"He was very inaccurate and nervous","I am a qb and I know the struggle": Fans divided over Shedeur Sanders' analysis of Will Howard at NFL Combine

Will Howard led the Ohio State Buckeyes to a national championship last season. After four seasons with Kansas State, he joined Ryan Day's team and was immediately named as the starter ahead of the 2024 season. Howard finished the season recording 4,010 yards and 35 TDs passing while also being honored as the CFP National Championship Game Offensive MVP.

This performance earned Will Howard an invitation to the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine. This allowed him to improve his draft stocks and be considered as a top prospect. However, the Ohio State QB had a lackluster showcase in Indianapolis. He dropped and missed multiple passes during the workouts, which led to him receiving a lot of criticism and trolls on social media.

Amidst this criticism, Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders came forward to defend Will Howard. He shared a statement on X (formerly Twitter), stating that it is hard to throw passes to wide receivers whose routes you are unfamiliar with.

"I don't understand y'all hating on @whoward_ he just won a natty. It's hard to throw to WR's that you don't know, everyone runs routes different."

College football fans took to social media to share their opinions about Howard's performance. Some of them didn't agree with Shedeur Sanders defending the Ohio State quarterback's poor Combine showcase.

"It wasn't the receivers. He was very inaccurate and nervous," one fan said.

"Did the other QB's have the same struggles? Didn't think so," another fan commented.

Comments on Howard's performance

"Nah that's the point of this adapt to the situation and he failed," this fan stated.

A few others came forward to support Will Howard, just like Shedeur Sanders.

"I 100% agree with this. I am a qb and I know the struggle of throwing to wide receivers you don't know," one fan said.

Comments on Howard's performance

"Yeah ppl do gotta realize he did go from Jeremiah Smith, Emeka Egbuka and Carnell Tate to throwin to sum randoms during a HIGH pressure moment without havin any kinda time to throw to them," this fan wrote.

"Facts just because receivers are running the route tree, doesn't mean they all run it the same or correctly. It's called chemistry for a reason," one fan said.

Comments on Howard's performance

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NFL draft insider shares harsh words for Will Howard's combine performance

The Ohio State's Combine showcase has overshadowed the fact that he helped the Buckeyes to their first national championship since 2014. NFL Insider Chris Trapasso did not mince his words when evaluating Howard's performance.

Trapasso went as far as to call his showcase 'ugly' and dub him as one of the biggest losers in Indianapolis this year.

"Howard was one of the biggest quarterbacks among this year's group," Trepasso wrote. "While he deserves respect for testing, Howard had the lowest vertical and broad of the tiny collection of quarterbacks. Beyond that, he was noticeably inaccurate at all levels of the field during throwing sessions, missing high and behind his targets. It was ugly."

Even before the Scouting Combine, Will Howard was not viewed as a projected first-round pick in this year's draft. He does, however, have the chance to salvage a bit of his reputation during Ohio State's Pro Day later on this month.