“I think Cade Klubnik will be in the Heisman conversation next year. That’s how good I think he is.” David Pollack’s statement about Cade Klubnik wasn’t a fluke. It stemmed from facts: a monstrous 3.6k on passing with another 400+ on rushing. Add to this the solid 43 touchdowns and suddenly Clemson and Dabo Swinney has a “hit maker” on the team. Oh, and how could we forget the Tigers’ game plan for the 2025 conquest: Building a death squad around Cade Klubnik’s arm; Antonio Williams, Bryant Wesco Jr., and T.J. Moore? A sort of “pick your poison” trio that just lifts Clemson’s dominance and Cade’s Heisman push above the required bar.
However, while the hype train was leaving the station, former NFL general manager and current analyst Ran Carthon was in the film room, and he came away with a much different and far more critical take. “I know a lot of a lot of guys that really, really like him… but just in the games I watch… I just didn’t see a lot that made me… jump off the tape,” Carthon confessed during a conversation with Ryan Wilson on NFL on CBS. When we honed in on Carthon’s criticism, we found that his biggest gripe with Klubnik is his toughness and pocket presence: “I felt like I saw, you know, too many fade away throws from Cade.” Now, is this really true? From what we have seen, calling it “fade away” miiiiiight be an exaggeration.
2024 ACC CHampionship: Clemson vs SMU Dec 07 December 7, 2024: Clemson Tigers quarterback Cade Klubnik 2 during the fourth quarter against the Southern Methodist Mustangs in the 2024 ACC Championship at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC. Scott Kinser/CSM/Sipa USA Credit Image: Scott Kinser/Cal Media/Sipa USA Charlotte Bank of America Stadium Nc United States NOxUSExINxGERMANY PUBLICATIONxINxALGxARGxAUTxBRNxBRAxCANxCHIxCHNxCOLxECUxEGYxGRExINDxIRIxIRQxISRxJORxKUWxLIBxLBAxMLTxMEXxMARxOMAxPERxQATxKSAxSUIxSYRxTUNxTURxUAExUKxVENxYEMxONLY Copyright: xCalxSportxMediax Editorial use only
See, Carthon’s film review is what you’d normally expect from a pro scout, but the hard data tells a different, and much more impressive story. Pro Football Focus (PFF) ranked Klubnik in 1st rank when it comes to “most improved quarterback in CFB in 2025”. Why is this important? Because the kid made a jump from the 102nd position in 2023 to the 5th position in 2025. That is his passing grade going from a 63.9 to a massive 87.7.
To put this into perspective: the only other guys who made such a drastic change in their performance in this era of CFB are Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders—one of em was the freaking 1st round pick at the draft. While Carthon might’ve seen a few bad reps, the stat sheet shows a completely distinct reality where we have a QB who knows how to stand and deliver.
Then you have the Clemson vs Texas game. Yes, the Tigers lost, but people somehow keep forgetting that Cade went for a 3TD game with around 336 yards against a million-dollar Horns team. And maybe this is why, on the other end of the whole shtick, ESPN’s Matt Miller decided to rank Klubnik really da-n high on the 2026 NFL draft list.
Cleveland Browns pick?
The term “Quarterback hell” has become synonymous among Browns fans. Why? Well, you can credit that to the org pushing aside Baker Mayfield for a very, very, very controversial Deshaun Watson. Now, this ain’t all. We are barely scratching the surface in regards to “Everything that is wrong with the Browns QB room”. However, bringing in the team is important because of Miller’s entire ranking.
Picking both Dillion Gabriel and Shedeur was a massive surprise to everyone who was watching/following the drafts. Still, Matt Miller from ESPN thinks that this won’t stop the Browns organization from reaching out and taking Klubnik as the No.1 pick in the 2026 draft.
This is a complete polar opposite of what Carthon mentioned during his talk with Wilson. To Ran, Klubnik has potential, but that comes with a ton of “pocket problems,” but to Miller, Klubnik represents everything that was good about the Browns during the Mayfield era.
With the 2025 season hot seat getting all riled up, we cannot wait to see what Klubnik and the Tigers manage to get done. Will the kid honor Pollack and his Heisman confidence or become another Shedeur Sanders 5th-round free-fall problem?
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