Mel Kiper urges Quinn Ewers to use NFL draft as leverage to make CFB teams into paying him millions

Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers is approaching a crossroads in his college career. The quarterback has led the Longhorns to a CFP semi-final and could lead the team to a national championship win.

Ewers is likely to not be the starting quarterback for Texas next season as they are likely to move on to backup Arch Manning. This gives Quinn two options, either declare for the 2025 NFL Draft or transfer to another college for his senior year, a move that is becoming increasingly common.

Ewers' future destination was thrown into more jeopardy this week, with the report that Ewers has been offered $6 million to transfer to an unknown school.

Mel Kiper Jr. thinks that Ewers can use this to his advantage (9:30 onwards):

"You can use the NFL Draft now as leverage. You can say 'OK whatever college I'm at, you want me to stay for another year? Cough it up. I'll stay but I need X amount of million.'"

Quinn Ewers has been the starting quarterback for the Longhorns for three seasons. During that time, he led a revival of the historical program, leading the team to two consecutive CFP semi-finals and winning a national championship with the team.

However, despite his success, Ewers has struggled this season at times, with many Texas fans calling for backup quarterback Arch Manning to be utilized more than he has been used.

This is a possibility that Ewers, a junior, could enter the transfer portal during the off-season, and if the report of Ewers receiving money is true, could be in for a big pay day. But, even if it is false, he could use the rumors of receiving money to his advantage.

As Kiper mentions, Ewers can use the money as a barging chip in any potential transfer portal negotiations. This could force a top College (for example: the Oregon Ducks (who have been linked with Ewers) to offer him a large amount of money, likely in a NIL deal, to coke to the team and not enter the NFL Draft.

This will benefit both parties. Ewers will be able to keep developing in college before making the step up to the NFL, and the program that gets him will be getting an experienced quarterback to lead them for a season.

Quinn Ewers NFL draft prospects

NFL Draft Buzz ranks him as the fourth-best quarterback in the class. This QB class is generally seen as weak, especially compared to last year's, with only Shedeur Sanders and Cam Ward currently in consideration for a top pick.

This weak class is paired with an NFL market where only a few teams need a quarterback. The New York Giants is one of these teams, but nothing is stopping them from bringing in a more experienced quarterback rather than drafting a rookie.

NFL Draft Buzz views Ewers as a third-round pick. But, this could improve if Ewers leads the Longhorns to a national championship win and has two dominant performances in these games.