Why we need a QB in Top 5

The Gipper

Where have Top 50 QBs in history been drafted?

Take a look at this list

Let the debate begin.

Tom Brady* Still in top form at age 38, he has done enough to surpass his boyhood idol Joe Montana and mainly without a superstar wide receiver
Johnny Unitas Dominated a bruising era with 10 Pro Bowl appearances, revolutionizing the position with his versatility and play calling
Joe Montana Showed tremendous poise and decision-making in the West Coast offense, finishing as the season leader in completion percentage five times
Peyton Manning Owns perhaps the greatest arm in football history and nobody has thrown more touchdown passes or made more Pro Bowl appearances
Steve Young ..Supplemental draftA great scrambling quarterback who led the NFL in passer rating six times, he would be higher on this list if not for sitting behind Montana and his stint in the USFL
Otto Graham The consummate winner, he never missed a game in his career and was consistently among the best statistical leaders year after year
John Elway One of the game’s great leaders, the Broncos legend carried his team on his shoulders with his big arm, exceptional running ability and clutch plays
Dan Marino A cannon arm and quick release helped the Dolphins legend post enormous stats
Bart Starr Perhaps the most accurate and efficient quarterback of his era, challenging Unitas as the top quarterback of the 1960s
Sammy Baugh The most versatile player on this list, and the first truly great quarterback in football history
Brett Favre Few quarterbacks have been as good for as long as Favre, who posted stellar career stats
Roger Staubach..due to military committment The most talented quarterback of the 1970s, the Cowboys legend would be higher on this list if he hadn’t started his career at age 27 because of a Navy commitment
Fran Tarkenton Arguably the all-time greatest running quarterback, the Vikings’ star found a way to keep his team in games with his ingenuity and deep passes
Drew Brees* Though overshadowed by Brady and Peyton, Brees has been a warrior for the Saints in nine Pro Bowl seasons and remains a star
Norm Van Brocklin Went to the Pro Bowl nine times and posted numbers nearly as good as the likes of Unitas, Graham and Starr
Dan Fouts Like Marino, Fouts was a hard-nosed quarterback with a great arm who is overlooked because of a lack of team success
Aaron Rodgers* Owns the highest career passer rating (104.1) and will no doubt quickly climb this list before his career is over
Bob Griese One of the smartest minds in football helped the Dolphins finish with the highest winning percentage in the 1970s while reaching six Pro Bowls
Sonny Jurgensen Somewhat overlooked because of Unitas and Starr in the 1960s, he deserves recognition for his precise passes, consistency and toughness
Terry Bradshaw Surrounded by great talent, the three-time Pro Bowler was nevertheless a strong-armed leader of one of the most accomplished teams in NFL history and an underrated scrambler
Len Dawson Probably the game’s most accurate passer, the Chiefs legend even posted strong numbers very late in his career
Troy Aikman Like Bradshaw, Aikman won with great talent around him, but that shouldn’t detract from his excellent accuracy, smart decisions and impressive passing strength
Warren Moon A master of the run-and-shoot offense, he played in a staggering eight Pro Bowls despite starting his NFL career at age 28
Bobby Layne Mastered the two-minute drill, willed his team to titles, and all the while put up big numbers
Y.A. Tittle The two-time MVP had a hard-luck career when it came to winning championships, but was an undeniable talent in the 1950s and particularly the early 1960s
Ken Anderson Easily among the most underrated players on this list, this huge talent did so much despite being surrounded by so little
Joe Namath Broadway Joe’s suspect stats don’t tell the story of his big arm, quick release and gutsy play
Ben Roethlisberger* Quality talent has surrounded Big Ben over his career, but he has also proven to be a very accurate passer, a good scrambler and difficult guy to sack
Sid Luckman Led the league in QB rating three times and helped Chicago win four titles over a span of seven seasons
Ken Stabler In his prime years, the southpaw was crucial to the Raiders’ success and is among the most clutch players on this list
Donovan McNabb Made the Pro Bowl six times while keeping the Eagles competitive with his consistent play
Roman Gabriel One of the all-time strongest quarterbacks who sometimes seemed impossible to sack, the Rams star was unfortunately overshadowed by guys like Staubach and Tarkenton
Jim Kelly Like Young, spent the early portion of his career in the USFL, but still went to five Pro Bowls over 11 NFL seasons
Kurt Warner Began and ended his NFL career with big seasons, and threw a gorgeous spiral with tremendous accuracy
Randall Cunningham Probably had the strongest arm the game has ever seen, and was also a gifted scrambler
George Blanda A former backup to Layne, he played big when it counted, and also at various positions, until he was 48
Drew Bledsoe The four-time Pro Bowler was equipped with an excellent arm and a sharp mind
Philip Rivers* Overlooked because of a lack of mobility and team success, he still has one of the best arms in football and has posted a QB Rating over 100 in four seasons
John Brodie Consistent, hard-nosed signal caller who was often as accurate as the superstars of his era, and even shined late in his career
Eli Manning* Hasn't posted huge numbers compared to his peers, but often steps up when it counted and was consistent
Steve McNair At his best, he was as good as anyone on this list, throwing bulls-eye passes and running for first downs when his team needed them most
Michael Vick* The fastest man on this list and the only one to rush for 1,000 yards, he would be ranked higher had he not been away from the game in his prime years
Bob Waterfield Had a short career that began after World War II, but he consistently had among the best stats in his era
Rich Gannon A do-everything quarterback, he thrived when he had better talent around him, reaching the Pro Bowl four times with the Raiders
Tony Romo* Has enjoyed a better career than most give him credit for, and will move up this list if he can effectively overcome recent injuries
John Hadl Posted 33,503 passing yards in 166 starts during the 1960s and 1970s, as a four-time AFL All-Star and a two-time Pro Bowler
Archie Manning Didn’t have the offensive line or the receivers to prove his worth, but could create plays and had a good arm
Boomer Esiason Didn’t have the spotlight during an era that featured Montana, Marino and others, but he threw 247 touchdowns and went to four Pro Bowls
Joe Theismann Posted some strong seasons for Redskins’ squads that were consistently competitive
Phil Simms The two-time Pro Bowler cracks this list behind solid numbers after his 20s

