Quarterback Dillon Gabriel made seven figures by transferring to the University of Oregon for his sixth collegiate season, but the way he’s played this year has probably earned him a whole lot more in the future.
The Ducks are undefeated, Big Ten Champions and the No. 1 seed in the first ever 12-team College Football Playoff, which includes an automatic bye through the first round.
Gabriel leads the Big Ten in passing yards (3,558), passing touchdowns (28) and completion rate (73.2%) with just 6 interceptions, per Football Reference. He also led the Big 12 in all three categories during the 2023 season as the starting QB of the Oklahoma Sooners.
Gabriel, who will turn 24 at the end of December, capped his individual achievements with an invite to New York’s Lincoln Center as a 2024 Heisman Trophy finalist, finishing third place in the voting. He now has three games ahead of him to lead Oregon to the program’s first ever National Title.
But after that, the entire conversation changes with the approach of the NFL draft in late April. Typically a Heisman finalist leading the only undefeated team in the country is a solid bet as a first-round pick, though that’s not necessarily the case for Gabriel.
He doesn’t have a huge arm or elite escapability and is diminutive relative to the average professional QB at just 6-feet tall and 200 pounds. That Gabriel will be well past his 24th birthday on draft night doesn’t help either.
However, the Ducks signal caller is an accurate and experienced passer who profiles as a Day-2 value pick in a draft class that lacks elite talent under center.
Bleacher Report’s NFL Scouting Department predicted on Monday, Dec. 16, that the New York Giants might surprise the entire league by passing on a QB with either the No. 1 or No. 2 pick and pursue Gabriel as a replacement for Daniel Jones — their former first-round pick (6th overall) who washed out of the Big Apple shortly after signing a $160 million extension in 2023.
“The Giants are expected to draft a quarterback this year, but – as has been widely discussed – this year’s class lacks some talent at the position,” B/R wrote. “So, it’s not out of the question for the organization to look outside of the first round for a signal-caller, and the Heisman Trophy finalist is an interesting option.”
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