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Jeff Sims: Film Evaluation of Georgia Tech’s Future QB

Georgia Tech 2020 QB Jeff Sims: Evaluation of the Jackets' future quarterback

Brian Smith

With the transition that the Georgia Tech program is undertaking, it’s good to know that a very talented signal caller is coming to play for the Yellow Jackets.

Many different ways to evaluate a quarterback. Arm strength, athleticism, quickness, eye placement, pace of delivery, and touchdown to interception ratio just to name a few. They can all be right, depending on circumstance. With Georgia Tech’s class of 2020 quarterback early enrollee Jeff Sims, he possesses a little bit of each category, and then some.

Jeff Sims, QB, 6-3, 205, Jacksonville (Fla.) Sandalwood

There’s no specific way to categorize Sims; that’s a good thing. He’s adept at being a playmaker from the pocket, on the run, or during designed quarterback running plays. Regardless, he’s a quality talent already. He will need seasoning, yes. There’s no doubt, long-term, Sims will be the future of the Georgia Tech program. First up, the positives for Sims, followed by areas to improve.

Positives

There are many areas to enjoy about Sims’ overall game, but No. 1 should be that he’s cool under pressure, whether passing or running the football. Bottom line, he leads the offense to scoring touchdowns.

Pocket Presence

One of the weakest attributes for many high school signal callers derives from ‘happy feet’ when a pass rusher breaks into the backfield. Sims adjusts well. He’s explosive enough to run away from pressure, or simply side step and throw. Both tactics will suit him well moving forward. Another aspect of his pocket presence would be his ability to deliver the deep ball.

Sometimes young players overthrow when attempting deep passes. Sims continues to make a smooth delivery that provides pass catchers an opportunity to make a play. That’s a good sign. Conversely, Sims hits short and intermediate passes as well.

Connecting with underneath passes and check downs can be troublesome for many college quarterbacks. Perhaps too much arm strength can be an issue. Sims does well with this area of the passing game. It will help him keep a higher completion percentage, and allow Georgia Tech to stay ahead of the chains for down and distance. Overall, Sims is a mature pocket passer as it relates to coming out of high school.

Throws on the Run

One of the most difficult passes can be when moving to the left or right. Sims Can absolutely make the most difficult of throws, as his right handed delivery goes against the grain moving to his left. Even with that situation, as the film below displays, Sims can zip a touchdown pass against his body. Truly impressive.

This play demonstrates intelligence by way of keeping the ball down because a defender closed on the receiver, and it also showed how powerful Sims' arm can be, when he desires. Lastly, Sims’ natural athleticism allowed him to contort his body to make that throw. A tip of the cap young man. Well done.

Overall, the video above is as difficult and yet impressive a play Sims made during his senior year. Being that accurate, on the run, against the grain, should be considered nothing less than a NFL play.

Accuracy

It’s a highlight tape (see full senior highlights below), so of course the passes end up completed. Regardless, it’s watching Sims’ motion, it’s consistency in fact, that provides hope he will be a quick study and he can compete for playing time as a mere freshman.

Sims is a natural passer. Will he quickly make the jump to ACC competition? That’s yet to be learned. The talent does appear to be present. How well Sims picks up the playbook will likely be the next hurdle as to whether he plays, but being a natural and accurate passer is the biggest task to conquer. That’s already accomplished.

Sims as a Runner

It’s one thing to ad-lib, and it’s quite another to have one’s number called over and over and the opposition fails to stop it. That was Sims as a running quarterback for Sandalwood High School. Teams simply could not stop the quarterback lead play. That’s only one defensive concern with Sims as a runner.

Then there’s option football -- read option or traditional option -- to contend with. Sims will be a nightmare on the edge of the defense, even if it’s just to keep the defense honest. Combining his running skills with run-pass option (RPO) plays, Sims will be a definitive short yardage and red zone threat. Here’s a look at Sims’ complete senior highlights. He’s a lot of fun to watch.

Areas to Improve

Like all young signal callers, there’s much to learn. It’s easy on one play, and the next presents a new problem. Something never seen before, perhaps a new game situation. Sims will learn, and those areas of improvement will be something that will come with maturation.

Throw Like You Mean It

Sometimes Sims does not whip the pass into a tight window quite like he should. It’s really that simple. Do not be shy. Let it ride! Sims possesses the arm to make tough passes in between two defenders. The passes most signal callers should not try, Sims can make. He just needs to let it go and do not hesitate when doing it. Any hesitation and the arm strength advantage tends to go away.

Balance and Follow Through

One of the reasons Sims probably does not gain quite the zip he needs would come from improper balance. He does not rotate through his back to front hip with enough torque to gain maximum velocity. Albeit, Sims only proved to do this some of the time. It will certainly be an area that the Georgia Tech coaching staff works with Sims to improve.

Staring Down Wide Receivers

To define how much of a step up in competition playing in the ACC will be, a few of Sims’ high school touchdown throws could be picked off at the college level. The competition steps up, so Sims must step up.

It’s okay that Sims makes pre-snap reads. That’s part of a spread offense. With that, even if all but 100% positive that a specific player will be the intended receiver, after the snap, Sims needs to look off members of the defense by looking towards other targets and then coming back to the desired receiver and making a pass. It’s a process, but one that must be repeated continually throughout a signal caller’s career. Turnovers are the enemy, bottom line.

As they say, all in good time, it’s one of the areas that even some NFL quarterbacks tend to do. The ones that do it the least are also the ones that tend to be in the Pro Bowl and the NFL Playoffs. Something to think about.

Ball Security

Whether passing, scrambling, or running, Sims often left the football vulnerable. That will cost him turnovers and Georgia Tech games. That simply cannot happen. Moving forward, Sims must be more cognizant regarding protecting the football.

Final Thoughts

Ideally, Sims would be the primary backup this upcoming season, and he may very well be just that. A backup. With Georgia Tech’s sputtering offense towards the latter part of the 2019 season, however, Sims could be thrust into a starting role well before he’s truly ready to take over the reins. With that, let’s keep with the obvious positives.

Sims is a talented athlete, a natural passer, and a player that’s capable of making throws in or out of the pocket. Combining those skills with his ability to be a runner and advance the offense with the RPO game, and it’s hard not to see Sims making an early impact in Atlanta.

Best guess, Sims will play meaningful minutes this next fall. By the middle of next season everyone will know more, but it’s just hard to imagine Sims not being a big part of the 2020 Georgia Tech offense. The Yellow Jackets need an offensive spark, and perhaps he’s going to be part of Georgia Tech offensive transformation. Long term, look for Sims to be at least a three-year starter for the Yellow Jackets.

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