*Active player

Red: #1 overall

Purple: Top 5

Blue: Top 10

Green: over #100 or UDFA

The Gipper

Note: 24 of the 50 have been Top 10 draft picks.

7 of the Top 50 have been below pick #100....or were UDFA

18 were between picks 11-99

Mudfly

Some belong in the top 5 and some dont, Gip....

Just because a guy is the top QB in his class....that does not automatically make him a top 5 pick.....

Lots of history to back that up too.....

Trubisky is no where NEAR the type of prospect that Manning, Aikman & Elway were.....not even close....

Just ask Blake Bortles, EJ Manuel, Jamarcus Russell, Vince Young, Ryan Leaf, David Carr, RGIII and the rest of the cant miss crowd.....

And, Trubisky is not rated as high as most of these guys were.....he just isnt

Mark O

@mudfly said:

Some belong in the top 5 and some dont, Gip....

Just because a guy is the top QB in his class....that does not automatically make him a top 5 pick.....

Lots of history to back that up too.....

Trubisky is no where NEAR the type of prospect that Manning, Aikman & Elway were.....not even close....

Just ask Blake Bortles, EJ Manuel, Jamarcus Russell, Vince Young, Ryan Leaf, David Carr, RGIII and the rest of the cant miss crowd.....

And, Trubisky is not rated as high as most of these guys were.....he just isnt

Exactly... That's why you don't pick one this year. Build the defense, go with Kessler or whoever and worry about QB next year. Kizer might be the only one I'd consider this year.

Browns1216

i'd rather fix the defense first. whoever the Browns draft is going to get killed and be forced to play catch-up because the defense lets up 30 points a game. stick with Kessler and fix the pass rush and secondary.

runyon27

@mudfly said:

Some belong in the top 5 and some dont, Gip....

Just because a guy is the top QB in his class....that does not automatically make him a top 5 pick.....

Lots of history to back that up too.....

Trubisky is no where NEAR the type of prospect that Manning, Aikman & Elway were.....not even close....

Just ask Blake Bortles, EJ Manuel, Jamarcus Russell, Vince Young, Ryan Leaf, David Carr, RGIII and the rest of the cant miss crowd.....

And, Trubisky is not rated as high as most of these guys were.....he just isnt

The question isn't whether he is highly rated as 3 of the best QBs of all time. The question is, is he a franchise QB. Maybe needs to sit a year but if you believe he is a franchise caliber QB then you draft him, if you don't then take the best non-QB player available. Because next year if they do improve, you won't get your pick of the QBs.

