Levis impresses at UK Pro Day
Published 4:21 pm Monday, March 27, 2023
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Quarterback Will Levis knew he had not only the eyes of every NFL team on him at Friday’s Pro Day at Kentucky but also the eyes of a national audience thanks to complete coverage of his workout on the SEC Network.
One of those watching was ESPN/SEC Network analyst Jordan Rodgers, the former Vanderbilt quarterback who also had a taste of professional football in the NFL and the Canadian Football League. He’s also the younger brother of NFL star quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
“Having been at Bryce Young’s Pro Day (at Alabama), there’s a vast difference of how this ball is coming out, the trajectory of the throws, the zip of the throws. He’s showing right now he can make every throw,” Rodgers said during Levis’ workout.
He also explained UK offensive coordinators Liam Coen and Rich Scangarello both “raved” about Levis’ football IQ .
Rodgers pointed out that often elite college quarterbacks do not get to play in a pro-oriented offense like Levis did the last two years at UK where he was often not only under center but also was in an offense that used a huddle where Levis had to have command of the offense himself.
“He has shown he can run this offense and can make those throws,” Rodgers said. “He has a lot of translatable traits to the NFL. Someone is going to take a shot on him (in the draft) and end up very happy. The intangibles are all there and he is showing that he can make every throw to be successful in the NFL.”
Levis has been working out with quarterback guru Jordan Palmer since UK’s season ended to prepare for the draft. Palmer founded QB Summit and has coached players such as Joe Burrow, Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Sam Darnold, Deshaun Watson, Kyle Allen and Bo Nix.
Palmer said the common denominator with successful quarterbacks is confidence. He says if a quarterback does not exude self-confidence, he will not succeed in the NFL.
“Just a lot of things he has done only panned out because he believed in himself. That is one thing he has to have,” Palmer said
He also believes playing in a pro-style offense for two years makes Levis “look more natural” under center than college quarterbacks who seldom, or never, went under center.
“Will is an all-in guy with the way he has bought into everything,” Palmer said. “He can move great.”
ESPN NFL analyst Louis Riddick, a former NFL player, was also in Lexington to watch Levis perform. He wanted to gauge Levis’ accuracy and see if his mechanics were more fluid than they were at the NFL Combine.
“You want to show pro coaches you are refining your game,” Riddick said. “You have to remember what you see today (at Pro Day) is not a finished product. It will be a continual process just like it was with (Buffalo Bills quarterback) Josh Allen.
“Anything with the draft process is about projections. This is just another step in his development projection. Teams will have different opinions about who fits best (in their system). There will be teams swayed by workouts but there will be teams more swayed by one or two personal interactions. All that plays a part in this draft process.”