There are a couple of recurring themes that spawn every NFL Draft cycle. For instance, a blue-chip prospect sliding out of the blue and landing right into the hands of the Eagles! Owing to this inexplicable but true phenomenon, Philly managed to build a roster so stacked they won the chip. Another recurring theme is the inverse of this. That one quarterback who was initially deemed as a Day 2 guy randomly surged up late in the process. Then, going in the lottery. Last year, it was Bo Nix. Boy, did it turn out well for the Broncos? This time around, that appears to be Jaxson Dart.
Jaxson Dart’s ascension up the perceived quarterback hierarchy hasn’t exactly been sudden or irrational. A former Gatorade POTY, he’s got the physical tangibles at 6”2, 225lb. He throws a beautiful, layered football. Dart can even move the chains with his legs and get you timely first downs. He’s quite mobile overall. Not to mention, he comes from offensive whiz Lane Kiffin’s Ole Miss. Heck, he even passes the name litmus test. A quarterback quite literally named “Dart” has to be baked into the equation. What Jaxson Dart put on tape throughout his collegiate career, but especially last season, coerced a couple of very prominent draft analysts to give him NFL grades that are so good they almost feel hyperbolic. Almost too good to be true, except they aren’t.
ESPN’s Matt Miller guested on Kay Adams’ “Up and Adams” show to discuss the draft landscape. He was asked to spill the tea on which of the outlandish rumors floating on the airwaves right now could actually transpire into reality. Miller reciprocated by co-signing the fact that Dart is moving up in the NFL hivemind’s assessment and that things could get crazy around him. “I think Jaxson Dart going in the top 10 is the hot one!” remarked Matt Miller. He proceeded to elaborate on this statement. One that would’ve seemed unfathomable a month ago but is actually within the realm of possibilities.
Just In: Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart could very well be taken within the Top 10 picks of the draft, per @nfldraftscout
Dart’s stock is trending at all-time highs
(via @UpAndAdamsShow)pic.twitter.com/89ioWjEvKr
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) April 2, 2025
“That might be the Saints at #9. It might be a team trading up. That’s the one that I’m trying to get the most intel on right now, because the buzz on [Jaxson Dart] has just been building,” said Miller. He did caveat his comments by bringing up Mac Jones as somebody who went through something similar during his draft process. He was being tipped to go 3rd overall but actually went #15 to New England. “We’ll see, but it’s definitely trending in the direction. He’s going to go much earlier than we all thought when the season ended,” remarked Miller.
There is no smoke without fire. Matt Miller isn’t pulling this out of thin air. There really is a fair amount of “buzz” around Dart. Todd McShay, revered for his analysis of prospects, has stated that after concluding his film study, he thinks Dart is on par with Shedeur Sanders. QB2A and 2B in this class, with Cam Ward a notch above.
There are a few reasons why Jaxson Dart is shooting up predictions and mock drafts. One fairly obvious one is the fact that he’s a quarterback. The position group just naturally gets a bump owing to the value relative to, say, a linebacker. Another reason is that the supply at QB isn’t meeting the demand. This draft class is quantitative at the position but not quite qualitative. This means being the 2nd or 3rd best one gets you a lot of traction when there are more than 3 franchises desperate for a signal caller. Alas, Dart would certainly welcome Matt Miller’s assessment of him going in the top 10. His former HC, Lane Kiffin, put into context the stepping stones Dart traversed to get to this level of acclaim.
Lane Kiffin addresses Jaxson Dart and his “legacy” at Ole Miss
In hindsight, the Ole Miss Rebels indirectly gained a 2x jackpot when Lincoln Riley left Oklahoma for USC. Not only did it fluster a future SEC contemporary, but it also got them Jaxson Dart via the transfer portal. Dart, quite literally, made history in his 3 years at the program. He was the heir to a rich lineage of quarterbacks that traversed Oxford. A couple of Mannings, Archie, and son Eli, had walked in his shoes before. But instead of caving under the pressure, Jaxson Dart went nuclear.
Dart left Ole Miss as the most successful QB—statistically speaking—in their history. He broke Eli Manning’s yardage record down the stretch and etched himself into the annals of the program. No wonder Lane Kiffin waxed lyrical about him and his imprint on Ole Miss football during the Rebels’ Pro Day. “Jaxson was awesome his three years here. His growth was amazing. But then for him to take over a team and a locker room the way that he did…he was just awesome to have around. [He] just left a legacy and an impact of how players should be teammates and how they should prepare,” said Kiffin.
The proverbial ink on Jaxson Dart’s football career and legacy is far from dry. How and where he’ll add to it remains to be seen. Going higher up in the draft isn’t necessarily a good omen. A high draft pick is reciprocal to a struggling franchise. If Matt Miller’s prediction of a team potentially trading up to grab Dart rings true, that would be one of those ideal scenarios. A lot has already happened, and more can happen in the 3 weeks between now and D-Day. Dart knows exactly how much time it takes for perceptions to swinging from one spectrum to the other.
The post Jaxson Dart Receives Surprising Draft News After Lane Kiffin’s Strong Push to Boost Ole Miss QB’s NFL Career appeared first on EssentiallySports.
