Quality Of Quarterback’s In The Draft

Dec 29, 2012; Bronx, NY, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers quarterback Geno Smith (12) drops back to pass during the second quarter against the Syracuse Orange at the 2012 New Era Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

With the NFL season almost to an end, and the NFL Draft a few months away, teams are preparing for off-season changes. Between Free Agency and the Draft teams are preparing to find the missing pieces to get their team to the post season. But their is a problem in the upcoming off-season for those teams searching for a franchise Quarterback.

This years QB draft class is mediocre at best. There are no Andrew Luck’s, Robert Griffin III’s, or Cam Newton’s. To put it plainly, there are no first overall quality QB’s in this draft class. That is a big problem for those team’s in desperate need for a play-maker under center.

The best QB prospect coming out has to be West Virginia’s Geno Smith. Smith is a player similar to RG3 and Newton in terms of having the ability to move out of the pocket and make a play with his feet. He also has very good arm strength and down field accuracy, but that’s where it stops.  He has problems making changes on the field, including struggling when it comes down to a no huddle situation.  Another concerning factor is his ability to read defenses and catching a disguised defensive play.

After Smith the remaining prospects are all similar. They look like they have the intangibles to play, but have a long way to go in terms of football I.Q. Mike Glennon from N.C. State, E.J. Manuel from Florida State, and Matt Barkley from USC all could go in the first round. But are they worth a first round pick?

There are several teams who are in desperate need of a franchise signal caller, like the Kansas City Chiefs, that they may be willing to take the chance on a player like Geno Smith. For some teams, any of the QB’s listed above would be a huge upgrade to what they currently have(i.e. Matt Cassel-Chiefs, or Mark Sanchez-Jets).

One thing is for certain, this is not the year of the Quarterback. In my opinion none of these QB’s are worth a first round pick, certainly not a first overall pick. This isn’t as stacked of a draft class like we have seen the previous two years. But the desperation for these teams to find a Quarterback could very easily influence which way these teams go in the first round.