Taylen Green cracks top-5 highest graded QBs of week one

If there's one thing you can take away from Saturday's game, it's that Taylen Green has made tremendous strides over the offseason.

After the first week of college football officially ended Monday night, Pro Football Focus released its highest-graded Power Four quarterbacks, and Green ranked No. 2 with a 94.1 grade. Only California's QB1 Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele ranked higher.

Comparing his production against Alabama A&M to his performance against UAPB in 2024 reveals the difference in his game.

Taylen Green's drastic improvement in the passing game

Last year, Green impressed in his debut as a Razorback with his legs. The Boise State transfer ran all over the Golden Lions for 88 yards and two touchdowns. He didn't shy away from using his arm, though, putting up 229 yards for another two touchdowns.

But Saturday, he made an intentional effort not to use his legs as a crutch. He put up 322 yards through the air and completed 77.4 percent of his passes. But the most impressive stat is his six touchdowns to five different receivers. Only Brandon Allen has thrown for the same or more touchdowns in a game as a Razorback.

Granted, there are a few things left to work on. Some of last season's problems reemerged, such as not putting enough touch on the ball or applying too much when making easy throws. He also made a couple of throws behind the receiver that may have been picked off by better opponents. At times, he stayed in the pocket a little too long, likely because he made the effort to use his arm rather than his legs. Even then, the protection wasn't great, albeit it was better than last season.

Still, it's great to see his work on becoming a well-rounded quarterback pay off. However, his biggest tests are ahead of him as there are only two Saturdays before the SEC slate starts, and the Hogs travel to Oxford to play Ole Miss. And before that, Arkansas will take on Arkansas State for the first time in history.