'The best thing that ever happened to me:' How transfer portal has reshaped NFL draft

INDIANAPOLIS – Trey Benson may have never been at the NFL Scouting Combine if it was not for the transfer portal.

The Florida State running back is viewed by scouts as a top-five player at his position in this year’s class. A four-star coming out of high school, his college career started at Oregon. He could not break through with the Ducks, dealing with an injury and limited playing time in two seasons.

But in January 2022, he entered the transfer portal. Five years ago, if a top NFL draft prospect had a college career defined by the transfer portal, it was a red flag. Questions would pop up in interviews about why an athlete was moving around.

Just like the college football landscape has shifted, so have the old stereotypes about the portal. With the institution of the one-time transfer rule in 2021, athletes can now freely move around and play immediately.

Benson took advantage of that and has not looked back. He’s not the only one, either. Of the 321 NFL combine invites this year, 112 (roughly 35%) transferred during their college careers.

“Coming to Florida State is probably the best thing that ever happened to me,” Benson said on Friday. “Coach brought me in, he didn’t even have to take a chance on me because I didn’t have any film coming from my previous school.”

Benson rushed for 1,895 yards and 23 touchdowns in two seasons with the Seminoles. He’s not the only portal success story, though. The highest percentage of transfers at this year’s combine is at the quarterback position.

Jayden Daniels left Arizona State and was developed into a Heisman Trophy winner at LSU. Michael Penix overcame injuries, leaving Indiana and taking Washington to the national championship game. Bo Nix took advantage of a second chance at Oregon. Spencer Rattler was able to redeem his Oklahoma exit by helping Shane Beamer right South Carolina.

Transfer portal transformed QBs’ football IQ

Those experiences have shaped some of the top quarterbacks in this year’s class. Caleb Williams stayed in the same system but followed Lincoln Riley to Los Angeles, ultimately becoming an NIL star on the West Coast.

“My journey overall to get to this point – I walk my journey,” Daniels said. “I wouldn’t trade how I got here, how long it got here or anything like that. When I transferred, I just wanted to go out and have the opportunity to compete against the best. The SEC, you play the best competition. The best football.”

Past the experience of entering college football’s free agency and moving to new college campuses, quarterbacks were exposed to new playbooks. Sam Hartman was known for his ability to run Dave Clawson’s unique RPO at Wake Forest. He spent his final season of eligibility at Notre Dame, learning a pro-style offense.

While his stats took a dip in the 2023 season, in interviews this week with NFL organizations he was able to share his experiences in two different systems. That’s not going to hurt his draft stock.

“Having two offenses under my system, getting under center,” he said. “Getting in and out of the huddle. Playing with guys Joe Alt, Audric Estimé just kind of set the tone. Different things – cadence. A lot of schools, you don’t do cadences. So working an NFL cadence and everything in between was incredible.”

Nix’s path was different, going 21-13 in three seasons at Auburn. The former five-star recruit never found the prominence he wanted in his home state. Instead, connecting with Dan Lanning and Kenny Dillingham at Oregon put him back on track.

In those two seasons in Eugene, Nix was 22-5 and threw for a career-best 4,508 yards this past year. NFL front offices will want to talk about his development. He will put his arm strength to the test on Saturday.

But the transfer portal gave him a second shot at his college career and NFL dreams.

“I think it just put everything together,” he said. “Provided me with some freedom and some chances. Some opportunities later in my career that I didn’t have earlier. We were able to be very versatile, get the ball everywhere, play under center, shotgun, play action, RPOs – do it all at a high level. Offensive linemen had to be studs to play in the system.”