Clemson coach Dabo Swinney thinks any scout grading his former QB, Deshaun Watson, as a second-rounder shouldn't be employed as an NFL evaluator.
The coach of the national-champion Tigers made his feelings known on Tuesday during an interview with The Rich Eisen Show when Eisen mentioned he's hearing talk of a second-round grade for Watson, who intends to enter the draft as an underclassman.
"They should lose their jobs," Swinney said. "That is absolutely the craziest thing. They don't know Deshaun. This guy is going to ... I mean, I can't even tell you how brilliant he is as a football player, as a person, how impactful of a man he is. He's going to change a locker room the day he gets there. He's just so driven, so humble. (He has an) unbelievable understanding of his platform and his skill set is off the charts. He can do anything and everything."
Swinney, of course, is an advocate of the QB that led his team to back-to-back national title games.
"This guy right here, I don't care what other people say, he is the best of the best," Swinney said. "And that will prove to be the case when he gets his opportunity. He'll bloom where he's planted. Wherever he gets taken, he's going to be phenomenal."
Watson is a proven winner who'll enter the draft as a highly decorated college player with plenty of upside. However, despite the strong support of his coach, it's true that scouts still have their doubts about how Watson will translate at the next level. NFL.com analyst Daniel Jeremiah rates Watson as the No. 32 prospect in the draft, which places him right on the fringe of the first round (which has 32 selections). Jeremiah cites his accuracy and decision-making as concerns.
One thing to keep in mind here -- a draft grade doesn't necessarily reflect where a prospect will go in the draft, especially when it comes to QBs, who can go higher than their grade would suggest they should go due to the premium teams place on the position.
Three NFL execs told ESPN last week that Watson pushed himself into the top half of Round 1 with his performance in leading Clemson to the national title vs. Alabama on Jan. 9.
We don't know the grade that any of those teams have on Watson, and we might not ever know. We can be sure of this: If Watson doesn't hear his name called on April 27 and slides to Round 2, Swinney will be calling for heads to roll.
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