The Red Zone Report | Sizing up the signal-callers: The good, the bad, and the unexpected.

NFL

Sizing up the signal-callers: The good, the bad, and the unexpected.

By Eddie Griffin ⋅ January 10, 2008 ⋅ Subscribe to The Red Zone Report

The 2008 NFL draft class looks set to have at least three quarterbacks drafted in the first round, in Boston College’s Matt Ryan, Kentucky’s Andre’ Woodson, and Louisville’s Brian Brohm.

This should be a pretty strong draft year for QBs, much like 2004 (four QBs drafted in the first 11 picks) and 2006 (three in the first 11).

The best QB draft in league history is regarded as the 1983 draft, when Hall of Famers John Elway (#1), Jim Kelly (#14), and Dan Marino (#27) were three of six QBs drafted in the first round (Todd Blackledge, Tony Eason, and Ken O‘Brien were the others).

But, every draft doesn’t work out that way, even the ones that were supposed to be good. In 1999, five signal-callers were drafted in the first 12 picks, and three of them (#1 Tim Couch, #3 Akili Smith, and #12 Cade McNown) were busts.

The next year might have been one of the weakest in recent history, with no QB drafted until the 18^th pick, when Chad Pennington went to the Jets (one behind Sebastian Janikowski), or worse yet, 1996, when there were no quarterbacks picked in the first round.

With that in mind, I thought I’d take a look at the starting QBs in the league, and their draft years - if they were drafted.

AFC East

Buffalo: Trent Edwards (2007), J.P. Losman (2004)
Miami: Cleo Lemon (2001), John Beck (2007)
New England: Tom Brady (2000)
New York Jets: Chad Pennington (2000), Kellen Clemens (2006)

AFC North

Baltimore: Steve McNair (1995), Kyle Boller (2003), Troy Smith (2007)
Cincinnati: Carson Palmer (2003)
Cleveland: Derek Anderson (2005), Charlie Frye (2005)
Pittsburgh: Ben Roethlisberger (2004)

AFC South

Houston: Matt Schaub (2004), Sage Rosenfels (2001)
Indianapolis: Peyton Manning (1998)
Jacksonville: David Garrard (2002), Quinn Gray (2002)
Tennessee: Vince Young (2006), Kerry Collins (1995)

AFC West

Denver: Jay Cutler (2006)
Kansas City: Damon Huard (1996), Brodie Croyle (2006)
Oakland: Daunte Culpepper (1999), Josh McCown (2002), JaMarcus Russell (2007)
San Diego: Phillip Rivers (2004)

NFC East

Dallas: Tony Romo (2003)
New York Giants: Eli Manning (2004)
Philadelphia: Donovan McNabb (1999), A.J. Feeley (2001)
Washington: Jason Campbell (2005), Todd Collins (1995)

NFC North

Chicago: Brian Griese (1998), Rex Grossman (2003)
Detroit: Jon Kitna (1996)
Green Bay: Brett Favre (1991)
Minnesota: Tarvaris Jackson (2006), Kelly Holcomb (1995)

NFC South

Atlanta: Joey Harrington (2002), Byron Leftwich (2003), Chris Redman (2000)
Carolina: Jake Delhomme (1997), David Carr (2002), Vinny Testaverde (1987), Matt Moore (2007)
New Orleans: Drew Brees (2001)
Tampa Bay: Jeff Garcia (1994), Luke McCown (2004)

NFC West

Arizona: Kurt Warner (1994), Matt Leinart (2006)
San Francisco: Alex Smith (2005), Trent Dilfer (1994), Shaun Hill (2002), Chris Weinke (2001)
St. Louis: Marc Bulger (2000), Gus Frerotte (1994)
Seattle: Matt Hasselbeck (1998)

24 of the 58 quarterbacks who started at least one game in the NFL this season were drafted in the first round, spanning from Testaverde (#1 in 1987) to Russell (#1 in 2007).

At the other end of the spectrum, the likes of Garrard (4^th), and sixth-rounders Hasselbeck, Anderson, and most notably Brady, and undrafted free agent Romo are busy quarterbacking playoff teams this weekend. Only five of the 12 teams who made the playoffs entered the postseason starting QBs who were drafted in the first round (Pittsburgh, Indy, SD, Tennessee, and New York)

It’s interesting to look back and see how things work out. Few could have predicted that Brady and Romo would have the success they’ve had, while the likes of McNown, Ryan Leaf, and so many others have faded into obscurity, little more than an answer to a trivia question. I imagine Colts fans are thankful every day for the fact that their #1 pick in 1998 was used on Peyton Manning and not on Leaf, while a lot of GMs might be kicking themselves for letting Brady fall so far.

But, you never can forecast how things will pan out in the future. Some guys fly under the radar or take time to develop, while some don’t live up to their potential, and some get derailed by injury. That’s why the draft is such a crapshoot, as much of a certainty as some guys may seem to be.

Talent isn’t everything, because if you don’t make the best out of it, you can end up out of the game and watching guys who did make the best out of theirs, even if it’s less than yours.

How will we look back on the 2007 draft class, and soon enough, the 2008 draft class? There seems to be a lot of promise, but as is always the case, only time will tell.