11 Best Available QBs in 2012 NFL Draft

There were four quarterbacks taken in the first round of the 2011 NFL draft. There is a good chance that it will take three rounds in this draft before the fourth quarterback is taken.

That does not mean, however, that this quarterback class is weak. Andrew Luck is the best quarterback prospect to come out of college in a decade, and Robert Griffin III is not far behind.

Click through to see the top 11 quarterback prospects in this year's draft.

11. Kellen Moore

2011 stats: 3,800 yards, 43 touchdowns, 9 interceptions

Kellen Moore is a guy who has won a lot of football games in college and did it while putting up some gaudy numbers.

The problem for Moore at the next level is that he does not have the size or arm strength to succeed.

Moore is really accurate. That combined with his record in college might be enough to get him drafted, but he just does not have the ability to stretch a defense.

10. Aaron Corp

2011 stats: 2,682 yards, 17 touchdowns, 13 interceptions

Aaron Corp is a guy who started his career at USC. He ended up at Richmond and had a nice season in 2011. He is 6'4" and throws with pretty good accuracy. 

An NFL team will probably use a late round pick on him to stash him away and see if he can develop into a decent quarterback.

9. Russell Wilson

2011 stats: 3,175 yards, 33 touchdowns, 4 interceptions

Russell Wilson projects as a developmental guy that might never develop. The biggest thing that will work against him at the next level is his size: He is only 5'11".

He is worth a late pick in the draft because he has a good arm and is a threat to run. He can break contain and make some plays outside of the pocket, but that is not enough to make a successful NFL career.

8. B.J. Coleman

2011 stats: 1,527 yards, 9 touchdowns, 9 interceptions

B.J. Coleman started his college career at the University of Tennessee before being run out of town by Lane Kiffin. He was highly recruited coming out of high school.

Coleman faces a tough transition from U.T. Chattanooga to the NFL.  It will take him a while to get acclimated to the professional game. 

He does have some skills that suggest he could develop into an average NFL quarterback, but it is going to take a good amount of time before he is ready.

7. Kirk Cousins

2011 stats: 3,316 yards, 25 touchdowns, 10 interceptions

Kirk Cousins faces and uphill battle to be an NFL quarterback, as he does not have the strongest of arms. Cousins would only be a fit in an offense that is based on shorter timing routes.

The thing that is really going to do Cousins in is that he has trouble breaking down coverages. His picks do not come from bad throws—they come from bad reads. 

If he can put the work in to cut down on the mental mistakes, he might have a career as an NFL signal-caller.

6. Brock Osweiler

2011 stats: 4,036 yards, 26 touchdowns, 13 interceptions

Brock Osweiler is going to be an interesting guy to watch on draft day. Recently, both Todd McShay and Mel Kiper have had Osweiler in their top five.

No one doubts Osweiler's arm—he can throw the ball downfield. The problem he has is with accuracy on the shorter, timing throws, and his footwork needs a lot of work before he is going to be ready to take over at the next level.

It would have been a good idea for him to return to school for his senior season. Osweiler might develop into a good NFL quarterback but it is going to take some time.

5. Nick Foles

2011 Stats: 4,334 yards, 28 touchdowns, 14 interceptions

Nick Foles had a really nice career at Arizona, finishing his career there with just over 10,000 yards passing.  

It is going to be interesting to see where Foles goes in the NFL draft. He has all of the measurables that you want in a quarterback. Foles possesses a strong arm and is 6'5", 240. The biggest concern with him is his accuracy, especially under pressure.

With all of that being said, he has the chance to end up being a good NFL quarterback, but he is going to need some time to develop.

4. Brandon Weeden

2011 stats: 4,727 yards, 37 touchdowns, 13 interceptions

Brandon Weeden would probably be considered the third-best quarterback in this group if he was not 28 years old. Weeden came back to college after spending a few years playing baseball in the Yankees organization (he was a second-round pick in the 2002 MLB draft).

The reason Weeden's age counts so much against him is because he is going to need a couple of years to develop in the NFL. That means he will be at least 30 by the time he is ready to take over under center for an NFL franchise.

Weeden is a smart player; his brain will help compensate for some of the accuracy issues he displayed at times in college when under duress.

3. Ryan Tannehill

2011 stats: 3,744 yards, 29 touchdowns, 15 interceptions

Ryan Tannehill is a guy that you will see all over the place if you look at mock drafts. Some people have him going as high as sixth to the Washington Redskins. Some people do not have him going until the second or third round.

The biggest knock on Tannehill is his inexperience at quarterback. He did play quarterback in high school but started his career at Texas A&M as a receiver. It is obvious that he is a good athlete because he led the team in receptions in each of the two years at wideout.

Tannehill's inexperience means that he will need some time to develop, but there is no reason to believe that he cannot be successful at the next level.

2. Robert Griffin III

2011 stats: 4,293 yards, 37 touchdowns, 6 interceptions

Robert Griffin III burst onto the scene with some spectacular numbers in 2010. He is still clearly behind Andrew Luck, but there is no reason to believe he will not develop into a franchise NFL quarterback.

One of the things that puts RG3 behind Luck is the fact that he played in a spread offense in college. It is going to take him some time to get his footwork down to be successful at the next level.

He also played in a one-read offense at Baylor, and it may take him some time to get comfortable with the complex offense he will be asked to run in the NFL.

The good news is that Griffin is a really good athlete and is a student of the game. That means if he is asked to play early he will be able to make plays with his legs, and it will not take him long to get up to speed on an NFL offense because he is going to put the time in.

1. Andrew Luck

2011 stats: 3,517 yards, 37 touchdowns, 10 interceptions

As stated before, Andrew Luck is the best quarterback prospect to come out in the last decade.

The only knock any scout has on him is that he does not have the strongest arm, but even those scouts will tell you that his arm is plenty strong enough to be a successful franchise QB.

It also will not take him long to get NFL-ready. He played in a pro-style offense at Stanford, and like RG3, he is known to be a student of the game. He knows what it takes to be a successful NFL quarterback.

The Colts are pretty lucky to have been horrific in a year where "the next Peyton Manning" is available.