Philadelphia Eagles: 2019 Preseason Rookie grades
Clayton Thorson, QB
Round 5, Pick 167
There’s so much to say about Clayton Thorson, and not a single statement could really be positive at this point. When the Eagles selected Northwestern’s Clayton Thorson in the fifth round, the pick didn’t make that much sense. We knew the Eagles wanted a young quarterback to draft and develop, but Thorson wasn’t who anybody had in mind.
Maybe the fact that Thorson was a four-year starter, who broke Northwestern passing records made the pick feel better, but it really didn’t. Despite leading his school in passing yards and passing touchdowns in four seasons, his numbers still weren’t all that impressive when you consider how many times Thorson turned the ball over.
His senior season in the Big Ten was wildly underwhelming. And his training camp performance contained a lot more bad than good. After the first preseason game, the Eagles wanted to use the ‘jitters’ as an excuse for Thorson’s struggles, but the truth was that he looked like that all offseason long. He played better in the second week but looked pretty bad again in week four.
Thorson won’t make this team. And honestly, there’s really no reason for him to make the practice squad either. The pick was questionable from the jump, and it looks even worse now with four preseason games in the books for Thorson.