Jacksonville Jaguars: 5 Reasons Blaine Gabbert Will Be a Huge Bust
From Ryan Leaf to David Carr to Alex Smith to Jamarcus Russell, being a bust and a quarterback is a tradition that only a select few will experience.
This year, players like Cam Newton, Jake Locker and Christian Ponder are all risky enough to be busts.
However, it is the 'safest' player, Blaine Gabbert, who will be the true bust in the NFL from the 2011 draft class.
There are a multitude of reasons why this is true and here are five.
Happy Feet
1 of 5
When the average NFL quarterback receives the snap, be it under center or in shotgun, typically a three, five or seven-step drop is employed.
Gabbert seems to have missed the boat on drops and footwork in the pocket, even in a spread offense.
The Missouri product loses key leverage by rolling out or trying to make plays with his feet, even when there is no rush.
While some quarterbacks move a step or two when they feel the rush, Gabbert seems to let the pocket break down for no reason and containing outside linebackers/defensive ends in the NFL will terrorize Gabbert if he does this.
No Pocket Presence
2 of 5
Some will say that pocket presence can be developed with NFL experience, but the truth is that presence in the pocket is a natural instinct.
Blaine Gabbert doesn't know how to feel a rush coming on and is too content to take off without pressure in the pocket.
This ties into Gabbert's happy feet and the Missouri quarterback doesn't set his feet when throwing the ball.
Gabbert has difficulty standing tall in the pocket or finding the free rusher prior to the play and adjusting pass protection.
No Deep Accuracy
3 of 5
It's not terribly difficult for a collegiate spread quarterback to make the transition to the NFL, but one common denominator remains with all of the former spread signal-callers that are now having success in the NFL.
Guys like Ben Roethlisberger and Joe Flacco played in the spread in college, but were able to make a smooth transition to the NFL because of how beautifully-delivered their deep throws are.
Gabbert can't deliver a deep throw with any consistency, and as such, won't be able to take advantage of openings down the field.
The former Missouri standout will cripple the Jaguar offense with his inability to hit deep throws and he will stagnate the unit with just checkdowns (see Leinart, Matt).
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.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Inability to Make Reads
4 of 5
Scouts will try to tell you that Blaine Gabbert made fantastic reads last year, diagnosing coverages and going from No. 1 to No. 2 effectively.
Sure, Gabbert went from a hitch route to a bubble screen route effectively, but when it comes to reading an NFL defense with NFL routes, Gabbert will be clueless.
As it stands, the quarterback is already content to leave the pocket, and if he can't make NFL reads, anywhere outside the hash marks will become no-man's land for Gabbert.
In the NFL, Gabbert will have a hard time switching off of deeper routes and a massive learning curve will be waiting for Gabbert come training camp.
Lack of Production
5 of 5
Before Gabbert, Chase Daniel was the quarterback of the Missouri Tigers and he threw 39 touchdowns in the same offense that Blaine Gabbert threw a whopping...16.
Gabbert's 16:9 TD:INT ratio only shows how much work this young quarterback needs before he can even be serviceable.
Only throwing 16 touchdowns in the Big 12 shows just how incapable Gabbert is of putting the ball in the end zone.
Chase Daniel is holding kicks for Garrett Hartley, yet outperformed the highly-touted Blaine Gabbert in a quarterback-friendly offense.
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.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
