As the last two NFL drafts have indicated, teams no longer are simply forced to draft quarterbacks and then stash them on the bench to learn. In fact, Cam Newton, Robert Griffin III and Andrew Luck have all emerged as top NFL quarterbacks in their very first year. While the 2013 NFL draft quarterback class does not seem to be quite as strong on paper, there will still be teams looking to make their pick. Here’s five of the best.
Geno Smith
At the beginning of the season, Smith could do nothing wrong for West Virginia. He has not really slowed down since, but his defense has been non-existent as his Mountaineers continue to lose game after game. At 6’3” and 220 pounds, Smith has the body type, the arm strength and the speed coaches fall in love with. He has received comparisons to RGIII (he may be fantasy football gold), but those might be unfair. Expect him to be the first quarterback taken though, sometime in the first round. In fact, depending on which team gets the pick, he could possibly go #1 overall.
Matt Barkley
His senior season hasn’t exactly ended well, as he was injured for senior day as he watched his unranked USC team lose to Notre Dame. Some might point the finger at Barkley for being the reason the Trojans went from preseason #1 to unranked, but a lot of players deserve that blame.
Barkley gets high grades for doing the little things, such as understanding complex offenses and looking off defenders. His arm strength and size will drop him some, but someone in the first round will take a shot on him. The fifth to fifteenth pick range seems to most reasonable.
Tyler Wilson
Wilson has often been compared to the man he replaced at Arkansas, Ryan Mallett. While they both have strong arms, Wilson is a better mover around the field. Those tools, plus the fact that he’s had success in the SEC, are a big reason why coaches are high on him.
Don’t overlook toughness as a factor when picking a quarterback as well. The NFL delivers crushing blows on quarterbacks all the time, so the resiliency that Wilson shows should earn him a spot as a first round pick in the mid to late rounds, depending on needs.
