In a league where teams are willing to look under any rock to find a possible quarterback, it is a pretty bad sign for your quarterbacking future when no one’s been interested in having you in for a workout two weeks before the draft.
That’s the predicament Kansas State quarterback Collin Klein finds himself in. Klein has been adamant about remaining at quarterback during the pre-draft process, a stance that puts him at conflict with just about every draft pundit who believes that his awkward throwing style and mediocre deep balls are a sign that Klein will need to play a different position in the NFL.
“In my heart, I know I can do it,” Klein said, via Kellis Robinett of the Kansas City Star. “That’s the position I love to play. Until that door closes, I’m going to walk through it. I have the work ethic and all the physical tools to do it. I was very fortunate to have good coaches at K-State. I feel very well equipped.”
Peter Schaffer, Klein’s agent, pushes the notion that it is a good sign that no one has asked him to work out as a tight end or anything other than a quarterback, but it seems more telling that Robinett reports no one’s asked him to work out as a quarterback either. Klein thought his draft stock was rising in March, but there’s not much sign of that in April.
Schaffer also touts Klein’s winning record at Kansas State as the biggest reason why Klein shouldn’t switch positions, although that argument didn’t work out for Eric Crouch, Tommie Frazier or other quarterbacks who won a ton of games in college because they were excellent runners. Strong running skills are definitely helpful for a quarterback, but they need to be make him a dual-threat player. Klein’s only seen as a threat on the ground, which is a stumbling block he’s unlikely to overcome with a couple of weeks left until the draft.