Draft-Week Buzz
No verified pre-draft news items in the past 30 days for this prospect. See Day 2/3 Team Fits below for projected landing spots and /news.html for the cross-prospect timeline.
Scouting Nugget: Dual-threat mobility
Expanded bio coming soon. This prospect is Quarterback #8 in the 2026 class.
Background
Kansas State dual-threat starter from Maize (KS); HS track sprinter with sub-11-second 100m speed.
College Production
2024 K-State (So, first-year starter): 2,712 pass yds, 25 TDs, 7 INTs + 605 rush yds. 2025 starter.
Scouting Take
Plus athlete; processes quickly on RPOs. Inconsistent deep-ball placement; compact frame raises durability questions.
Draft Projection
Round 4. Fit: RPO-heavy spread offense (Ravens / Bills backup tier).
Advanced Stats & Production
| 2025 PFF grade | 78.4 |
| Adj completion % | 64.8% |
| Yards per attempt | 8.2 |
| Rushing yards | 605 |
| Turnover-worthy play rate | 3.0% |
Metrics blended from PFF grade sheets, school box scores, and Combine/Pro Day box scores. Position-specific: QB shows efficiency + turnover rates, WR/TE show route-running + contested-catch, OL shows pass-block grade + pressures allowed, EDGE/IDL show pass-rush win rate + pressure rate, LB/DB show coverage grade + missed-tackle rate.
Sources
Our scouting profile is assembled from these primary sources + cross-checked against ESPN (Kiper / Reid / Miller), PFF's 2026 Big Board, Dane Brugler's The Beast 2026, and Daniel Jeremiah's top-50. See our full methodology and citations.
Day 2 / Day 3 Team Fits
NFL teams that lost a same-position veteran this offseason — and could target Avery Johnson as a Day 2/3 replacement option.
- REPORTED Las Vegas Raiders: moved on from Geno Smith (pocket-QB).
Picks held: R1 #1; R2 #36 - REPORTED Arizona Cardinals: moved on from Kyler Murray (pocket-QB).
Picks held: R1 #3; R2 #34
Confidence: "VERIFIED" departures cite a publication URL (Spotrac, OverTheCap, ESPN, NFL.com, team transactions page) confirming the move and date. "REPORTED" entries come from public free-agency trackers without a single canonical source we could attach. Fits are archetype-and-position based; we are not claiming the team has expressed interest in the prospect.
NFL Scheme Fit
NFL Scheme Fit
- RPO / spread / movement-passer offense
Buffalo Bills · Philadelphia Eagles · Atlanta Falcons · Cincinnati Bengals
Scheme Misfit Notes
- Pure pocket Air-Coryell offenses
Scheme matches are bucketed from the prospect's height, weight, and (for WRs) archetype tag against a static lookup of which NFL teams currently run each scheme family.
Rookie Contract & Landing-Spot Outlook
Projected Rookie Contract Value
~$4.7M – $5.5M (4-year deal) · Pick range: #97-128 · ~20% guaranteed
Signing bonus only is fully guaranteed
Best-Case / Worst-Case Landing Spot
Why: QB listed in their top-5 positional needs.
Year-1 arc: Day-1 starter window with cap-controlled rookie-contract production.
Why: QB not in their stated top-5 needs; runs a scheme that doesn't naturally amplify his profile.
Year-1 arc: Depth-chart competition + special-teams reps as Year-1 baseline.
Contract band uses the 2026 NFL CBA rookie wage scale projected from the prospect's expected pick range; guarantee % is the slot-default at that pick. Landing-spot best/worst case is derived from TEAMS data (positional needs + scheme overlap minus same-position R1 conflicts) — not a claim that either team has expressed interest.
Versatility, Limits & Roster Pathway
Biggest Limiting Trait MED
Sub-6-1 QB height — Pocket-passer sight-lines over OL are the scout flag; mobile-QB scheme fit becomes mandatory.
Day-3 NFL Roster Pathway
Day 3 QB projection means the practice squad is the realistic Year 1 destination unless an injury opens a QB3 spot late in camp.
Derived from height/weight against the 2026 position cohort and the prospect's projected round. Versatility callouts identify alternate alignments NFL teams have historically used for similar size profiles. Limiting-trait notes flag the single most-cited measurable concern; severity reflects how often that flag ends a Day 1 starter projection. Roster-pathway notes describe the realistic Year 1 NFL role for Day 3 picks.
By the Numbers — 2026 Class Context
- Frame: Among 2026 QB prospects, his 6-1 / 205 lbs frame sits at the 27th percentile in height and 30th percentile in weight.
- Position class: Avery Johnson is QB #8 of 30 ranked QBs in the 2026 class. Of those, 2 are projected in the R4 range.
Computed factually from the 2026 prospect class roster — height/weight percentiles benchmark this player against every other ranked prospect at the same position. Recruiting arc compares his high-school 247Sports/Rivals composite to his current projected round.
Avery Johnson’s NFL Archetype: Tua Tagovailoa
Tua Tagovailoa (Miami Dolphins)
Closest QB physical profile in the modern NFL: 6-1/205 lbs. Same frame, same role bucket — NOT a talent or career-arc projection.
Note: this is a physical-profile match — frame, position, role bucket. Not a talent or career-arc projection.
Similar Quarterback Prospects
Closest matches to Avery Johnson (6-1 / 205 lbs, #8 QB) by ranking proximity and physical profile. SIZE MATCH = within 1″ height and 10 lbs; TIER MATCH = within 2 ranking spots.
- Behren MortonSIZE MATCH Texas Tech · 6-2/205 lbs · #9 QB · R4-R5
- John MateerSIZE MATCH Oklahoma · 6-1/210 lbs · #10 QB · R5
- Sam LeavittSIZE MATCH Arizona State · 6-2/205 lbs · #11 QB · R5-R6
- Cade KlubnikSIZE MATCH Clemson · 6-2/195 lbs · #6 QB · R3
- Gunner StocktonSIZE MATCH Georgia · 6-1/215 lbs · #13 QB · R6
Kansas State & The 2026 Class
Other R4 prospects in the 2026 class
Different positions, same projected draft tier as Avery Johnson.
- Nicholas Singleton · RB · Penn State
- Kaytron Allen · RB · Penn State
- Ted Hurst · WR · Georgia State
- Zachariah Branch · WR · Georgia
- Deion Burks · WR · Oklahoma
- Michael Trigg · TE · Baylor