Virginia Tech strong-armed NFL draft prospect, Shadow Creek grad Kyron Drones: ‘A new-age quarterback’

HOUSTON – The football is whistling a sweet tune, rifling through the air toward its intended target.

Kyron Drones is in his element: firing spirals with incredible velocity, torque and accuracy during a recent throwing session in Houston.

The Virginia Tech quarterback has arguably the strongest arm in this draft class. A former Shadow Creek standout and Baylor starter who transferred to play for the Hokies, Drones is a cousin of Tennessee Titans starting quarterback Cam Ward.

Between his athleticism and improvisational skills, dual-threat capacity and a proven ability to adapt and overcome less than ideal pass protection, Drones is an intriguing NFL draft prospect with rare traits.

“You can’t play quarterback if you can’t move around, we don’t have statues back there anymore,” said private quarterbacks coach Darrell Colbert, who trains Drones, Ward, Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders and several others. “Kyron is a new-age quarterback. He’s very accurate. He can push the ball down the field. I think the NFL is getting a huge steal in him being able to do so many different things. He’s a three-headed monster. He can run. He can improvise.

“It wasn’t the easiest circumstance last season. It says a lot about who he is, how he was raised. He took Shadow Creek to a championship. Goes to Baylor. Things didn’t work out he wanted to, moved on to Virginia Tech, kept his head down, kept working. Shows the type of guy and player that he is. The quarterback comparisons, I’ve seen a lot with Deshaun Watson and Jalen Hurts as well.”

Drones visited the Green Bay Packers in addition to a Zoom meeting and also met virtually with the Philadelphia Eagles, Indianapolis Colts and Jacksonvile Jaguars. He visited in-person with Texans quarterbacks coach Jerry Schuplinski, a former assistant quarterbacks coach with New England Patriots legend Tom Brady.

He participated in the East-West Shrine Bowl all-star game, showcasing his arm talent.

Now, Drones waits to find out where he’ll play football this fall.

“Very excited, just putting in that work and just waiting to see my name called,” Drones told KPRC 2. “I put in that work on my craft, perform at the highest level. I see openings where others don’t. That’s something I’ve been taught since middle school.

“I always knew I had the athletic ability. You never want to make a bad play worse. I do what I can to keep the play going, do whatever I can for my team, keep moving the sticks, keep working toward getting the touchdown. Once I run through a play once or twice, it’s automatic to me. It’s like playing chess.”

Drones is big and strong at 6-foot-2, 226 pounds with large hands: 9 3/4 inches. He has run the 40-yard dash in 4.55 seconds and had one of the highest Relative Athletic Scores in the draft with a 36-inch vertical leap.

For years, Drones has studied the game with intensity with an eye toward self-improvement.

He watched Watson during his Pro Bowl days with the hometown Texans and Hurts.

“I watch a lot of those guys, I always compare myself to Deshaun Watson and there’s some similarities with me and Jalen, too,” said Drones, who is represented by Klutch Sports. “My favorite quarterback right now is Joe Burrow. I watch him a lot, just what he’s able to do in the pocket, how poised he is.”

Drones comes from a football family. His father and his grandfather have been working with him his entire life, providing support encouragement and coaching tips. His development is a family affair.

“They ended up teaching me from a defense perspective of what they are looking at from a quarterback when they watch film,” Drones said. “So, that helped me and just my support system out there. I never had a game where I didn’t have a family member there, so I appreciate my family a lot, just for being there for me through all the ups and downs throughout my career.”

Meeting with the Texans at Reliant Stadium, Drones talked with coach DeMeco Ryans and did some testing and a film session.

It was a significant experience for him.

“The day was good,” Drones said. “Just meeting coach Ryans, hell of a coach, what he’s doing with the Texans, it’s a phenomenal job. Getting on the board and getting in a film room with the quarterbacks coach, we had a good connection. I feel like he loved what I brought to the table. It was a really good day.”

Visiting the Packers was eye-opening.

He walked into Lambeau Field, the same stadium where Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers have plied their trade. It was unforgettable.

“As you’re walking through the stadium, you kind of get a little goosebumps,” Drones said. “An organization like Green Bay, they do a lot of winning there. Green Bay was a hell of an experience. I’m glad I was able to go, glad they wanted me there.”

The Packers lost backup quarterback Malik Willis during free agency. He’s now the starting quarterback for the Miami Dolphins.

Yes, the Packers referenced Willis during their conversations with Drones.

“They talked about how there’s similarities with us and how they want to do the same thing for me, if they pick me, it’s for a long time, not a short time,” Drones said. “They talked about how Malik progressed and his work ethic. So, I’m just going in there with that mindset, just to keep getting better, do the best with your team and whatever they want me to do.”

At Virginia Tech, Drones completed 58.3 percent of his throws for 5,566 yards and 44 touchdown passes. He rushed for 1,798 yards and 20 touchdowns. He piled up 7,364 yards of total offense and 64 total touchdowns.

He has sought advice previously from former Virginia Tech star quarterbacks Michael Vick and Tyron Taylor.

“He really told me to go out there and be myself,” Drone said of his advice from Vick. “I know what type of quarterback that I am. Just owning that and going out there and be myself.”

Drones had 9.7 percent of his passes dropped last season, sixth-highest rate of any quarterback in this draft class.

And Drones was under heavy duress, overcoming adverse situations when protection broke down. He was under pressure on 39.8 percent of his dropbacks for the highest rate in this draft class. The second-most was Arkansas’ Taylen Green at 36.1 percent.

“When we do a good job of giving Kyron time, good things happen for us,” Virginia Tech interim coach Phillip Montgomery said last season.

Not including the sacks he took, Drones rushed for 816 yards. That included a season-high 154 yards and two touchdowns against Cal.

In a bowl game three years ago, he rushed for 176 yards against Tulane. Two seasons ago against Georgia Tech, Drones scored touchdowns passing, running and receiving as the first to do so since 2000.

Drones passed for 1,919 yards and 17 touchdowns last season and rushed for 644 yards and nine touchdowns.

Everything started at Shadow Creek for Drones. He passed for 1,239 yards and 16 touchdowns as a senior in six games. He helped the team to a state championship and was named Offensive Most Valuable Player in the championship game. He was a third-team all-state selection and Elite 11 finalist who passed for 3,390 yards and 46 touchdowns as a junior with 18 rushing touchdowns with 825 yards on the ground.

“It was really fun at Shadow Creek,” Drones said. “I started right away and we won the state championship. It was a lot of winning while I was there, so that helped me a lot, just winning, having that pressure. Being an even-keel guy has always been me.”

He wound up choosing Baylor over Auburn, Ole Miss, TCU, Missouri and Georgia Tech. He transferred to Virginia Tech after the 2022 season.

Drones was a team captain for Virginia Tech each of the past two seasons.

Kevin Jones, Kyron’s father, is extremely proud.

He has watched and boosted his son’s development his entire life, first putting a football in his hands at a young age.

Now, Drones is on the cusp of the NFL and achieving a life-long dream.

“He’s always been a natural thrower,” Kevin Drones said. “I always felt like he was a good quarterback. He didn’t play quarterback until the seventh grade. He played a lot of running back before that.”

“Just not knowing what’s going to happen. up until this point, we’ve been in control, leaving shadow Creek, going to Baylor, leaving Baylor, going to Virginia Tech. We’ve kind of been in control the process. Now it’s in someone else’s hand. You just hope that one of the 32 teams gives him a shot.”

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com