MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Having coached Geno Smith to consecutive 4,000-yard passing seasons at West Virginia, Dana Holgorsen doesn’t put much stock in a Pro Football Weekly scouting report that assails the quarterback’s focus, mechanics and leadership ability.
“I don’t read Pro Football Weekly, but it was brought to my attention that a couple of people wanted me to comment on it,” Holgorsen said. “I don’t comment on stuff like that.”
“You guys know how I feel about Geno. I am excited to go to New York. You don’t get invited to New York for the NFL draft if you have issues. That is pretty safe to say. I am excited to be up there with him during that process, and he will be a great pro and will play for a long time.”
The scouting report, posted Monday on Pro Football Weekly’s website, was written by Nolan Nawrocki, who infamously ripped Cam Newton’s “fake smile” before the 2011 draft. In this case, Nawrocki applies some of the same criticisms he leveled at Newton, wary that Smith is overhyped, under-committed and lacks understanding of passing-game complexities.
While lauding Smith’s arm strength, accuracy and speed in the scouting report, Nawrocki counters with scathing reviews of the WVU quarterback’s intangibles:
“Forces throws and does not work through progressions. … Not a student of the game. Nonchalant field presence — does not command respect from teammates and cannot inspire. … Not committed or focused — marginal work ethic. Interviewed poorly at the Combine and did not show an understanding of concepts on the white board.
“Has approached offseason training as if he has already arrived and it shows in his body with minimal muscle definition or strength. … Needed to be coddled in college — cannot handle hard coaching.
“Smith is a gimmick, overhyped product of the system lacking the football savvy, work habits and focus to cement a starting job and could drain energy from a QB room. Will be overdrafted and struggle to produce against NFL defensive complexities.”
Nawrocki declined an interview request from MetroNews on Tuesday, responding via email: “The scouting report was based on extensive evaluation and research, and I stand by it in its entirety. I prefer to let it speak for itself.”
The race-baiters latch on to the criticism of Newton and Smith and presume Nawrocki wields a bias against black quarterbacks. But his longtime peer at PFW, NFL writer Eric Edholm now of The Wall Street Journal, reminds that Nawrocki was excessively complimentary of Robert Griffin III and Russell Wilson. (And in retrospect, lambasting JaMarcus Russell — as Nawrocki did in 2007 — seems more prescient than racially motivated.)
“He’s one of the most thorough investigators I’ve come across in this business, especially when it comes to the draft,” Edholm told the “Mac and Jason” show on 92.9 FM in Atlanta.
“He talks to many people throughout the league, And what I love about his work, too, is that he’s not just talking to people at the very top of the organizations, but the ones who do the grunt work, who grind. The area scouts, strength coaches in college, low-level assistants — the guys who are more willing I think to reveal some of the key information sometimes, rather than talking heads who want their players to be drafted high and reflect positively on their program.”
Whether Nawrocki is correct to forecast Smith as “a cross between Akili Smith and Aaron Brooks” won’t be realized for several seasons. What his research for the Pro Football Weekly scouting report does reveal right now, however, is that some observers carry this underwhelming opinion of WVU’s career passing leader. And how much weight their opinions carry within certain franchises could heavily impact whether Smith becomes a top-10 pick or slides deeper in the draft.
As a columnist who watched Geno Smith play his senior season at WVU, I’m torn. Did he make a series of stellar downfield throws each week? Yes. Did he actually defy statistical logic by firing 42 touchdowns against six interceptions last season? Incredibly, yes. Did he carry the rep of being a reliable teammate? Of watching copious amounts of film on his iPad? Of typically saying the right things at the podium? Indeed, he did all of that.
Yet were there times during that dreadful five-game losing streak where I expected him to show more fire? Where I thought Smith needed to evolve into more than a quarterback even as he recoiled a bit and said he simply needed to focus on doing his job? Obviously.
In 22 days we’ll learn what NFL clubs really think.