NFL Draft 2011: Could Cam Newton Be the Second Coming of Jason Campbell in DC?

The NFL draft is just four months away and with it comes the chance for every NFL franchise to improve their roster.

One team that will be facing several question marks this offseason is the Washington Redskins.

The Redskins are on their way to another losing season and will likely snag a decent first round pick in April's draft.

And one of those aforementioned question marks regards maybe the most important position on the field: quarterback.

Last offseason, Washington brought in exiled Eagles' quarterback Donovan McNabb with hopes of reaching the playoffs, not rebuilding.

But the Redskins now find themselves doing just that as in less than a season with the team, McNabb was forced out of the starting position and shunned by the Redskins' coaching staff.

Enter Rex Grossman.

The former NFC Championship quarterback with the Bears four seasons ago, Grossman is a decent reserve, but not the future for Washington under center.

Fast forward to April's draft.

Washington will likely be picking in the 11-15 range, meaning they will have a solid shot at landing an elite quarterback.

Stanford's Andrew Luck is expected to go very early, if not first overall. That is, if he decides to come out early.

That leaves the likes of Jake Locker, Ryan Mallett and Cam Newton.

Locker is projected to go somewhere in the top 10 picks, maybe to Arizona or San Francisco.

Mallet is a talented quarterback with plenty of NFL size, however his stock isn't as high as some others at his position.

That leaves Cam Newton, the Heisman Trophy winning quarterback of the 13-0 Auburn Tigers. Newton can add a national championship to his resume with a win on January 10.

If Newton decides to forgo his senior season with the Tigers and enter the draft, then why not the Redskins?

Who cares what your offensive line looks like when your quarterback is 6'6", 250 pounds and as fast as they come.

However, when describing Newton, one can't help but to think of another Redskins quarterback from an undefeated Auburn team years ago.

Ahh, Jason Campbell.

Campbell was drafted 25th overall by Washington in the 2005 NFL draft. He played five seasons for the Redskins before being traded to Oakland last spring.

Though Campbell lacked some of Newton's speed and athleticism, he was still a 6'5", 230 pound prototype passer with a big arm for Washington.

It's difficult to predict how careers will unfold at the professional level before a player has even stepped foot on an NFL field, but we do anyway.

Newton has been dominating college football for the past season, similarly to Tim Tebow. But somehow, when it came draft time, no one wanted to take a chance.

Mainly because college football and the NFL are two totally different monsters.

So ultimately the question the Redskins, or any other team looking to draft Newton, must ask themselves becomes: is this guy for real?

They thought so about Jason Campbell, and now he's throwing passes in Oakland.

Patrick Clarke is a student at Towson University and a writing intern for Bleacher Report.