Mudfly

right....anyone who lived through the Couch years should know "why" this isnt the time to pick a QB high.....

Until this FO figures out how to build a solid foundation and the importance of winning in the trenches, it's pointless to add random skill players....ala 1st round WR's and a project QB.....who will fail miserably.....or get hurt....or not develop because they have no chance to....

We need IMPACT players....not projects.....(and we have a shit ton of projects, btw....drafted 14 of em just last year).....and we will draft a bunch more with our many many middling picks this year.....lets use the few good picks on KNOWN good players....

Get 2 dominant lines and see where that takes ya.....(hint....a lot further than an avg WR and QB project will)

@runyon27 said:
The question isn't whether he is highly rated as 3 of the best QBs of all time. The question is, is he a franchise QB. Maybe needs to sit a year but if you believe he is a franchise caliber QB then you draft him, if you don't then take the best non-QB player available. Because next year if they do improve, you won't get your pick of the QBs.

If you read Gips posts(which I was replying to), he is clearly saying that.....if we draft Trubisky at #1, then the odds say he'll be a star....and I say BS....

And I agree.....IF you think he's a franchise QB, then pick him.....I just dont see that he is.....and dont think the consensus see's that either.....just think we are QB desperate and he is the top rated one, so people are ready to over pay and hope.....

and, this year, I dont want to do that.....at least with a prospect not rated to be there......I rather over pay and hope on a top 5 player, instead of a top 20 player(with a very limited resume)

The Gipper

@mudfly said:

Some belong in the top 5 and some dont, Gip....

Just because a guy is the top QB in his class....that does not automatically make him a top 5 pick.....

Lots of history to back that up too.....

Trubisky is no where NEAR the type of prospect that Manning, Aikman & Elway were.....not even close....

Well, OK, those are probably 3 of the Top 10 QBs in football history. So, he ranks just outside the Top 10.

Just ask Blake Bortles, EJ Manuel, Jamarcus Russell, Vince Young, Ryan Leaf, David Carr, RGIII and the rest of the cant miss crowd.....

And, Trubisky is not rated as high as most of these guys were.....he just isnt

Not rated as high? Maybe.....but will be better......I put him in the Aaron Rodgers class. Maybe we can get him at #24 like Rodgers.

The Gipper

@mark-o said:

Exactly... That's why you don't pick one this year. Build the defense, go with Kessler or whoever and worry about QB next year. Kizer might be the only one I'd consider this year.

No, fucking hell no. Seriously? As a Browns fan you want to endure another year of quarterback hell? Not I.

I DO want that defense built up, yes. But that is why the Browns made the trades they did: to get a QB and to build their defense.

What do we have? another 12-14 picks?

How about making some of these high picks we have used in the past on defense pay off in addition to drafting a couple more (DBs)? Ogbah, Shelton, Orchard, Nassib, Cooper. All top 3 round picks no?

How about signing a real free agent or two to help the defense?

Mark O

@mudfly said:

And I agree.....IF you think he's a franchise QB, then pick him.....I just dont see that he is.....and dont think the consensus see's that either.....just think we are QB desperate and he is the top rated one, so people are ready to over pay and hope.....

and, this year, I dont want to do that.....at least with a prospect not rated to be there......I rather over pay and hope on a top 5 player, instead of a top 20 player(with a very limited resume)

I know Brian Billick is a hated name around here, but he's a smart football guy. Something I've heard him say, "Need is a terrible evaluator of talent". We do need a QB, but we can't let that need over value a QB because that doesn't help anything. I watched a lot of the 2nd half of Triblowski's game and wasn't impressed.

tiamat63

Gip, let me ask you this. You don't want to endure another year of QB hell, but you want to bring in a top 5 pick that clearly won't be ready to be an immediate contributor?

I trust you see the contradiction in your argument here..?

Mark O

@the-gipper said:

No, fucking hell no. Seriously? As a Browns fan you want to endure another year of quarterback hell? Not I.

I DO want that defense built up, yes. But that is why the Browns made the trades they did: to get a QB and to build their defense.

What do we have? another 12-14 picks?

How about making some of these high picks we have used in the past on defense pay off in addition to drafting a couple more (DBs)? Ogbah, Shelton, Orchard, Nassib, Cooper. All top 3 round picks no?

