Player
Quinn Ewers
QB · MIA Dolphins
Y/A on 83 attempts proves possibility, not certainty: it says the arm and the processing produced NFL-caliber throws against real defenses, which is precisely the question a seventh-round flier exists to answer. The class context sharpens it, since Ward and Dart posted their lower rates with the benefit of full-time reps and first-round support. What it cannot prove is durability of the rate over 500 attempts, and nothing here claims it does.
The December audition
Nine rookies threw 40 passes in 2025. The 231st pick out-gained every one of them per throw.
Rare2025 rookie QBs, 40+ attempts (regular season)
| QB | Att | Comp% | Y/A | TD | INT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quinn Ewers | 83 | 66.3% | 7.49 | 3 | 3 |
| Tyler Shough | 327 | 67.6% | 7.29 | 10 | 6 |
| Jaxson Dart | 339 | 63.7% | 6.70 | 15 | 5 |
| Shedeur Sanders | 212 | 56.6% | 6.60 | 7 | 10 |
| Riley Leonard | 67 | 58.2% | 6.19 | 2 | 3 |
| Cam Ward | 540 | 59.8% | 5.87 | 15 | 7 |
| Dillon Gabriel | 185 | 59.5% | 5.06 | 7 | 2 |
Nine rookie quarterbacks attempted at least 40 passes in 2025. On yards per attempt, the leader was not the No. 1 overall pick (Ward, 5.87) or the two first-year starters with 300-plus throws. It was Quinn Ewers at 7.49, on 83 attempts, with a 66.3% completion rate that also ranked second in the class. The sample is four games and honesty requires saying so, but within it, the last quarterback drafted in 2025 was the most efficient one.
Why it matters. Y/A on 83 attempts proves possibility, not certainty: it says the arm and the processing produced NFL-caliber throws against real defenses, which is precisely the question a seventh-round flier exists to answer. The class context sharpens it, since Ward and Dart posted their lower rates with the benefit of full-time reps and first-round support. What it cannot prove is durability of the rate over 500 attempts, and nothing here claims it does.
The seventh-round file
The rate stats flatter him more than the down-to-down record does. Both belong on the scouting card.
Anomaly2025 rookie QBs by EPA per dropback, 40+ dropbacks (regular season)
| QB | Dropbacks | EPA/dropback |
|---|---|---|
| Jaxson Dart | 375 | -0.021 |
| Tyler Shough | 356 | -0.028 |
| Quinn Ewers | 91 | -0.061 |
| Cam Ward | 592 | -0.192 |
| Riley Leonard | 70 | -0.217 |
| Shedeur Sanders | 235 | -0.299 |
Charge every play, including his 8 sacks in 91 dropbacks and the two-pick start, and Ewers' expected-points ledger reads minus 0.061 per dropback: third among the rookies, not first, and below the veteran baseline. Miami also lost three of his four games, scoring 21, 20, and 10 in his starts. The yards per attempt says the throws were real; the EPA says the complete package, sacks and turnovers included, was a promising rookie's, not a finished starter's. Both are true at once.
Why it matters. A four-game sample gets dangerous exactly when only its best number is quoted, so this card is the audit of the other three. EPA per dropback bakes in the sack-taking and the red-zone interception that Y/A ignores, and by that fuller measure Ewers was third in his class, which is still creditable for pick 231 but is not a league-average starter yet. The gap between his two numbers is the size of his remaining homework.
An open job in Miami
Tua is in Atlanta. Of the four QBs on Miami's 2026 roster, Ewers owns the biggest NFL season anyone has managed: 83 attempts.
ComparisonMiami's 2026 quarterback room
| QB | Arrived as | Best NFL season (att) | Career att |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quinn Ewers | 2025 7th rd (231) | 83 (2025) | 83 |
| Malik Willis | 2022 3rd rd | 61 (2022) | 155 |
| Cam Miller | 2025 6th rd (215) | 0 | 0 |
| Mark Gronowski | 2026 rookie | 0 | 0 |
Tua Tagovailoa's 2025 (2,660 yards, 20 touchdowns, 15 interceptions, a 7-10 finish) ended with his departure to Atlanta, and Miami chose not to buy a proven replacement. What remains is a room where Ewers' 83-attempt rookie season is the largest passing season any of the four has produced. Willis, the only veteran, has never thrown 62 passes in a year. The franchise that started Tua every opening day since 2021 enters 2026 with a seventh-round sophomore as the most credentialed passer in the building.
Why it matters. Depth charts are the strongest predictor of who accumulates stats, and this one has no incumbent, no veteran with starter history, and no premium rookie ahead of him. Rooms like this usually resolve by August, and the December audition is the only NFL evidence in the building. The bear case is that Miami adds a veteran before camp; the roster as constructed says the runway is his.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT: the kid keeps the keys. Ewers leads the 2026 Dolphins in pass attempts.
The case, in numbers
| Factor | Reading |
|---|---|
| Incumbent starter | none (Tua to Atlanta) |
| Room's best NFL season | Ewers, 83 att, 7.49 Y/A |
| His 2025 class rank, Y/A (40+ att) | 1st of 9 rookies |
| Veteran competition's best season | Willis, 61 att (2022) |
| The against | 83-att sample; -0.061 EPA/dropback; a draft or signing could reset the room |
The gradeable call: Quinn Ewers throws more passes than any other Dolphin in 2026. It is a call on roster arithmetic more than on the four-game tape: the only quarterbacks in the building are a career backup, two blank slates, and the seventh-rounder who just out-rated his draft class in December. Miami's own recent history says patience pays faster than fans think, and the fastest way out of 7-10 is discovering the quarterback answer is already on a day-3 contract.
Why it matters. This forecast is deliberately about volume, not stardom, because volume is what the depth chart can actually promise: no fantasy claim about efficiency survives an 83-attempt sample, but attempts follow roster construction, and Miami's construction points one way. If a marquee veteran or a first-round rookie arrives before September, the call is wrong and will grade that way; as the room stands, it is the percentage read.
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