5 great CFB duos we’d love to see play together in the NFL

Whether it’s Joe Montana to Jerry Rice, Peyton Manning to a host of different receivers over his long career, or Tom Brady to Rob Gronkowski, the NFL has had no shortage of dynamic passing-game duos over the last few decades. And we’re certain to see this continue as explosive offenses keep taking over the game. With that in mind, we thought it would be fun to look at college football’s current superstar quarterbacks and wide receivers and dream of them teaming up in the pros someday.

Barring some drastic or catastrophic change to the current landscape, Tua Tagovailoa is likely going to be the first overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft next spring. If you were to build the perfect quarterback in a lab for today’s NFL you would have a hard time creating someone with a better combination of smarts, demeanor, speed, agility and game awareness than Alabama’s junior gunslinger. Playing for the Crimson Tide means Tua already possesses an embarrassment of riches to throw to, so let’s pair him with a new weapon for this exercise: Jalen Reagor. The TCU burner is a bit on the smaller side as a 5’11” wide receiver, however, his speed and penchant for highlight-reel plays every time he touches the ball make this pairing plenty enticing. You can put Reagor anywhere on the field and just watch Tua make huge play after huge play—from a deep route down the sideline to a short toss over the middle of the field knowing Reagor can make his defender miss and turn upfield for a big gain after the catch.

Jalen Hurts has been a revelation since transferring to Oklahoma and thriving in Lincoln Riley’s offense. Hurts was quite successful at Alabama before losing the starting job to Tua, but he was primarily a ball control QB given free reign on designed run plays. Now he’s legitimately eyeing the Sooners’ third straight Heisman trophy and catapulting up NFL draft boards with his dual-threat ability and elite pass efficiency. Having proven he can dominate in a modern offense, why don’t we have Hurts team up with one of his former Bama pass catchers? Jerry Jeudy is the latest in what seems like an endless line of Nick Saban wide receivers turning into first round draft picks. Jeudy can make any catch, blow past defensive backs with his speed and athleticism and create the space needed to turn a throw of any distance into an enormous play. A fully realized version of Hurts never really got an opportunity to run the high-octane Bama offense we’re currently watching and this dream duo is a chance to give him that shot.

Justin Fields left Georgia for Ohio State because he wasn’t going to crack the starting lineup as long as Jake Fromm (another QB with serious NFL aspirations) was running the offense. The result? Through October 17th, The Buckeyes are bulldozing teams by an average score of 49.3 to 8.8 behind Fields’ phenomenal work through the air and on the ground this season. Fields won’t be eligible for the draft until 2021, meaning he still has plenty of time to impress talent evaluators at the next level—and possibly be the first quarterback taken that year, instead of the field general long discussed for that spot (see below). Now imagine handing Fields an equally-athletic freak who can line up anywhere on the field—outside receiver, slot position, backfield, wildcat QB—to make the defense panic on every play. That’s what Colorado’s Laviska Shenault would bring here. Shenault is the type of playmaker who requires constant attention from the defense, opening up opportunities for the other skill players on the field, so this combo is perhaps the most interesting one we can concoct.

As we mentioned above, Trevor Lawrence has been looked at as the first overall pick of the 2021 NFL draft for a while. That’s what happens when you put up ridiculous numbers and lead Clemson to a national title at 19 years old, and do it all while making it look easy. Yes, Lawrence has thrown more interceptions than many would like from him this season, but don’t let that deter any hype: He’s still excellent and QB-needy NFL teams would kill to have him. Putting a deep outside threat on the field with Lawrence makes perfect sense, and Oklahoma State’s Tylan Wallace fits the bill. Wallace is one of the best in college football at creating separation from his defender, as well as making a catch in coverage. Picturing Lawrence throwing a beautiful spiral over the safety’s shoulder and into Wallace’s hands 30 to 40 yards downfield is too entertaining to pass up.

Justin Herbert is probably the only QB out there who can wrest control of the projected 2020 No. 1 draft pick slot from Tua. Herbert’s size (6’6”, 240 lbs.) and powerful arm had NFL scouts salivating before the 2019 draft—only to see the Oregon star return to school for his senior year. Scouts still love Herbert and see him similarly to the way they projected Andrew Luck when he was coming out of college. More of a traditional pocket-passer, Herbert knows exactly where to place the ball for his receivers to make a play and evade defenders, which makes the potential of seeing him throw to one of college football’s best possession receivers in Oklahoma’s CeeDee Lamb very exciting. Lamb has the frame, ball-control ability, quick-enough hands and tackle-breaking skills to ensure Herbert’s cannon of an arm won’t go to waste. The Sooners wideout is also one of the game’s best at adjusting on the fly and becoming open when the original play breaks down—giving Herbert so much more to work with as he goes through his progression or when he’s flushed out of the pocket.