It’s a widely held belief in American sports that the transition from college football to the NFL is one of the harder transitions to make.
Not only are the schemes and plays more complex at the professional level, but the players are also much bigger and faster. It can be quite overwhelming for some players during their first seasons in the NFL.
That can be especially true for quarterbacks, as the speed of the game in the NFL makes it harder for them to go through their progressions and find an open man. Miami Dolphins quarterback Skylar Thompson recently touched on the differences between college and pro football.
He mentioned timing as one key difference between the two levels.
“In this league, as I figured out, if you’re not on time, it’s most likely going to be an incompletion because the separation of being open is way different this level compared to college,” he said. “Being able to throw the ball before guys are out of their break, being able to anticipate, I feel I’ve gotten better at but there’s always room for improvement and it will come.”
The rookie seventh-round pick out of Kansas State University has looked solid so far during his first NFL training camp. In eight training camp practices, he’s yet to throw an interception.
Most days, he’s thrown between five and 15 throws per practice. He’s had a number of deep passes for 20 yards or more.
While seventh-round quarterbacks don’t typically go on to become major difference makers, it certainly is not unheard of.
Clearly, Thompson will try to continue a pretty successful transition to pro ball as the preseason continues.