How about signing a real free agent or two to help the defense?

And what if we take Triblowski #1 overall and he turns out to be David Carr? You're still in QB hell and you wasted a chance to get a defensive monster because you over valued a QB because we need one. There isn't a QB worth the #1 overall pick. Figure out the guy on defense who will be a stud and take him. Certailny looks to me like Bosa is better than both QB's taken at ahead of him.

The Gipper

If you read Gips posts(which I was replying to), he is clearly saying that.....if we draft Trubisky at #1, then the odds say he'll be a star....and I say BS....

That is right, BS....as is you don't know shit from Shinola as to whether he will be a star or not. Fact is, he has as equal chance of being one as not.

And I agree.....IF you think he's a franchise QB, then pick him.....I just dont see that he is..

Well, that is where we disagree. People didn't think Aaron Rodgers would be a franchise QB...waited till #24 to take him...including the Browns....how does that look? Like a fucking shit stupid move, that is how that looks.

...and dont think the consensus see's that either.....just think we are QB desperate and he is the top rated one, so people are ready to over pay and hope.....

Well, the Browns are QB desperate....that is why you go and get one.

and, this year, I dont want to do that.....at least with a prospect not rated to be there......I rather over pay and hope on a top 5 player, instead of a top 20 player(with a very limited resume)

Or, I would rather take a Top #1 player......and that is what we need. The point of this thread is that by far the greatest QBs of all time were most top, top draft picks.

So, we have the top pick for the first time in 15 years.......go get a motherfucking quaterback.

TopDawg31

Where is the Trubisky is not rated high coming from? Look at the mocks he is in the top 3 of most and top 6 of every mock I have found. Kiper has him as the top QB in this class. I just don't get where some of you say he is not rated high?

TopDawg31

@mark-o said:

And what if we take Triblowski #1 overall and he turns out to be David Carr? You're still in QB hell and you wasted a chance to get a defensive monster because you over valued a QB because we need one. There isn't a QB worth the #1 overall pick. Figure out the guy on defense who will be a stud and take him. Certailny looks to me like Bosa is better than both QB's taken at ahead of him.

and if garrett turns out to be another courtney brown, where are we then?

Mark O

@topdawg31 said:
Where is the Trubisky is not rated high coming from? Look at the mocks he is in the top 3 of most and top 6 of every mock I have found. Kiper has him as the top QB in this class. I just don't get where some of you say he is not rated high?

I believe it's comparing the ratings to QB's in other drafts.

Mark O

@topdawg31 said:
and if garrett turns out to be another courtney brown, where are we then?

still looking for a QB clearly. There's examples of busts at every position. Much more often with the QB's however.

The Gipper

@mark-o said:

I know Brian Billick is a hated name around here, but he's a smart football guy. Something I've heard him say, "Need is a terrible evaluator of talent". We do need a QB, but we can't let that need over value a QB because that doesn't help anything. I watched a lot of the 2nd half of Triblowski's game and wasn't impressed.

Well, if we shouldn't draft for what we need...then why don't we take a Left Tackle....or a Left guard.

This team needs everything. Every pick we make will likely be for need. So we may as well draft for need.

Fact is.....we probably DO need an edge rusher and a couple of quality DBs more than we need a QB. So, lets not draft them either?

Championships are made by: A. Great QBs, B. Great defenses. We've got to work on both, sure. But....we need ONE QB....and about 5 defensive players. Get the one guy...then work on the rest.

Get MT at #1....then LB/DB/DL at #12.....and the same at #33...and an OC at #45.

Mudfly

right...we can all site examples of failures till we are blue in the face....and we can all agree that ANY pick is a gamble and there are no guarantees....no matter who you pick....

But...I would say this....each draft there is a handful of truly "blue chip" players.....usually just a couple or a few.....and these players are your "best bet".....and if you can get a blue chip player, you do it....period

And if you pass on a blue chip player, just to fill a need, then you are making a grave error(which we have done over and over)...

And....I think if we are looking at the 2017 draft class, there are less than 5 blue chips.....and none of them are named Trubisky.....

The Gipper

@mark-o said:

I believe it's comparing the ratings to QB's in other drafts.

He Kiper, or he, me? I think Trubisky is a better prospect than any QB that came out last year. At least equal to Mariota\Bortles as a prospect. Maybe not Winston....or Luck...but anyone but in the last 3-4 years.