​Drake Lindsey is now four games into his second season as the Gophers’ starting quarterback. He’s coming off one of the biggest wins of his career against Washington on the road, but how is his development going? He continues to get hyped up on social media as a potential first-round NFL Draft pick, but is he producing like one?Stats through 4 games (FBS rank/min. 100 dropbacks)951 passing yards (41st)66.7 completion percentage (54th)76.6 adjusted completion percentage (34th)11.5 yards/completion (87th)7.25 yards/attempt (85th)1.5 interception percentage (57th)2 turnover-worthy plays (T12th)76.8 offensive PFF grade (40th)7.5 average depth of target (89th)1.4 big-time throw percentage (92nd)98.2 NFL passer rating (51st)There are more stats now than ever to analyze a quarterback’s performance. There are 139 teams in the FBS this season, and Lindsey is performing like an above-average quarterback, if not a top-third quarterback in the country, when you look at the numbers. But his impact goes further than that.P.J. Fleck and the Gophers coaching staff have mentioned multiple times this season that Lindsey is making the majority of the final play-call decisions at the line of scrimmage. Offensive coordinator Greg Harbaugh Jr. and the rest of his offensive staff give him multiple calls on a given play, and he decides at the line of scrimmage what Minnesota will ultimately run.“He kind of controlled the line of scrimmage that first half,” Washington head coach Jedd Fisch said after the game. “It looked like he had full access to the entire playbook. He was able to make whatever checks he needed to get them the best possible play.”Drake Lindsey continues to make multiple “WOW” throws every week.🎥:(@RiseNDraft) pic.twitter.com/4XOT8imC7k— Tony Liebert (@TonyLiebert) September 29, 2026Coaching and play-calling in football are supposed to put players in the right positions to succeed, and the Gophers are putting a lot on Lindsey’s plate in his second season. They averaged 23.0 points per game last season, and they’re up to 35.0 points per game this season, which ranks 46th in the country. Those numbers include one game against a MAC team and one against an FCS team, but that would still make this the Gophers’ highest-scoring offense under Fleck, topping the 2019 team that averaged 34.1 points per game.“Where Drake is mentally in the game of football, the processing of information is incredible,” Fleck said. “You kind of just see when the ball is snapped, and you see the play. Well, we’re pretty much double calling everything. Whether it’s a run with a run, or a pass to a run, or a pass to a pass or a run to a pass. He has the freedom to be able to alert the play, and you see him checking that at the line of scrimmage.”The Gophers offense has certainly improved compared to last season, and it has improved throughout this season. They ran for 125 yards as a team against Washington, marking back-to-back games with more