2011 NFL Draft: Blaine Gabbert Impresses, but Will Panthers Take Him No. 1?

We will start this article by saying we were not in attendance at the Missouri pro day despite being invited by a prominent alum.

Early reports are that Blaine Gabbert completed 44 of 49 passes with "at least three" drops on catchable balls. These numbers come to us from Dave Matter of the Columbia Daily Tribune.

Matter's report can be trusted, as he was there, but we will also wait to hear from the NFL Network's Mike Mayock, who was also in Columbia for the workout.

If what we are hearing this afternoon is true, Gabbert helped himself with a good showing today in front of at least seven high-ranking NFL decision makers: Rex Ryan, John Harbaugh, Marvin Lewis, John Elway, Dirk Koetter, Jim Harbaugh and Jack Del Rio. It is notable that the Carolina Panthers were not represented by Ron Rivera or Marty Hurney.

We've heard from one NFL scout who asked to remain unnamed that Gabbert looked very good under center and was, as expected, accurate. There continue to be questions about Gabbert's arm strength, but he did not answer those in his pro day workout.

NFL teams need to see that Gabbert has the arm strength to drive the ball downfield. The Missouri offense is built to get the ball out of the quarterback's hand as fast as possible and allow the wide receivers to run after the catch.

With six weeks to go before the 2011 NFL draft, it is too early to rule out Blaine Gabbert as an option for the Carolina Panthers with the first pick overall. Gabbert is certainly in the discussion for the selection.

Many will point out that the Panthers did not send scouts to the workout, but with a planned workout in only two days, they did not benefit from sending anyone to watch him at Missouri.

Our early prediction is the Panthers would love to trade the No. 1 overall pick to a team hoping to land Gabbert or Cam Newton. Should they keep the pick, we believe Patrick Peterson (CB, LSU) or Marcell Dareus (DT, Alabama) will be the pick.

Here are confirmed workouts for Blaine Gabbert in the coming weeks:

Carolina Panthers (March 19)

Minnesota Vikings (no date)

Buffalo Bills (no date)