"Lit up Nick Saban's defense": Mel Kiper stands up for Quinn Ewers as NFL analyst points out his flaws

Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers has been one of the most talked about quarterbacks in college football this season. Despite starting the season as a Heisman contender, he suffered multiple injuries that impacted his availability and play on the field. As a result, some analysts have called for backup Arch Manning to start instead.

On Thursday, an episode of "First Draft" on ESPN was released. Analyst Field Yates talked about Ewers' strengths and weaknesses. While Ewers was able to make a big play against Arizona State, he has not always been able to do that this season, the analyst said.

"On that 4th and 12, if you don't convert, the game is over," Yates said (starts at 8:00). "He decides to change the entire play, which opens a man beating route concept, which he converts on a beautiful throw down the field."

"That's all good. The accuracy is very good. The poise in big games is very good. We've also seen two versions of Quinn Ewers this season. The SEC Championship Game against Georgia was not so good."

Yates said that although Quinn Ewers had a great game against Arizona State, he has struggled with consistency. He had games where he struggled to step into the pocket and threw inaccurate passes. However, analyst Mel Kiper defended Ewers.

"Keep one thing in mind guys, he was not at 100%," Kiper said. "He has battled through injury and that's why I'd like to see him go through a year where he is feeling great. Then he can work on driving his throws. I remember a few years ago against Alabama, he lit up Saban's defense."

Quinn Ewers will continue to start for the Texas Longhorns throughout the college football playoff

Coach Steve Sarkisian has said several times that this is Quinn Ewers' team. He said Ewers will be the starter this season unless something drastic happens.

Sarkisian's loyalty to Ewers has paid off as he appears to be hitting his stride at the perfect time. He had one of his best games of the year against Arizona State and will take that into the Cotton Bowl against Ohio State in the CFP semifinal matchup on January 10th at 7:30 p.m. ET.