One of the top success stories of the 2024 season, Will Howard is headed to the NFL after winning the College Football Playoff National Championship with Ohio State. A winner at every stop, Howard has shown an ability to be a solid game manager who is athletic enough to take free yardage on the ground when it’s there. While there are some weaknesses to his game, Howard’s leadership will be enticing for an NFL team who may draft him to battle it out for a job.
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2025 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Will Howard
Height: 6’4″
Weight: 236 pounds
Arm: 32″
Hand: 9″
Vertical: 31.5″
Broad Jump: 9’4″
40-Yard: TBD
RAS: 8.74
School: Ohio State
Will Howard NFL Draft Overview
Just as most of the 2025 NFL Draft quarterbacks, Howard finished his career in a different spot than where he started. In 2020, as a true freshman, Howard led Kansas State with 1,178 yards and eight touchdowns in nine appearances. He started off the season as Skylar Thompson’s backup but took over after an injury. In 2021, Thompson took the job back over, leaving Howard to manage just 332 yards and one touchdown in six games.
In 2022, Kansas State took in a transfer to compete with Howard. After losing the battle and planning to redshirt, Howard came on in relief after an injury and ultimately led the Wildcats to a Big 12 title and Sugar Bowl appearance against Alabama. It was the first time Kansas State won 10 games since 2012, and Howard led the way with 1,633 yards and 15 touchdowns. He took over as starter in 2023 and led the Wildcats to nine wins. On the year, he threw for 2,643 yards and 24 touchdowns.
With a talent young quarterback up and coming, Kansas State encouraged Howard to hit the transfer portal (not unlike what Ohio State did to its 2023 starter). He landed in Columbus and just destroyed his career marks. En route to a national title, Howard threw for 4,010 yards and 35 touchdowns while completing 73 percent of his passes. He led the Big Ten in all three stats and was second in the nation in completion percentage. He stepped up for the Buckeyes and did just what he had to do to win.
Strengths
Impressive accuracy
Takes care of the football…mostly
NFL size
Willing and able runner, will take off for green grass and athletic enough for designed runs
Manages the pocket well
Showed significant improvement with deep ball accuracy
Has the arm strength to sling it into narrow windows
Weaknesses
How much of his success was due to the massive jump in surrounding talent?
Had at least one play per game that left you wondering what in the world he was doing
Less than ideal Combine performance
Doesn’t do anything at an elite level
Will need to develop being able to diagnose late-developing pressures
Best Fits: New York Jets, Las Vegas Raiders, Pittsburgh Steelers, New Orleans Saints, Cleveland Browns
Projection: Late Third/Early Fourth Round
Bottom Line on Will Howard
There are a lot of things about Howard that NFL teams will like. He showed an ability to improve his game in his fifth collegiate season and has that leadership that teams look for in their quarterbacks. At Ohio State, he showed an ability to fit passes into small, NFL-sized windows and played with anticipation to throw his receivers open. At 6’4″ and 236 pounds, Howard has plenty of size and athleticism to keep defenses honest. Is he Josh Allen? No, but he could be more of a Joe Burrow-type where he can take off if needed.
There will be a caveat of whether or not his massive success in 2024 was due to the fact that he was finally playing with NFL-bound players on offense. At Kansas State, one of his pass catchers ended up in the NFL, and it was a tight end. At Ohio State, it’s likely every player who caught a pass from Howard will be drafted. He started off the season uncertain of his arm strength. As the year went on, he knew he could trust his guys and let it fly a bit more and ended up with the best deep-ball completion percentage in his career.
Lance Zierlein of NFL.com compares Howard to Blake Bortles. Realistically, that is the best-case scenario. He could be a Gardner Minshew type of player where he could lead an offense if given the opportunity but he’s not going to be the guy who elevates a team. Spot-starter? Fine. Other than that, he will be reliant on what’s around him.
Main Image: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images