NFL Draft: Matt Ryan, Brian Brohm, Chad Henne, or Joe Flacco?

The 2008 quarterback draft class does not have a standout star, making it one of the most intriguing positions in the draft.

Many consider Matt Ryan to be head-and-shoulders above the other quarterbacks. Brian Brohm, Chad Henne, and Joe Flacco are considered to be the second-tier quarterbacks, with little to distinguish them from each other.

Ryan is touted as having all of the “intangibles” that analysts talk about in a quarterback. “Matty Ice” is an accurate passer with decent arm strength who carried his team last season.

He’s a traditional quarterback who is good at avoiding the rush. Some scouts feel that Ryan takes too many chances with the ball, as he is prone to throwing interceptions.

Brohm was long considered to be the best quarterback in this group, until he and Louisville struggled after losing Bobby Petrino. Brohm is an accurate passer that has been very productive at the college level.

However, scouts question Brohm’s arm strength and worry that he may have been a system quarterback.

Chad Henne started for four years at Michigan. He has a strong arm and showed durability by missing only three games.

However, Henne did not show any progress through his college career. His freshman numbers look very similar to the numbers he put up each of the next three seasons at Michigan.

Joe Flacco is the hot newcomer in the quarterback field. He has the size and arm strength that make scouts drool. The problem is that Flacco played at Division I-AA Delaware, making it difficult to project his production to the NFL.

With so many questions about each, the best way to pick between these four may be to use the computers.

To do so, four important factors were considered. First, the career completion percentage of each was used to illustrate accuracy. Next, the career touchdown-to-interception ratio shows how many touchdowns each quarterback throws before throwing an interception.

Third, the attempts-to-interceptions ratio shows how many passes each quarterback throws between interceptions. Fourth, the attempts-to-sack ratio shows how many times each quarterback passes between sacks.

Finally, each of the quarterbacks was ranked in each category, and those rankings were averaged to show which quarterback was statistically the best of the group.

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