Sellers turned 20-years old at the end of June. He’s already gone from three-star recruit to back up to break out starter to sought after transfer portal asset to the favorite for the #1 pick of the 2026 NFL Draft. It’s been quite the climb for 34th ranked quarterback recruit in the 2023 class. After a year that had him backing up Spencer Rattler, Sellers earned team captain honors (first time ever in program history by a redshirt freshman) and led the Gamecocks to nine wins, tied for the most since the top-five 2013 squad led by Steve Spurrier.
In a world of projection vs. production, evaluating Sellers is as interesting as any player in the country. The games this fall will obviously weigh the most in his final report but at the time of this writing, two things can be said about Sellers that are both true:
-
Sellers has as much, if not more, raw talent as any quarterback in the country
-
Sellers has a lot to work on and prove before he can be a first rounder
In some ways, this was exactly what was said about Anthony Richardson a couple years ago. The difference is, we will (barring injury) have two full seasons of tape on Sellers to compare to each other versus just one year on the fourth overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft. The similarities between the two are there. Sellers is massive and powerful (6’3”/240) with a credible dual threat approach. He can make the pretty throw on the move with proper touch and accuracy. But the struggles against pressure and the lack of consistency with ball placement create questions. When comparing him to the likes of Garrett Nussmeier, Cade Klubnik, Drew Allar, and Nico Iamaleava, here is where Sellers ranks in important passing numbers I pay attention to pre-tape.
-
Yards Per Attempt: 1st
-
Adjusted Completion %: 1st
-
Pressure to sack %: 4th
-
NFL Passer rating: 3rd
And to be fair, those numbers under pressure:
-
Yards Per Attempt: 1st
-
Adjusted Completion %: 1st
-
Pressure to Sack %: 4th
-
NFL Passer rating: 4th
Let’s now dive into the key traits of the position I’ve looked at from three games in 2024 (Clemson, Missouri, and Oklahoma).
Anticipation throws: As a pure pocket passer, it was hard to find a lot of throws where he surgically picked apart the opposing defense on time. While he did make plays on the move with a couple of impressive throws to multiple levels, Sellers seemed a step behind with anticipation. Heading into the 2025 season, this is the biggest roadblock that stands between him and a high grade. He needs to see it before he throws it which limits the passing game mightily at the next level.
Accuracy down the field: There are a lot of wide misses on his tape but in true “homerun or strikeout” fashion, Sellers has more than his fair share of pure deep passes. He understands touch and angles to get it between levels of the defense. He can tweak his velocity naturally. While his 20+ air yard tape has multiple big time throws, he also had the highest interception rate and highest number of head scratchers. The ability is there to be an effective deep ball passer but as I see with several areas of his game, the lack of consistency must improve.
Pocket Maneuverability: Here is the super power to Sellers game. Of all the quarterbacks I have studied for the 2026 NFL Draft, Sellers is (by far) the best one at using his legs to create. He is built like a tank and he pairs that with excellent foot speed and contact balance. For an inexperienced quarterback, he seemed to feel and anticipate both pressure and available space well. While he does hold on to the ball a notch too long, this could be the trait that makes him stand out the most.
Toughness: The two come-from-behind wins in the fourth quarter at Clemson and versus Missouri respectively showed all of the on-field toughness one could want in a quarterback. Sellers threw an interception in the fourth against Clemson in the massive rivalry game. He then engineered the offense down the field for a touchdown, down four, with both his arms and legs. A 27-yard scramble on third and four with multiple broken tackles and the 20-yard score on third and sixteen were big time plays against a big time defense in big time moments Sellers showed fortitude (as both a passer and runner) in high-pressure situations and it looked like he actually elevated his play to a higher level. That is all you need to know and I expect to see more of the same in 2025.
Sellers is the projection of the class. He has the ceiling many talk about with the likes of Arch Manning out of Texas. He has the dual-threat ability that can open layers of a playbook like Anthony Richardson did at Florida. Had he been in the draft after just one year of tape, the grades would have been all over the place. Now that we have seen the upside and now that we get to evaluate progress rather than just purely speculate on it, the Sellers’ report will be clear by season’s end. His spectrum goes from number one overall to the end of day two and the tape will tell all.