While many teams are looking toward the playoffs, there are a handful of teams which can focus their attention on the 2017 NFL Draft. And for the ones looking for quarterbacks, the pool may have gotten a bit shallower.
According to Antonio Morales of the Jackson Clarion-Ledger, Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly suffered a torn ACL and torn lateral meniscus in his right knee during Saturday’s win over Georgia Southern. He’ll have surgery this week, starting the clock on a rehab that will take him well into the pre-draft process.
The nephew of former Bills quarterback Jim Kelly, he led the SEC in total offense this season, with 2,758 passing yards and another 332 rushing yards and five touchdowns.
He had some off-field issues during his stay at Clemson and was dismissed from the team in 2014. He also was involved in a bar fight in Buffalo, after enrolling at Ole Miss.
He would have been one of the top senior quarterback prospects in this year’s draft, and what was already thought to be a thin class at the position. He has the kind of talent which will still get him drafted, and force teams looking for a passer to dig into a group of underclassmen.