Four polarizing QBs to follow in this year’s draft | 2026 NFL Draft film review

Diego Pavia, Haynes King, Carson Beck and Taylen Green are four of the most polarizing quarterbacks to follow in the 2026 NFL Draft. All four were transfers and each made significant impacts in one way or another last fall. However, no one from the quartet projects on Day 1 of this year’s draft. With that said, Beck and Green have chances to hear their names called on Day 2. We review each prospect’s film in our video reviews.

Taylen Green 6’6 227 QB-Arkansas, Boise State

Green wowed NFL teams and fans alike with a scintillating NFL Combine performance. His 4.36 40-yard dash time was supplemented with a jaw-dropping 43 1/2-inch vertical jump and eye-opening 11’2-inch broad jump. Nevertheless, his season faded fast down the stretch. The 6-foot-6-inch quarterback passed for just two touchdowns against six interceptions in the team’s final five games. On top of that, he completed at least 60-percent of his passes just twice during that stretch.

His worst moments often offset heroic overall efforts (see Texas A&M ’25-video breakdown below). An up-and-down 2026 Senior Bowl week further clouds the prognosis. Teams willing to bet on his upside may begin to take a look in Round 3.

Since leaving Boise State, Green’s rapid ascension came under the guidance of current North Carolina offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino. As one may recall, Petrino also tutored a two-time NFL MVP while serving as head coach at Louisville.

Haynes King 6’2 212 QB-Georgia Tech, Texas A&M

The ACC champion Duke Blue Devils helped overshadow King’s best season on campus. In fact, the Yellow Jackets began the season 7-0 (King missed one contest). The former Texas A&M Aggie accounted for a school-record 511 yards of total offense in the team’s first loss against NC State. His completion percentage hovered around 70-percent in a season where Georgia Tech relied on King to do more.

The 2025 ACC Player of the Year may be the toughest quarterback in this year’s draft. Unfortunately, an inconsistent 2026 East-West Shrine Bowl week did not do him any favors. Conversely, he ran in the 4.4s at the 2026 NFL Combine (4.46) and posted the top three-cone drill (6.89) and 20-yard short shuttle (4.17) of the quarterbacks in attendance. King (see video above) just kept getting better in school.

Carson Beck 6’5 233 QB-Miami (Fla.), Georgia

One of the draft’s most divisive prospects, Beck simply won (37-6) in college. He was a backup on two national championship squads at Georgia, lost just three starts there and then led Miami (Fla.) to the national title game.

Prior to his arrival, Miami (Fla.) lost in the 2024 Pop-Tarts Bowl a season prior after winning its first nine games. Beck’s 2025 entrance to the U mirrored a busy offseason, when much of his personal information got exposed to the world. And, after leading the Hurricanes to a resounding 3-0 start, he struggled mightily in a four-interception contest against Louisville. The noise only intensified after he tossed the game-clinching goal line interception to SMU’s Ahmaad Moses two weeks later.

16 touchdowns to three interceptions (one of which clinched Indiana’s title) over his next eight games did little to quiet the crowd. Despite the title game appearance and a strong Pro Day throwing session, Beck’s draft projections vacillate from team-to-team (Round 1 to Round 5).

In a lot of ways, the pre-draft process has largely mirrored his career. Separate the fact from fiction in our video breakdown on Beck.

Diego Pavia 5’10 207 QB-Vanderbilt, New Mexico State

If there is a more divisive character than Beck, it may be former Vanderbilt and New Mexico State quarterback Diego Pavia. First, he sparked controversy last offseason by applying for an extra year of eligibility. It is rare that the Heisman Trophy runner-up plays on a waiver, but that is exactly what Pavia did in 2025.

Speaking of the Heisman Trophy, how many second place finishers go off on its voters for getting it wrong? His well-timed apology did not save him from distracting from what he does best.

Playing football.

The 2025 SEC Offensive Player of the Year led the Commodores to its first-ever 10-win season. This came after leading the team to a 2024 Birmingham Bowl victory over the aforementioned King a year prior. During the process, he set a school-record with a 484-yard, six-touchdown performance against Kentucky. Pavia struggled at times during 2026 Senior Bowl practices but performed adequately in the contest.

Shortly thereafter, he had a strong throwing performance at the NFL Combine that demonstrated anticipatory capability. He ran in the high 4.7s on his Pro Day and posted a 4.38 20-yard short shuttle time. Those numbers did not move the needle in comparison with King or Green.

It begs the question for NFL teams. In today’s landscape, does a 5-foot-10-inch quarterback with average physical traits translate to our league?

Pavia attempts to answers those questions and more in our video film review (see above).

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