you saw the ability to be accurate on all levels and his playmaking outside the pocket is something that could improve going forward.
Grade: Fifth Round