NFL Draft 2011: Final Quarterback Rankings

As usual, the quarterback prospects in this year’s NFL Draft are amongst the most talked about and scrutinized in the pool of available players, regardless of position.

Quarterbacks have heard their names called first in the draft, over the past two years, and this year may be no different. Auburn’s Cam Newton and Missouri’s Blaine Gabbert have both been mentioned as candidates to be picked first overall by the Carolina Panthers. 

Many of the teams picking in the first half of the first round have a need at quarterback, some glaringly so: Minnesota Vikings, Washington Redskins, Arizona Cardinals and Cincinnati Bengals (assuming Carson Palmer follows through on his threat to retire if he is not traded). Each of those teams, along with perhaps the Seattle Seahawks, San Francisco 49ers and Buffalo Bills, are expected to take a signal caller sometime in the first couple of rounds. Some teams may choose to trade up or down to get the player that they have their eye on.

In previous years' drafts, teams had the ability to trade players—past and future picks—, however the ongoing labor dispute means that different trade rules will be in place for the draft.

The “new rules” for this year’s draft allow teams to trade only the picks they have yet to make in 2011, 2012 and beyond. What this means is that if one or more of the top quarterback prospects begins to fall down the board, then it’s more likely that we’ll see significant movement in the first round. 

The current quarterback class has many projected early-round picks, however, after the first seven or eight players, the depth of the position, as far as highly regarded prospects, is not great. Some teams may go with the best perceived fit for their offensive system, when deciding among the available options, while others will take a shot at a perceived “project” in the later rounds.

If the current lockout extends too far into the offseason, then teams drafting rookie quarterbacks, with the intention of using them right away, may need to rethink their strategy or at the very least, manage their expectations.

The shorter the offseason, the steeper the learning curve, and the rookies who do start could struggle early in the season. Moreover, the already late start to free agency stands to limit the movement of veteran quarterbacks, which could be ready to go more immediately as a stopgap solution for teams in need.

Bruno Boys Fantasy Football ranks the top quarterback prospects in the 2011 NFL Draft based on which prospects are projected to be the best at the next level.

RANK	PLAYER	SCHOOL
1.	Cam Newton	Auburn Tigers
2.	Blaine Gabbert	Missouri Tigers
3.	Jake Locker	Washington Huskies
4.	Ryan Mallett	Arkansas Razorbacks
5.	Andy Dalton	Texas Christian Horned Frogs
6.	Christian Ponder	Florida State Seminoles
7.	Colin Kaepernick	Nevada Wolfpack
8.	Ricky Stanzi	Iowa Hawkeyes
9.	Pat Devlin	Delaware Blue Hens
10.	Tyrod Taylor	Virginia Tech Hokies
11.	Nathan Enderle	Idaho Vandals
12.	Scott Tolzien	Wisconsin Badgers
13.	Greg McElroy	Alabama Crimson Tide
14.	Ben Chappell	Indiana Hoosiers
15.	Taylor Potts	Texas Tech Red Raiders
16.	Jerrod Johnson	Texas A&M Aggies
17.	T.J. Yates	North Carolina Tar Heels
18.	Adam Weber	Minnesota Golden Gophers
19.	Mike Hartline	Kentucky Wildcats
20.	Jeff Van Camp	Florida Atlantic Owls

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