"There is a gap from Caleb Williams to Jayden Daniels": Former NFL star drops a hot take on top 2024 draft prospects

ESPN analyst Louis Riddick believes that despite a disappointing 2023 season, Caleb Williams remains the top quarterback available for the 2024 NFL draft. After him, Riddick thinks that 2023 Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels has displaced Drake Maye. He argues that given the information available, Daniels has shown to be the superior playmaker.

"There's a gap from Caleb [Williams] to Jayden [Daniels], and then there's a gap to me from Jayden to Drake Maye," Ridduick said Tuesday on 'Get Up.'

Riddick, a former NFL safety, did mention that further information beyond their stats and film was needed to judge Daniels and Maye's ability to adapt to the NFL. Character is an important factor when considering a player's capability to adjust to pro sports. To get a glimpse into this, a team would have to see things like school performance and dynamics with teammates.

Jayden Daniels 2023 stats

In his Heisman year, Jayden Daniels threw 3812 yards, with 40 touchdown passes and only four interceptions. His QBR of 95.6 was ranked first among all quarterbacks in Division I, and he had a completion percentage of 72.2%.

He was also the main running threat for the LSU Tigers. He accrued 1134 rushing yards, with 10 touchdowns in 135 carries during 2023. With these numbers, he led the Tigers to a 10-3 season with a 6-2 SEC record that saw them go third in the West. They lost no games at home.

Caleb Williams 2023 stats

While Caleb William's 2023 numbers aren't up to par with his Heisman season in 2022, they are impressive nonetheless. He had 3633 passing yards, with 30 touchdowns and five interceptions. He had a QBR of 82.4, which ranked him 11th in the nation. Interestingly, his completion percentage of 68.6% in 2023 is a career-high.

Caleb Williams averaged 9.4 yards per pass, which was also an improvement from the 9.1 yards of 2022 and 2021, but was nowhere near the 11.7 yards per pass of Jayden Daniels.

However, the season ended in disappointment for Caleb Williams and the Trojans with an 8-5 record (5-4 Pac-12) and three straight regular-season defeats to Washington, Oregon and UCLA.