1. Dorian Thompson-Robinson, UCLA
If Thompson-Robinson were a little bit taller (6-foot-2), or more precisely a little heftier (203 pounds), he might be set to go off the board much earlier than he will in this draft. There are concerns about his throwing motion and release, which will get him hin trouble at the next level if he doesn’t get them honed.
It has also been said by some that he’s not especially good at any one thing, but essentially “good enough” at a lot of things.
Thompson-Robinson steadily improved over his time under Chip Kelly at UCLA, with 48 touchdowns and 16 interceptions over his final two seasons. Last season, his 69.6 percent completion rate was sixth among FBS signal callers (minimum 250 pass attempts). He was also one of two FBS quarterbacks with at least 27 touchdown passes and 12 rushing scores. Being an asset in the ground game is nice, but just as (if not more) importantly he is able to make plays throwing on the run.
There’s a lot of reasons why I like Dorian Thompson-Robinson. This right here is at the top of that list. pic.twitter.com/zj59MuQHMj
— Mike Payton (@POD_Payton) March 6, 2023
Dorian Thompson-Robinson crushed defenses on dagger concepts last season. He stays patient at the top of his drop and hits Jake Bobo with perfect ball placement leading him into open space for YAC pic.twitter.com/vBfSgBGVfe
— Tyler Forness (@TheRealForno) April 5, 2023
Thompson-Robinson seems like just the kind of late-round quarterback the Lions should target. Experience playing at a big school, improvement over the course of his career at UCLA and things to refine in order to reach his full ceiling. It would not be surprising if offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and/or quarterbacks coach Mark Brunell have been pounding the table for “DTR.”