Jason Thomas

Strengths: Think Michael Vick, only taller and more polished. An all-around phenomenal athlete, Jason Thomas threw for 14 TD’s last year and rushed for 11 more, helping to turn a UNLV team that was winless just two years ago into a bowl winner. He rushed for nearly 600 yards and threw for another 1,700, despite playing seven games on a badly sprained ankle.

Thomas has a cannon on his right shoulder (he can throw a ball 70 yards in the air), but also precise touch. He’ s fast, but also big, capable of taking some punishment, as well as likely to dish some out. Simply put, he’s an immense, but raw, talent.

Areas of concern: Not many, outside of experience and health, plus technique. One of the most highly-sought recruits to ever come out of Southern California, Thomas spent a year at USC nursing a broken ankle before following coach John Robinson to UNLV, where he lost a year of eligibility, meaning, he didn’t play for nearly three years. Right now, he’s all instinct, but is quickly picking up the nuances of the position, as well as a sore throwing shoulder. Thomas is no stranger to injuries.

Thomas is getting better, but you can still fluster him by forcing him outside his comfort zone. He doesn’t improvise well, look off his receivers much and he has no idea what a second option is. But again, he’s a work in progress.

Is he sponge-worthy? Thomas could very easily make people forget that Michael Vick was once a possible option for the Texans — all he needs is to stay healthy and continue to develop his skills. The good news is that he was nearly 100% recovered from his ankle injury this spring, and should be healthy by September.

Thomas is a guy that has the eye of a lot of scouts. That’s because it’s so rare to see a quarterback this big and talented. Think Daunte Culpepper, only not as heavy and quite a bit faster. Dom Capers, who would love to build a ball-control offense, could, in Thomas, find both a franchise quarterback and that elusive yard-chewing back he so covets — Thomas is that good.

Because of his lack of experience, if he comes out in 2002 (he says he isn’t), Thomas will be very, very raw, and likely two-to-three years away from having an impact — would the Texans hold off their rebuilding to wait for such a project? Doubtful. But if they look elsewhere next year (i.e. don’t draft a quarterback), and Thomas delivers on his promise and shows marked improvement, it’ll be tough for them to pass him up in 2003.

Jason Thomas Return to The War Room

Rebels QB shuts out draft talk The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports on Jason Thomas’ declaration to stay in school two more years.

UNLV preparing media blitz for QB Thomas The Las Vegas Sun looks at UNLV’s efforts to make Jason Thomas a star.

Player Spotlight: Jason Thomas CNN/SI takes an in-depth look at Jason Thomas.