Oregon OC criticizes ‘draft experts’ on Marcus Mariota vs. Jameis Winston debate

The national title game isn’t here yet, but offseason talk is already in full force.

The Rose Bowl saw the last two Heisman winners square off for a chance at the national championship, but it also saw perhaps the top two NFL Draft prospects face off in front of scouts. The Marcus Mariota vs. Jameis Winston debate will likely dominate much of the offseason, and Oregon offensive coordinator Scott Frost isn’t quite pleased with the direction of the early talk.

NFL scouts have already said a bunch of dumb stuff about Mariota, laser focusing on how he played while recovering from an injury (still very well!) and anonymously accusing him of being too nice. However, there are valid reasons to prefer Winston, such as the fact that Florida State’s offense appears to be more NFL-friendly.

SB Nation’s Dan Kadar rates Mariota as the top prospect in Monday’s title game and projects him as the top overall pick in the upcoming draft.

“When I hear people say he’s a system quarterback, and usually I always see who says that, and he usually certainly has never played quarterback,” Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer said Saturday about his own lineage of dual-threat quarterbacks. “Because a real quarterback would look at you and go, of course I’m a system quarterback. I’m a system linebacker, too, I’m a system defensive end. Those without systems are usually the ones that don’t know what to do, so they’re very much system quarterbacks.”