Could the Vikings target Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart, the most polarizing prospect in the NFL Draft, as a developmental option?
Welcome to SKOL Search 2025! This is the fifth year I have done SKOL Search with the sole mission being to find NFL Draft prospects for the Minnesota Vikings. Throughout the entire process, this will be the most comprehensive draft guide with a focus on the Vikings. Each year, I scout incoming draft prospects from […]
Welcome to SKOL Search 2025!
This is the fifth year I have done SKOL Search with the sole mission being to find NFL Draft prospects for the Minnesota Vikings. Throughout the entire process, this will be the most comprehensive draft guide with a focus on the Vikings.
Each year, I scout incoming draft prospects from a neutral perspective and try to see how they could fit with Minnesota. This will be general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah's fourth NFL Draft and we have a good sense of what he likes in a prospect.
Going into the offseason, the Vikings have just three official selections with a fourth likely coming with a compensatory selection in the third round. However they choose to use them, they need to make the most out of their limited resources.
Jaxson Dart
- Ole Miss
- Transfer from USC
- Height: 6017
- Weight: 226
- Class: Fourth-year Senior
- Recruiting info: 4-star recruit in 2021 class per 247 Sports
- Stats: 65.2% completion, 11,970 yards, 81 touchdowns, 27 interceptions, 393 rushing attempts, 1,541 yards, 3.9 yards per carry, 14 touchdowns
- Games watched: Wake Forest 2024, Kentucky 2024, Georgia 2024
Strengths
- Production: Dart was incredibly productive at the college level. He is Ole Miss' all-time leader in passing yards and has a very strong production profile.
- Dual-Threat: Dart was great in Lane Kiffin's offense. He could attack vertically through the air and pull the ball and attack down the field.
- Intermediate Passing: Dart doesn't have the strongest arm, but he has plenty of zip on intermediate passes. He understands how to throw quickly and accurately in the intermediate levels of the field.
Weaknesses
- Progressions: The offense Dart ran at Ole Miss doesn't translate to the NFL. Lane Kiffin is great at designing route combinations to spring open and there aren't any discernable progressions to speak of.
- Arm Strength: While his name is Dart, he doesn't have the best arm. Deep balls die on him and he doesn't have great zip on the football.
- Anticipation: Part of the problem with Kiffin's offense is having receivers wide-open. What he doesn't do is anticipate windows opening, something that is crucial to success at the NFL level.
Overview
| Trait | Grade |
|---|---|
Arm Strength | 7.7/10 |
Accuracy | 8.0/10 |
Mechanics | 7.4/10 |
Ball Placement | 7.3/10 |
Throwing Motion | 7.2/10 |
Progressions | 6.1/10 |
Decision Making | 7.5/10 |
Functional Mobility | 8.1/10 |
Durability | 8.0/10 |
Poise | 7.5/10 |
Grade | 74.8 Fourth Round Grade |
Dart is a fascinating prospect. This is not a good quarterback class, and that means some will try to make a quarterback. Dart has some tools, but playing in Kiffin's offense is an immediate deterrent due to how little it translates. Overall, he's just not in the top echelon of quarterback prospects.
The Vikings could be in contention to take a quarterback to develop behind J.J. McCarthy. Would it be the best use of their resources? Probably not, but always having a quarterback in development is a good business practice.
Overall, Dart just isn't a franchise quarterback.
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