Before the season, I speculated that the Birmingham Stallions had the deepest QB room in the UFL. They’ve needed every bit of that depth this season.
Alex McGough has been in IR since week one.
Matt Corral stepped in for three weeks. He got progressively better each week, but went down in week 4.
Case Cookus was forced to step in and looked good at times, but was inconsistent in last week’s loss to Memphis.
All three QBs have had their good moments, as well as their struggles. That begs the question: If they’re all healthy, who should be the starter?
By The Numbers
Let’s start by taking a look at the stats.
Corral:
- 53.7% Completions
- 648 Yards Passing
- 4 TDs
- 4 Ints
- 91 yards Rushing
Cookus:
- 45.7% Completions
- 181 Yards Passing
- 2 TDs
- 1 Int
- 82 Yards Rushing
McGough:
- 41.7% Completions
- 89 Yards Passing
- 1 TD
- 1 INT
- 85 Yards Rushing
A couple of things jump out to me:
- Each QB needs to do a better job of taking care of the ball. The Stallions have had at least 1 INT in each game this year. That needs to improve.
- All three QBs have had some success with their legs. That’s been a big part of the Stallions’ offensive success for years. While each QB can make big throws, they will all need to use their legs at least a little to find success.
Matt Corral
Matt Corral’s 2025 season is a story of growth.
He struggled a bit with his reads in the beginning, but has gotten progressively better with each start.
His reads against the Roughnecks were solid, and he finally got going with his legs (52 yards). The one negative was that he missed some throws. If he improves his accuracy, he has a chance to see sustained success.
Case Cookus
I had high hopes for Cookus coming into week 5. It’s not often you see a backup with as much experience as him.
Unfortunately, it was a rough game for him. He only completed 45% of his passes, and he had a costly interception.
But it was his first start of his season. Even with his level of experience, it’s a lot to ask a QB to go from QB 3 to QB 1 in just a couple of weeks.
It wasn’t all bad, though. Cookus surprised a lot of people with his legs. He’s generally thought of as the least athletically gifted of the quarterbacks. That didn’t stop him from rushing for 83 years against the Showboat.
Given more time to get comfortable, I would expect him to look greatly improved, similar to Corral.
Alex McGough
Week one was a rough passing day for Alex McGough.
He almost had more rushing yards than passing (84 vs 89).
But, given his past success, it’s safe to say he would have found more success if given more time.
If he can get things going with his arm, it opens up his legs even more.
His legs are his biggest asset. Cookus and Corral are both athletic enough to take free yards when the defense provides the opportunity. McGough is athletic enough to create opportunities even when the defense doesn’t give him any space.
My Rankings
So, who should be QB1?
If everyone is healthy, here’s how I would rank them.
- Corral
- McGough
- Cookus
The Corral that played against the Roughnecks was he best QB play the Stallions have had all year. He consistently made good decisions and was aggressive with his legs at the right moments. If he improves his ball placement, he can lead the team far.
McGough would almost certainly play better and better given more time. But, with no word on if and when he’ll be available, there might not be much time for him to get comfortable.
Cookus made some big throws, but was too inaccurate. He will likely get another chance as a starter in the UFL if he wants it. But if everyone is healthy, it probably won’t be this season.
These are just my thoughts about the QB play so far this season. Let me know in the comments what I got wrong.
5 Comments
by Janet Pruett
Are any of the injured QB’s going to be able to return? I’m watching game 6 and it is still Cookus. What about McGough and Corral?
by Greyson Alman
Unfortunately, we don’t know yet.
They thought Corral would be ready to go this week, but he suffered a “setback” (according to Coach Holtz). But I haven’t heard anything about how severe the setback is.
McGough is on IR, which means he has to miss at least 5 weeks. So in theory, he’s now eligible to return. This next part is purely speculation on my part. But, I get the feeling there is a real chance he won’t come back this season. Coach Holtz made a point to get Andrew Peasley some reps against the Brahmas. He said it was because he wanted to see what he could do, and they need multiple QBs ready. I don’t know if he would have done that if he expected McGough and Corral to be back soon.
by Ken Granito
Although I am not really watching complete UFL games right now although I did see mid 3rd qtr & almost the whole 4th quarter of Panthers vs Defenders. I did however turn on the set right before half of the Stallions and I watched some of the later parts of the game, but I thought I remembered hearing that Skip Holtz thought that Alex McGough might be able to come back, but would not give a timeline. I think it’s a question of whether Alex McGough could get the eye of the Tiger. He has to buy in to what Mickey and Apollo are trying to teach him. Although he did in 2023, he seems to have that chip on his shoulder again. If he could by in and respect the game I think he would have the chops. Right now, I feel Ben DiNucci should go to the Battlehawks and Jeff Driskel the Stallions. Think about what Bryce Perkins did for his stock and to be honest from what I saw it looked like Kevin Hogan was accurate and on time with his passes, even though he had no time yesterday. If I were the NFL, I would bring those two guys into camp and get away from some of the QBs that have been playing. As Jake Luton, Bo Eason, Kellen Mond and all the others that are looking for a payday and not be quarterback, just let them sit. Sign the people that want to play. Yes, I know Kellen Mond is on the Brahmas, but like all those other QBs they don’t want to play, they want to be paid for practicing. I am not saying QBs that fit this mold like Nate Sudfeld wouldn’t succeed, I think players like Ben DiNucci and Jeff Driskel could and should play. They could not hurt their NFL stock, only help it, whereby Kellen Mond didn’t sign last year, which he really needed to do then. To his credit, at least he took his chance. He may even come back better next year.
by Greyson Alman
You bring up some great points. Another big issue for McGough is that he played wide receiver for the last couple of years. I think he needed a couple of games to shake off some rust, but with him missing most of the season, he won’t get that chance even if he does come back.
by Ken Granito
That is the second time I heard that about wide receiver. From what I remember his first year with the Packers he was their 4th QB. He even threw this beautiful bomb in a preseason game. It was art. From what I know I think he switched positions last year. I believe he was really only playing receiver for 1 year, but the year before he was only practicing at QB after the season started. So almost 2 years away from playing a game. I think I read more attitude from him earlier this year. Game 1 was a slap in the face. A wake up call and I am not sure whether he wants to put all the steps in, including buying in to become the quarterback he could still be. I think it will come down to how much he wants it. I feel he could lead his team to victory. I think he can have really good games to feel good about. I don’t believe he will ever have the statistics of 2023 although he could have the overall success. The players are just better now. I still feel that he is very capable. He has some awkward deliveries, but he can largely make all the throws. He can run like few QBs can. It’s the reading the defense I worry about. The Stallions wide receivers though excellent, seem to be more about catching the ball in traffic over separation. McGough may need to see some separation before he feels more comfortable than running. He needs playing time. Either way I wish the Stallions luck and I hope for McGough he figures out that he wants to prove to himself he can still play and will work with Holtz to get back where he needs to be for that success to take place. I thought Andrew Peasley would have been a quarterback that could work best with Holtz. I saw him in some preseason games for the Jets and to be honest, he lead the team extremely well, which was saying something because he wasn’t working with the veterans. To me, much like the Battlehawks the #1 thing the Stallions need is a person to get the ball in the hangs of their playmakers. It’s funny. The Stallions did that with Adrian Martinez because he was gutty, but at no time did he become polished. He just competed and was given easier reads to make. It was McGough who was the better thrower as well as runner. Anthony Becht went back and tried to catch the Adrian Martinez magic, because he was too afraid to get a QB in the door of Alex McGough’s capability. McGough has the potential to again be a top QB in this league, but it won’t be as easy as he remembers and again the stats won’t be as pretty.