• A dominant season from Miami’s Cam Ward: Featured on this list five times, Ward shined on most route concepts in 2024 and will be a top draft pick because of it.

• Will Howard, Dillon Gabriel and Kyle McCord also made their mark: Each is a top-175 prospect on PFF’s big board and was the FBS highest-graded quarterback on at least one route last season.

• 2025 NFL Draft season is here: Try PFF’s best-in-class Mock Draft Simulator and learn about 2025’s top prospects while trading and drafting for your favorite NFL team.

Estimated Reading Time: 7 minutes

It’s important to understand the value that each quarterback brings in any given NFL draft, including which routes they throw best. Here, we’ll examine the FBS’ top draft-eligible quarterbacks by route type from last season.

Flat (Speed Out): Kyle McCord, Syracuse Orange (77.9)

Note: minimum 10 attempts to qualify

McCord completed eight of his 10 flat route attempts for 34 yards and two touchdowns in 2024. Both of his scores came inside the 5-yard line, and six of his attempts came against UNLV (Week 6) and Connecticut (Week 13). 

Before joining Syracuse, McCord attempted 17 flat route passes across three years at Ohio State, completing 15 for 107 yards, seven first downs and two touchdowns. He earned a 78.2 PFF passing grade on flat routes across both schools, ranking second among FBS draft-eligible quarterbacks.

Slant: Cam Ward, Miami (FL) Hurricanes (93.0)

Note: minimum 25 attempts to qualify

Ward’s 37 slant attempts this past season were the fourth most among draft-eligible FBS quarterbacks. He completed 26 of those passes for 326 yards (sixth most) and three touchdowns (tied for fifth most) while also throwing for 21 first downs (tied for fourth most). He averaged 1.74 seconds to throw (second fastest) on such passes and did not commit a single turnover-worthy play.

Ward attempted 111 slant passes (most) over the past three seasons between Washington State and Miami and is one of two FBS quarterbacks this draft cycle with 100-plus attempts over that span. He leads the class in completions (74), passing yards (907) and first downs (54) on slants. Ward finished each of the past three seasons with a 90.0-plus PFF passing grade on slants.

Out: Cam Ward, Miami (FL) Hurricanes (91.4)

Note: minimum 20 attempts to qualify

Ward delivered a 33.3% plus-accuracy rate on out routes in 2024, the second-best rate among draft-eligible FBS quarterbacks. He went 19-of-24 passes for 260 yards and four touchdowns (tied for most) on out routes. Sixteen of his passes led to first downs, and he finished third in yards per attempt (10.8). Ward also paced the class with a 151.4 passer rating on such plays.

The potential No. 1 overall pick tightened up his game on out routes from his time at Washington State. With the Cougars, he completed 61.4% of his out route passes for 512 yards while ranking in the top 10 in attempts, yards and first downs, but he threw three picks, committed four turnover-worthy plays and finished last in accuracy rate (34.2%) and PFF passing grade (53.0).

In: Cam Ward, Miami (FL) Hurricanes (93.2)

Note: minimum 15 attempts to qualify

Ward finished in the top five in NFL passer rating (105.2) and PFF plus-accuracy rate (44.4%) on in routes this past season. He completed 13 of 19 passes for 230 yards (eighth most) while averaging 12.1 yards per attempt (sixth most). He threw a 17-yard strike in Week 2 against Florida A&M for his lone touchdown on an in route, and a bobbled catch attempt led to his only in route interception in Week 4 against South Florida.

Ward attempted just five in route passes in 2023 — and completed none. He had better luck in 2022, completing 10 of 16 passes for 116 yards. He earned a 76.0 PFF passing grade on in routes over both seasons.

Comeback: Cole Snyder, Eastern Michigan Eagles (78.7)

Note: minimum five attempts to qualify

Snyder completed five comeback passes for 44 yards and three first downs in 2024. His seven attempts were the most of any quarterback on this list.

The fifth-year player spent two seasons at Buffalo (2022-2023) after beginning his career at Rutgers (2019-2021). He completed two of his five comeback route attempts with the Bulls, both first-down gains, for 22 yards.

Hitch: Max Brosmer, Minnesota Golden Gophers (91.8)

Note: minimum 50 attempts to qualify

Brosmer completed 52 of 65 hitch passes for 576 yards (sixth most) in 2024 while averaging 8.9 yards per attempt. He threw a touchdown on a hitch in Minnesota’s bowl game against Virginia Tech, a strike between two defenders from 12 yards out. Brosmer also had two picks on hitch routes this past season, but he finished eighth in accuracy rate (73.4%).

Brosmer spent five years at New Hampshire before 2024. In his final two years with the Wildcats, he completed 76.2% of his 147 hitch attempts for 997 yards, four touchdowns and a pick. He ranked third in attempts and passing yards and finished second in first downs (60) in that span.

Corner: Cam Ward, Miami (FL) Hurricanes (96.0)

Note: minimum 10 attempts to qualify

Ward makes his fourth appearance in this article after completing six of his 12 corner route attempts for 148 yards in 2024. Half of his completions went for touchdowns, and he recorded six big-time throws (most).

Ward completed five of 12 corner route attempts while at Washington State, with all of his completions coming in 2022. He finished that season with 101 passing yards and an 81.1 PFF passing grade on corner routes.

Post: Brett Gabbert, Miami (OH) Redhawks (94.2)

Note: minimum 10 attempts to qualify

Gabbert completed six of 11 post attempts for 328 yards and four touchdowns in 2024. He ranked in the top three in passing yards, big-time throws (five) and NFL passer rating (139.2) while finishing fourth in plus-accuracy rate (40.0%).

Gabbert attempted 54 post passes in his six-year run with the RedHawks, recording a 48.1% accuracy rate on such throws (10th best in the draft class).

Note: minimum 15 attempts to qualify

Howard completed eight of 18 go passes for 289 yards (ninth most), two touchdowns and a pick. He recorded 10 big-time throws (third most) and finished first in plus-accuracy rate (52.9%) on such plays.

The 2024 national champion spent four seasons at Kansas State, where he completed seven of 25 go attempts for 196 yards and a 55.9 PFF passing grade.

Crossing: Cam Ward, Miami (FL) Hurricanes (94.6)

Note: minimum 25 attempts to qualify

Ward’s stellar run on our list concludes here. He attempted 32 crossing passes this season, completing 78.1% (tied for fifth) for 525 yards (third most). Ward threw for 23 first downs (fifth most) and three touchdowns on those plays, adding five big-time throws against one turnover-worthy play while averaging 16.4 passing yards per attempt (second most). He led the draft class in NFL passer rating (150.0) on crossing routes and recorded a 31.3% plus-accuracy rate (tied fifth).

Ward attempted 60 crossing passes at Washington State, completing 43 for 679 yards (seventh most). He recorded an 80.9 PFF passing grade and a 23.7% plus-accuracy rate on those plays, both top-10 marks in the FBS in that span.

Wide Screens: Dillon Gabriel, Oregon Ducks (72.7)

Note: minimum 25 attempts to qualify

Gabriel accounted for the third-most wide screen attempts in 2024 (63) and completed 60 passes for 510 yards (most). Nineteen of his wide screen passes went for first downs (second most), with one turning into a 65-yard touchdown against Oregon State in Week 3.

The sixth-year quarterback attempted 137 screen passes over the past three seasons between Oregon and Oklahoma, a mark second only to Cam Ward (193). Gabriel completed 125 such passes for 1,013 yards (most), 48 first downs and three touchdowns. He ranks second in PFF passing grade on screens (75.1) over that span.