Where does San Diego State’s Ryan Lindley stack up in this year’s QB class?

He also can get away from the line of scrimmage quickly when under center using his big frame/stride –which can also be a hindrance to his game- and when he collects himself properly and transfers his weight the guy showcases “plus” accuracy on all levels of the field. Plus, he showcases the ability to use his eyes to move defenders, work his way toward secondary options and will try to re-set his feet quickly and align himself up with the target.

He’s a bit inconsistent vs. pressure though. Lindley does a better job maintaining his balance and keeping his eye level down the field when he feels the rush off the edge. He is capable of job sidestepping defenders, keeping his base once set and despite not being a very good athlete; he does showcase some subtleness in the pocket. However, when Lindley gets pressure in his face he gets skittish quickly and isn’t the type of athlete to quickly collect his feet and get the ball out instantly to his hot man. Instead he has a tendency to drift from pressure, force the ball off his back foot and his accuracy goes way down because of it.

And a lot of that has to do with the aforementioned “stride” as he gets about as wide with his base in his drop as any quarterback I’ve seen. Even on his 5th and 7th step he still is taking massive steps, causing him to struggle to quickly settle his feet, regain balance and get the ball out vs. any kind of pressure. And even when he has a clean pocket, too often he’s forced to hitch a number of times in order to settle himself before throwing the football. Therefore, when the ball needs to come out instantly once his back foot his the ground, too often he doesn’t put himself in a proper throwing position out of his drop because of his overextended base.