NFL Draft: First-Round Quarterback Bargains of the Decade

In the past 10 years, a total of 31 quarterbacks were selected in the first round of the NFL draft.

Eight teams decided to bet the farm and select a quarterback with the first overall pick.

Andrew Luck looks promising, while JaMarcus Russell made grown men cry.

Hoping for a bigger bang for their buck, seven teams chose a quarterback at the 22nd spot or lower. The average first-round quarterback pick was 10th overall, and 13 were selected below the average. Of those 13, a handful can be considered quarterback bargains of the decade.

All statistical information can be found on www.pro-football-reference.com.

5. Rex Grossman or Tim Tebow

Rex Grossman or Tim Tebow, you make the call.

Taken by the Chicago Bears with the 22nd overall pick in 2003, Rex Grossman has had an average career at best. His 25 wins and 22 losses and quarterback rating of 71.4 are not going to raise any eyebrows.

However, his breakout 13-3 Super Bowl season in 2006 did catch the attention of many NFL fans.

Tim Tebow was Denver's 25th pick in 2010. He has a winning record of 8-6, a 75.3 rating and 17 touchdowns to nine interceptions. Only time will tell if he will have a chance to build on those numbers.

Considering Carson Palmer was the first overall pick in 2003 and Sam Bradford was the first in 2010, it becomes evident why Grossman and Tebow were bargains for teams looking to draft quarterbacks.

4. Jay Cutler

With the 11th pick in the 2006 draft, the Denver Broncos selected Jay Cutler from Vanderbilt University.

As the 2005 SEC Offensive Player of the Year, Cutler led his conference in passing yards with 3,073. The Broncos secured Cutler after 2005 Heisman Trophy contenders Vince Young and Matt Leinart, who won the Heisman in 2004, had been snatched up.

Seven years later, he has more career wins (51) than both of them combined (39). His career quarterback rating of 84.0 is respectable, and he earned a trip to the Pro Bowl in 2008.

While Cutler's three seasons in Denver were subpar, the Broncos got huge value out of his trade to Chicago. They received quarterback Kyle Orton, first- and third-round draft picks in 2009 and another first-round pick in 2010.

As for Cutler, he has shown marked improvement in Chicago, posting a 27-13 record in the past three seasons.

3. Joe Flacco

Fu Manchu—Joe Flacco.

Draftee No. 18, he landed with the Baltimore Ravens in 2008.

Baltimore's leading man has started 80 straight games and won 54 of them. He has led his team to the playoffs every season and is on his way to Super Bowl XLVII.

That is pretty good for the quarterback selected 15 spots lower than Atlanta's Matt Ryan. The Falcons signed Ryan to a six-year deal worth approximately $72 million, while Flacco was a steal at around $30 million for five years.

When he signs his next contract, Flacco's bargain status will be revoked, but at least he can afford razors...maybe even an electric one. While it is hard to believe at first, Joe Flacco has two more career wins and the same number of losses as the next quarterback on the list.

2. Aaron Rodgers

Super Bowl champion. Super Bowl MVP.

NFL MVP. Three-time Pro-Bowler. Active holder of the highest career quarterback rating.

Aaron Rodgers had to sit through 23 draft picks before the Green Bay Packers decided he was heir to Brett Favre's throne. Even then, Rodgers did not start a game in his first three full seasons.

Bad investment? Hardly.

Excluding escalator clauses, Rodgers' initial five-year contract was worth just over $7.5 million. The former Cal standout has gone on to throw 171 touchdowns against 46 interceptions in 78 career starts.

In 2011, he finished with the highest quarterback rating in history, 122.5. For the sake of comparison, the San Francisco 49ers guaranteed No. 1 pick Alex Smith a cool $24 million, and he has 81 touchdowns in 75 career starts.

A reasonable argument can be made that Aaron Rodgers is the biggest draft hit of the past decade. However, football boils down to wins and losses, and this next quarterback simply has Rodgers beat.

1. Ben Roethlisberger

Love him or hate him, Ben Roethlisberger is the first-round quarterback bargain of the decade.

Big Ben was selected 11th overall by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2004 NFL Draft. In his first season, he put together a 13-0 record with a QB rating of 98.1 and won the Offensive Rookie of the Year award.

In his second season, he became the youngest starting quarterback to win a Super Bowl.

Three seasons later, he led the Steelers to a second Lombardi trophy. If professional sports is about wins and losses, Roethlisberger's 87-39 record speaks for itself. He was drafted one year before Aaron Rodgers but has 35 more career wins.

The six-year contract Big Ben signed in 2004 was worth slightly more than $22 million with almost $18 million available in incentives. After waiting two-and-a-half decades to return to glory, the Steelers shelled out $40 million for a quarterback who won two Super Bowl championships in four years.

Sweet deal.