A player to watch out for: Nate Stanley

You want to talk about consistency then let's talk about Iowa Hawkeyes football. 

For years, Iowa has always produced very good draft prospects. Last year, they had two tight ends go in the first round. Yes, you heard me right, two tight ends.

T.J. Hockenson went to the Detroit Lions and Noah Fant went up north to Mile-High to play with the Denver Broncos. Two years before those two were picked, the San Francisco 49ers got their hands on another Iowa tight end in George Kittle, now (arguably) the best tight end in the NFL. The Niners also got CJ Beathard, quarterback out of Iowa a-round later.

As the years go on, Iowa always seems to be a powerhouse in the draft that nobody talks about. 

This year, Iowa has the big man in Tristan Wirfs. One of the four offensive linemen in the iconic ‘big-four’ that consists of Louisville’s Mehki Becton, Georgia’s Andrew Thomas, Alabama’s Jedrick Wills Jr, and, of course, Iowa’s Tristan Wirfs.

However, Wirfs is not the top Iowa prospect I will be highlighting today, instead, I am going to take a look at the guy Wirfs has been able to protect game in and game out, quarterback, Nate Stanley.

Stanley recently garnered a considerable amount of attention after scoring a 40 on the Wonderlic test, the highest amount out of any quarterback in this draft class. 

To put Stanley’s score into perspective, Tua Tagavaiola scored a 19. Meanwhile, Heisman and National Championship winner in LSU’s Joe Burrow got a 34, the third most amongst the quarterbacks. In between Stanley and Burrow? Georgia's Jake Fromm, another great QB who I have the Patriots picking. (Please note Justin Herbert went from a 25 to 39 while writing this)

It’s ironic how the three quarterbacks who I like the most all rank in the top three, showing the great football minds they all have.

It is also funny how a kid from the University of Iowa stands above the pack. How, just how on earth does this possibly happen? You’re probably thinking to yourself.

Well, as I mentioned before Iowa is always producing very good talent; exactly what Stanley brings to the table. 

I am not saying Nate Stanley is the best prospect in the draft, or he is the next Tom Brady, but I think the kid is very, very good.

The 6’4 quarterback is good on his feet and a straight-up consistent passer. He would never throw too much at Iowa, not often exceeding the thirty amount (for passes attempted). 

Stanley’s stats from the last two years are nearly identical, showing you how consistent he is.

As you can see, Stanley had 3 less passing attempts two seasons ago compared to this past season and in that season he had two fewer completions.

Nate Stanley was also a key reason why Iowa shocked the college football world when they beat PJ Fleck’s Minnesota this year. 

Overall, Stanley is a blue-chip prospect that I think NFL coaches will love to work with. Not the fanciest of all guys, but Stanley still gets the job done and he gets it done well.

Chris Dailey

Founder, The Sports Court

Photos via https://www.espn.com