Scouting Report On Clemson QB Cade Klubnik

The defense is running a disguised coverage here, showing a two-high safety look pre-snap and shifting to a single-high scheme (Cover 3) as the ball is snapped. The targeted receiver runs a deep post from the slot, a route that is typically taken away by this coverage scheme. However, the receiver gets a step on the corner, who fails to keep pace with him out of his zone. The safety bites down on the underneath crosser, which gives Klubnik just a little bit of daylight. That’s all he needs to loft a beautiful pass to allow his receiver to make a play.

This is another good example. Notice how Klubnik’s deep-field accuracy catches the defense by surprise:

In this third-and-long situation, the defense is playing a sort of prevent look, with four corners playing deep matching zones and a middle-field safety behind them. The two receivers on the left of the formation cross routes about five yards downfield, with the outside receiver running a slant-and-go (sluggo route) and the slot receiver running a corner route. The zone defenders fail to pass off their assignments properly, and the nickel corner gets caught flat-footed as the receiver blazes past him.

You can’t throw a better pass than Klubnik does here. He fires one in on a rope, leading his target away from the coverage and not putting too much air under it to risk a defender catching up. The safety has no chance as he tries to come over late, and the receiver doesn’t even break stride as he waltzes into the end zone.

This next play is maybe the most impressive throw I saw on Klubnik’s tape:

This was Week 1 against Georgia, and Klubnik didn’t have a great day overall. But this throw was masterful. Late pressure prevents him from properly stepping into the pass, so he’s essentially throwing off his back foot. But he still manages to place the pass perfectly on the far sideline, 30 yards downfield. The receiver had a small step on the corner and that’s all Klubnik needed to place it perfectly on his hands.

Klubnik is often categorized as a precision-passing game manager, which does him a disservice. He has legitimate arm talent, and that last throw was evidence of that. Here’s another good look at it:

Hit as he throws? Doesn’t matter. This is another dot from Klubnik, taking advantage of the one-on-one coverage on the outside. He drops it right in the bucket, and as they say, a great throw will beat great coverage.

It’s not the only time he’s done it, either:

Klubnik takes an absolute shot as he’s throwing this pass, but even so, he puts it right on the money. The pass hangs up there a little more than it would have without the hit, but otherwise there’s nothing to complain about. He’s not afraid to hang in the pocket and take some hits to deliver big-time throws and create explosive plays.

It’s not just deep accuracy, either. He’s sharp and on time on rhythm throws, those middle-field passes that keep an offense on schedule. Take a look:

The defense is running Cover 4 here, and Klubnik has to wait a moment for his read to clear a few underneath zones. When he does, Klubnik rips it in there, not giving the defenders a chance to recover and break it up.

Klubnik might be the best seam passer in this class. Just watch this:

A little pocket movement to buy an extra second, then a sharp pass right through the heart of the defense, arriving on time and in stride. Here it is again:

This is another example of Cover 4, and the playcaller dialed up the perfect look to beat it. Cover 4 tends to leave the seams vulnerable, and Klubnik takes advantage of that to find his tight end. His passes up the seams are so precise and timely, they beat even well-positioned defenders by leading his target away from the coverage. There’s some real zip on this particular pass, too.

One thing I haven’t discussed yet is Klubnik’s mobility. He’s not just a pocket passer, as he offers legitimate athleticism, creativity, and rushing ability to the position. Watch:

There are many more examples of him doing this. Klubnik has great awareness in the pocket and can create outside of structure. Here, he rolls to his left and doesn’t even have to reset to get the ball to a wide-open downfield target.

Klubnik isn’t just a scrambler, though. He was often used last year as a designed rusher. Take a look:

This might look like a zone read, but Klubnik isn’t actually reading a conflict defender. The jet sweep is just window dressing — this is a counter play for Klubnik to run with it. The left tackle and left guard both pull around as kick-out blockers, and the rest of the line pushes their assignments to the left, creating a clear lane for Klubnik to run through.

It’s a well-designed play, but it becomes a touchdown because of Klubnik’s rushing ability. He has good vision in the open field and is quite fast, breaking this play open by shooting through the gap and outrunning the entire defense the rest of the way.

It’s not all sunshine and rainbows with Klubnik, however. There are a few key aspects of his game he needs to improve upon to become a first-round pick. For starters, he tends to hold onto the ball too long. It comes from a desire to make the big play, and he often can. But he’s taken a combined 51 sacks over the last two years, which is simply too many.

Second, he’s still learning to read defenses in real time. He tends to lock on to his primary target and is sometimes confused by coverage rotations post-snap. That’s a bad combination, and it’s led to some ugly reps on his tape. His decision-making under pressure could use some work, too, as he got lucky on a few throws last year that probably should have been interceptions.

Lastly, and most concerningly, his short-area accuracy is questionable. For as much as I’ve praised his accuracy in this breakdown, his completion percentage was just 63.4 percent last year, which is more average than good. His ball placement on the “easy” throws leaves much to be desired, leading to issues operating the quick game and can hamper plays drawn up to create yards after the catch.

I also question how some of Klubnik’s strengths will translate to the NFL. I don’t think he’s athletic enough to stand out in the league, and right now he trusts himself far too much to escape every sack. This comes back to the sacks and negative plays, something that projects to get worse when he enters the league.

It should also be noted that smaller quarterbacks often struggle in the NFL, and Klubnik certainly fits the bill. We’ve seen smaller quarterbacks succeed in recent years, so it’s not a given. But it’s something he’ll have to overcome.

All that said, Klubnik is my QB6 in a pretty deep class of passers this year. I have a second-round grade on him right now, and with another year of natural development, I can definitely see him playing his way into the first round. There’s a lot of football left to be played before final evaluations, and Clemson fans should be excited about what Klubnik can be this year. Even if his draft stock doesn’t shoot up, he should be one of the best players in college football.