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Former NFL QB Praises Jaxson Dart for NFL Combine Performance

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Levi Dombro | Last updated Mar 5, 2025 5:19 PM ET

The Ole Miss football team struck gold when Lane Kiffin landed quarterback Jaxson Dart in the transfer portal before the 2022 season. Now, ahead of this year's NFL Draft, Dart is making waves as one of the most prolific quarterback prospects in the entire class. Former NFL quarterback Chris Simms spoke about the Rebels' old signal-caller on Monday and emphasized how great his performance was at the NFL combine.

"Jaxson Dart killed it, Jaxson Dart can play quarterback," said Simms, emphatically. "What everyone's gonna like about him compared to (Miami quarterback) Cam (Ward) and (Colorado quarterback) Shedeur (Sanders) is just how true he plays the position."

Dart had an incredible three-year stretch under center in Oxford, breaking multiple program records during his tenure. In his senior year, he threw for almost 4,300 yards and 29 touchdowns while only tossing six interceptions.

There is no real consensus about where the Utah native will land in the 2025 NFL Draft, but he has been projected anywhere as high as No. 3 overall and as low as the third round. In reality, he should land somewhere in the middle as most have him graded as a late-first, early second-round prospect.

While he does have all of the physical tools necessary to become a successful player at the professional level, he is a bit of a raw prospect so some teams consider him a project. This means that while he may not start in Week 1 of his NFL career, some teams would trust their coaching staff to tap into his high ceiling as a player. Regardless of what unfolds in April, Dart seemingly has Chris Simms in his corner.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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