Former Georgia quarterback Jack Fromm has been working on his mechanics with the hope of showing NFL scouts that he has plenty arm strength.
Fromm, who has interviewed with the Patriots, Bears, Colts and Raiders, will work out for NFL teams Thursday at the NFL scouting combine at Lucas Oil Stadium.
“I think I have the arm strength and the ability to make every single throw I need to in the professional football league,” Fromm said Tuesday. “So, I’m going to go out and not try to prove anything. I’m going to go out there and be me and throw the ball around the best I can.”
Fromm has been working on his footwork while practicing with his quarterback coach since the ninth grade, David Morris, in Mobile, Ala.
“That’s definitely been a coaching point and something that we’ve been working on throughout this process,” Fromm said. “I think it’s been my feet. My feet have not been as clean as they needed to be this past football season.”
With a better throwing base, he is confident that he can showcase his arm strength.
“That’s something that we’ve really been hammering throughout this process,” Fromm said. “So, for me, I’m trying to get my feet better and as good as they can be because wherever my feet are, and how they are doing, it’s going to take care of the rest of whatever is going on. It starts from the bottom up. I’m really trying to take care of those (issues).”
The projected top five quarterbacks going into the NFL combine were LSU’s Joe Burrow, Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa, Oregon’s Justin Herbert, Washington’s Jacob Eason and Utah State’s Jordan Love.
Fromm projects into the second tier of quarterbacks, along with former Oklahoma quarterback Jalen Hurts.
“When you look at Jake, I had a chance to go visit with Jake and watch him work out (in Mobile),” NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah said. “When you visit with him, you’re immediately impressed just talking with him. He’s very mature. He’s engaging. You can see how he’ won over the locker room there at Georgia. He'’s going to be impressive when you get in the room and get on the board and talk X’s and O’s, very sharp.”
Jeremiah also believes that Fromm’s arm strength will be heavily scrutinized.
“The knock on him, the concern has really been pure arm strength,” Jeremiah said. “When I’ve watched him, I’ve seen throws, I’ve seen him make deep outs from the far hash in the Florida game.
“You see examples of it, but there’s other times where the ball hangs and the ball dies.”
Fromm is working on his footwork and getting his lower-body base more involved in his throws.
“I think mechanically he can help with some things there to get his lower body more involved,” Jeremiah said. “And I know he’s been down in Mobile, Alabama at QB Country working with David Morris and Daniel Jones down there. He’s starting to make progress there. That’s his challenge. I have him in that second-round range. And I don’t think he’s for everybody.”
Fromm will be a fit for some teams.
“If you’ve got a run-game and (a strong) defense and you want somebody to be efficient and make good decisions, I think that’s who Jake is,” Jeremiah said.
The Falcons are not in the quarterback market, but are familiar with Fromm’s work.
“He’s been in the limelight quite a bit,” Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff said. “I’ll be interested to see how it all plays out for him. He’s a really interesting guy from a personality standpoint. He’s been around a very (good and) winning program. We’ll be watching closely as well.”
Fromm will go down as one of the more prolific passers in Georgia history.
Fromm’s 8,224 career passing yards rank fourth on UGA’s all-time list. His 78 career touchdown passes put him in second place on UGA’s all-time list, and he ranks fourth and fifth, respectively, on UGA’s lists of career completions and attempts.
Fromm led UGA to 37 wins in 43 games over three seasons, starting all but the first one, when he replaced an injured Jacob Eason during the third offensive series of the game. The Bulldogs won an SEC championship, a Rose Bowl and three SEC East titles during Fromm’s career.
Fromm likely will pass his ‘intangibles” test, which points to his leadership ability.
“I had the opportunity to be around Tom Brady when I was with the Patriots and now seeing Matt (Ryan) over the years, not only leading just the offense and the receivers, but leading the team fully,” Dimitroff said. “That is a very important thing. You could have a guy who has a great arm and can move around, but if he’s a dud (with his) leadership.
“Man, I don’t think you have a chance.”
So, it will be interesting to see how Fromm performs.
“Leadership is big,” Dimitroff said. “You have to have accuracy. You don’t always have to have the huge gun, but you have to make sure that you are able to work the ball around.
“You are able to decision-make properly and again interact and communicate with your teammates from a leadership standpoint is imperative to thrive in this league in my mind.”
About the Author
