STRENGTHS
Luke has decent size and athletic talent to play his position. He shows a good strong arm with excellent velocity and has solid arm talent to be successful at the next level. Luke has a lot of reps in shot gun and a ton of stats and plays in an offensive system that requires football intelligence beyond the average college offensive system. He reminds me a lot of former Bills back up QB Frank Reich. He shows the athleticism to extend plays but is truly the type of quarterback that when he throws in rhythm can pick you a part with excellent accuracy. Luke has the respect of his teammates and shows solid leadership skills through his play on the field. He deals well with adversity and deals well with success and those attributes are so very important for any quarterback that has the talent to play on Sundays. Although Luke has played mostly in the shot gun in college I don’t see a problem with him being successful when playing under center because Luke is a pure pocket passer.

CONCERNS
Luke struggles with his instincts in the pocket, holding on to the ball too long and not moving around to gain better advantage. Luke also struggles once he is moved off his mark and lacks the quick feet when blitzed to adjust his throwing mechanics quickly enough and this affects his accuracy. On designed roll outs this is not a problem but the surprise blitz gives Luke a lot of problems with his throwing mechanics. In his defense, when he is blitz and is given the time to reset his feet he does a very good job delivering the ball and making plays in the passing game.

BOTTOM LINE
The truth is I don’t believe Luke belongs in a pure, every down spread offense. The fact that he has been successful in that offensive system is impressive but it puts too much pressure on him passing and Luke at the next level needs a good strong play action running game to be effective in a 16 game schedule. Luke is a very hard worker and will give you everything he has in every game. I don’t believe for a minute that Luke will ever stop trying to improve and this says a lot to me when evaluating and profiling players for the next level. Luke’s weaknesses can at times overpower his strengths causing him to be inconsistent unless he is matched up with a coach who is an excellent play caller and an offensive system that will protect him and allow him to throw in rhythm. If Luke can improve his ability to throw with accuracy when he is moved off his spot in the pocket then he can be as good as any other quarterback in the NFL. He has the football intelligence to improve and that might be the most important and best attribute Luke has to bring to the team that selects him. I like him as a development quarterback who in the right system and with a good play calling coach can become a starting and impact quarterback in the NFL. Luke will always be ready mentally to go into any game and play and this makes him an excellent candidate for a backup role. The problem is he is also the type of player who needs to practice and get reps with the first string players because he is such a rhythm throwing quarterback and that makes it difficult to throw him into a game in an injury situation and expect him to produce.

Drew Boylhart   DEC.2017