Missouri QB Lock shows NFL-caliber accuracy

— By Rob Rang, NFLDraftScout.com —

For months, the discussion about the top NFL quarterback prospects centered on Southern California’s Sam Darnold, UCLA’s Josh Rosen, Wyoming’s Josh Allen, Louisville’s Lamar Jackson and Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield.
With a five-score performance that shattered the SEC’s single-season touchdown passing record, Missouri junior quarterback Drew Lock might have vaulted himself into the conversation.
The rocket-armed Lock completed 25 of 42 passes for 442 yards and five touchdowns against two interceptions, leading his Tigers to a wildly entertaining 48-45 victory at Arkansas on Friday.
With a bowl game for the 7-5 Tigers still to come, Lock has thrown 43 touchdowns on the season, passing former Florida and Kentucky stars Danny Wuerffel (39) and Andre Woodson (40) to etch his name into the SEC record books for a second time this season.
In a season-opening win over Missouri State, Lock joined five other passers from the power conference with a seven-score performance.
Despite the production, Lock has not received nearly as much national attention as his peers, perhaps because the Tigers struggled out of the gate, losing their first five games against FBS opponents. In large part due to Lock’s improved play, however, Missouri is one of the hottest teams in the country, winning six in a row — including over traditional SEC powerhouses like Florida and Tennessee — while averaging just under 52 points per game.
The flashy numbers will certainly generate attention, but in today’s era of up-tempo, high-octane spread offenses, experienced talent evaluators know better than to rely on box scores to forecast success at the next level.
Four of Lock’s five touchdowns Saturday, however, were legitimate NFL throws.
His first two — a pair of long bombs that each traveled about 50 yards in the air — showed excellent arm strength, ball placement and trajectory, making them easy over-the-shoulder grabs for fellow junior Emmanuel Hall.
Further, Lock showed resiliency throughout the game, twice leading the Tigers back after falling behind by 14 points and driving his team to a game-winning field goal with just eight seconds remaining.
Ironically enough, Lock’s record-setting touchdown was his easiest of the day as Arkansas blitzed, leaving redshirt freshman tight end Albert Okwuegbanum alone in the end zone for a 10-yard score. Though the throw was relatively simple, scouts will appreciate the awareness and composure Lock demonstrated on the play.
The 6-foot-3, 210-pounder absorbed some big hits on the day and saw several well-thrown passes dropped, something that the CBS broadcast team noted had been a season-long issue for the Tigers.
Lock went back to Okwuebanum on his fourth score, throwing the big tight end open against tight man coverage in the back right corner of the end zone to erase a four-point Arkansas lead with 13:00 remaining in the fourth quarter.
After Arkansas retook the lead on a 24-yard touchdown pass from Austin Allen (an NFL hopeful, himself), Lock threw perhaps his prettiest ball of the day — a perfectly placed 24-yard back-shoulder fade near the front left pylon to senior J’Mon Moore, who led all receivers with 10 grabs for 160 yards.
For what it is worth, Moore appeared to shove off the Arkansas defender to make the catch, but his over-aggression (and at least three drops in this contest) certainly won’t detract from Lock’s performance in the minds of scouts.
Lock’s spectacular regular-season finale will generate plenty of attention but those paying attention already know him. He signed with Missouri amid great fanfare, turning down the likes of Oklahoma, Ohio State, Michigan State and Tennessee, among others to join the Tigers, one of several teams which also offered him a scholarship to play basketball.
Lock showed off his athleticism at multiple points in this game, only officially getting credit for 26 yards due to the NCAA’s outdated policy in subtracting the yardage lost on sacks from a quarterback’s rushing totals.
Lock showed good pocket mobility and spatial awareness to buy time in the pocket and had several impressive runs — including one for 34 yards. He even ran for a touchdown, though it was called back due to a holding penalty.
Interestingly enough, Lock’s interceptions — inaccurate passes due to throwing off his back foot — came on Missouri’s first drive of the game and following halftime.
Perhaps like his NFL draft stock, he only needed a little more time to get warmed up first.

Rob Rang is a senior analyst for NFLDraftScout.com, a collaboration of The Sports Xchange and the Pro Football Hall of Fame.