2011 NFL Draft: Should Carolina Panthers Take Blaine Gabbert with No. 1 Pick?

After Blaine Gabbert's fantastic pro day in Missouri, the quarterback could now be in contention for the first overall selection in the 2011 NFL draft.

Many NFL analysts, including Mike Mayock, have Gabbert rated as the best quarterback in this year's draft class.

Gabbert elected not to throw back in February's NFL combine.

He did, however, participate in all of the other measurable drills.

Gabbert showed off his athletic ability, posting some of the best results among all quarterbacks.

He ran a 4.62-second 40-yard dash time, a 6.84-second time on the three-cone drill and a 4.26-second 20-yard shuttle time. He posted a 33.5" vertical jump along with a 10'0" broad jump.

With these marks, Gabbert solidified the idea that he is an athletically gifted prospect.

Since the draft, we have all been anxiously awaiting the results of Gabbert's pro day.

Missouri finally held its pro day yesterday, and Gabbert did not disappoint.

The Associated Press reported that Gabbert completed 44 of his 49 throws. The report also indicated that three of the incompletions were the result of drops by the wide receivers.

NFL Network Analyst Mike Mayock was very impressed with Gabbert's pro day.

Mayock says he was very surprised with how good Gabbert's footwork was, claiming it was better in terms of throwing and mechanics than Matt Ryan's workout a few years ago.

Mayock continued on to say that Gabbert will be the first quarterback off the board, and he wouldn't be surprised if Carolina took him with the first overall pick.

Carolina has many pressing needs coming off a disappointing 2-14 season.

The Panthers could use a defensive tackle, defensive end, cornerback, offensive guard, center, wide receiver and quarterback.

With Ron Rivera taking over in Carolina, I find it difficult to believe that he is going to look at anything but defense with the first overall pick.

Rivera was previously the defensive coordinator for San Diego, and coached the defense in Chicago prior to that.

With that said, it doesn't appear that Jimmy Clausen has what it takes to be a starting quarterback in the league, but he is young so it may be too early to jump to conclusions.

However, it appears Gabbert has everything needed to be a franchise quarterback in the NFL.

The NFC South isn't getting any easier. The Panthers need to make some drastic changes if they want to keep up.