The term “S2” became a thing in the weeks preceding the 2023 NFL Draft. For the NFL’s teams, it’s far from being the thing that it’s cracked up to be.
Peter King said during Friday’s PFT Live that only 14 teams use it. That means 18 don’t. Which instantly gives it far less heft than if it were universally utilized.
In an appearance this week on #PFTPM, Panthers G.M. Scott Fitterer was asked about the S2 test — something that his first-round quarterback, Bryce Young, reportedly aced.
“I think we have to understand it’s not an intelligence test, it’s more of a processing test,” Fitterer said. “It’s not like a deciding factor for us. It’s a tool that we use to gauge where a guy’s at processing speedwise and there’s other little elements and certain positions it probably weighs more heavily on.
“Bryce did really well on it. That’s great, but if he had done poorly on it, it’s just another small background in the evaluation process. The fact that he did well just kind of cemented the fact, ‘OK, what we see is him is an elite processor. This test confirms that.’ Had he done poorly, we would have gone back, taken a look, but that doesn’t mean he’s not a good processor, it’s just he didn’t do well on that test.”
That’s presumably what the Texans did with C.J. Stroud, after word got out that he didn’t do well. On the football field, he does.
And if there’s an issue with processing for Stroud, he more than makes up for it with a quick release of the ball.
So, yes, it’s just one piece of the puzzle. And, no, not every team uses it. Not even half do.