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Jalen Milroe is the latest quarterback to be plagued by hand size concerns. The former Alabama signal-caller worked tirelessly to increase the size of his paw over the last 28 days and it paid off in a big way.
“Big” may not be the right word there, but you get the idea… His hands magically grew!
Milroe, a former four-star recruit, played four years of college football with the Crimson Tide. He was named the starter in 2023 and returned as the incumbent in 2024. There are a lot of reasons to be excited about the 6-foot-2, 225-pound quarterback’s potential. His legs are perhaps the biggest.
Although Milroe is a fantastic runner, there are concerns about Milroe as a passer. Accuracy was often an issue throughout his entire career with a ratio of 11 interceptions to 16 touchdowns as a senior.
He also fumbled nine times in 13 games.
That issue might be attributed to hand size.
Jalen Milroe has (had?) tiny hands.
I am a firm believer that Joe Burrow killed the narrative about hand size in the National Football League. His career speaks for itself after some concerns that his hands were too small during the pre-Draft process.
Nevertheless, the chatter continues. Hand size, particularly with quarterbacks, is one of the intangibles that NFL scouts look for in a prospect. You know what they say — big hands mean …
… that a quarterback can grip the ball better, has more control of the football and can get more spin and velocity on a pass.
Kenny Pickett is the most recent example. The surprising first-round pick refused to get his hands measured at the Senior Bowl and it very quickly became a major concern. He went to great lengths (pun intended) to increase the size of his hands and even wore a splint in his sleep.
It sounds like Milroe took a similar approach.
The former Alabama signal-caller’s hands were measured at six and sixth-eighths inches at the Senior Bowl. NFL teams don’t like to see a number under nine inches and the fumble problem didn’t help.
"Quarterback hand size doesn't matter."
— Tommy Jaggi (@TommyJaggi) January 31, 2025
I know Jalen Milroe was bumped here, but grip, pump fakes, security, release, and everything else are affected when you have 8 3/4'' hands. #SeniorBowl pic.twitter.com/yetEtTOZpW
The initial measurement at the Senior Bowl raised concerns that no longer exist. Jalen Milroe’s hands were measured at nine and three-thirds at the NFL Combine on Saturday.
Yes, you read that correctly. His new measurement reflects a size increase of more than half an inch in exactly one month!
Although I have my questions about the legitimacy of these two very different measurements, I have no idea what Milroe has been up to over the last 30-ish days. Maybe he spent every waking hour of his day stretching his hands to shock the world at the NFL Combine. Maybe he also slept in a splint.
Whatever happened here, Jalen Milroe’s tiny hands are magically cleared of any concern in the eyes of the NFL. They’re over nine inches and that is apparently all that matters!