On Thursday, the nation's most decorated college football player announced he would be taking his talents to the NFL (without the hour long ESPN special).

Auburn's Cameron Newton won the Maxwell, Walter Camp, Davey O'Brien and of course the Heisman; the addition of Newton, coupled with the withdrawal of Standford's Andrew Luck, has made the choice interesting for many teams looking for a signal caller in the 2011 NFL Draft.

The field is vast, but varies in talent, technique and college experience. Determining the "best" professional quarterback from the available picks is analogous to comparing Ferrari, Porsche and Bentley.

Each brand brings strengths and weaknesses to the road and yet the average joe driving a beat-up old Honda Civic would gladly take any of the three.

So who is in need of Newton's services?

Of course, the selection order has not been completely determined yet, but as of January 16th, teams will select in the following order:

1. Carolina Panthers (2-14)
2. Denver Broncos (4-12)
3. Buffalo Bills (4-12)
4. Cincinnati Bengals (4-12)
5. Arizona Cardinals (5-11)
6. Cleveland Browns (5-11)
7. San Francisco 49ers (6-10)
8. Tennessee Titans (6-10)
9. Dallas Cowboys (6-10)
10. Washington Redskins (6-10)
11. Houston Texans (6-10)
12. Minnesota Vikings (6-10)
13. Detroit Lions (6-10)
14. St. Louis Rams (7-9)
15. Miami Dolphins (7-9)
16. Jacksonville Jaguars (8-8)
17. New England Patriots (14-2; Acquired from the Oakland Raiders)
18. San Diego Chargers (9-7)
19. New York Giants (10-6)
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-6)
21. Kansas City Chiefs (10-6)
22. Indianapolis Colts (10-6)
23. Philadelphia Eagles (10-6)
24. New Orleans Saints (11-5)
25. Seattle Seahawks (7-9; NFC West Division Winner)
26. Baltimore Ravens (12-4)
27. Atlanta Falcons (13-3)
28. New England Patriots (14-2)

The first quarterback off the board could be as early as the first pick to the Carolina Panthers or as late as the seventh pick to San Francisco.

The Panthers have many options with the top pick in the draft, but having drafted a quarterback last year going to the position twice in two years might be overkill.

Carolina would be better served taking one of the highly touted defensive linemen.

So what about Denver? Veteran Kyle Orton and youngster Tim Tebow seem to have the situation handled in the mile high city, but with a new coach and the addition of John Elway in the team's front office a change may be coming down the line.

For now, don't expect Denver to go QB in 2011.

At No. 3, the Buffalo Bills have an interesting decision to make. Veteran QB Ryan Fitzpatrick had a good year in 2010, but with two young (and largely unproven) backups it might make sense for the Bills to reach for a signal caller; however, the team could still function with Fitzpatrick at starter while Brian Brohm and Levi Brown are groomed.

The Bengals were solid at the QB position in 2010 compared to other teams, so no need to reach here.

The Arizona Cardinals are in need of a field general, but perhaps a veteran would be a better choice right now. Derek Anderson is a streaky player and without him, the roster only contains unproven backups. The addition of a Donovan McNabb (or similar type player) would be beneficial.

From where I sit, the first QB off the board goes to San Francisco at No. 7. The 49ers need a reliable backup to whichever Smith takes the field for new head coach Jim Harbaugh.

Harbaugh could hold out a year and try to get his prodigy from Standford, but the risk is just too great. San Fran should take a quarterback and help solidify the position for the 2011 season.

So who should the team by the bay take?

The most NFL ready quarterback in the draft is Blaine Gabbert out of Missouri. Yes Auburn fans, not Cam Newton. Gabbert has a strong arm, good mechanics and good mobility in terms of scrambling while also able to take a hit in the pocket delivering a pass.

Next in line is college football's golden boy Cam Newton. While Newton possesses many qualities of Gabbert, he is also less experienced at the college level and needs more refinements, mechanically speaking, than Gabbert.

The Tennessee Titans at pick eight could be an option for Newton.

Rounding out the top five are Jake Locker (Washington), Ryan Mallett (Arkansas) and Christian Ponder (Florida State). All these quarterbacks appear to be skilled at the position, but require some mechanical tune up.

Of the three, Locker is clearly the most polished.

Another quarterback that could throw a wrench in the selection order is TCU's Andy Dalton. Although on the short side, Dalton proved to be a productive player at TCU and could make waves in the NFL with the right coaching staff.

Keep your eyes peeled football fans! When that draft clock starts ticking your team could be the recipient of one of these quarterbacks.

Statistics provided by ESPN.com.

Steven Ball is the author of "The Crystal Ball" weekly column syndicated on Facebook and the Bleacher Report. Like what you just read? Become a fan on Facebook here!