I can see where that was unclear.

@tour2ma said:

Fair enough...you are not drafting a QB class....you are drafting a QB person.

I mean, look at 2000:

Chad Pennington QB Marshall 1 18(18) NY Jets

Giovanni Carmazzi QB Hofstra 3 3(65) San Francisco

Chris Redman QB Louisville 3 13(75) Baltimore

Tee Martin QB Tennessee 5 34(163) Pittsburgh

Marc Bulger QB West Virginia 6 2(168) New Orleans

Spergon Wynn QB Texas State University 6 17(183) Cleveland

Tom Brady QB Michigan 6 33(199) New England

Todd Husak QB Stanford 6 36(202) Washington

JaJuan Seider QB Florida A&M 6 39(205) Los Angeles

Tim Rattay QB Louisiana Tech 7 6(212) San Francisco

Jarious Jackson QB Notre Dame 7 8(214) Denver

The Pats didn't draft that entire class, they drafted one guy late.

Except for that #199 pick, this may have been one of the worst QB draft classes of all time. Only Pennington ..and maybe Bulger was half way decent otherwise than #199.

Been there... done that...

You have to "know" with a high degree of certainty which one is highly probable to develop at the NFL level.

Let's hope the staff gets it right this year

@hoorta said:

I am of the opinion that this year's class of QBs will turn out better than last year's.

Dak Prescott is an outlier.....a Russell Wilson like player. Better than anyone thought.

I do not project all that well for Goff. Wentz, to me, IS another Andy Dalton basically ....totally middle of the road/third quartile type QB.

MT and Watson could turn out better than either of those guys from last year.

We shall see.

@sd_tom said:

So did guys like Vince Young and AJ McCarron. Young is out of football, and McCarron can't beat out Andy Dalton. Go take a list of the Heisman winning quarterbacks, and you'll see a ton of them who were complete busts in the NFL.

@londonbrown said:

Because teams look mainly for player traits to see how they transition to the NFL. The college game is different to the NFL it's not just football is football, one game is played on the perimeter and the other down the middle of the field.

This article touches on that stuff a bit

http://presnapreads.com/2017/04/12/evaluating-quarterback-prospects-mitchell-trubisky-and-deshaun-watson/

Exactly London. Here's the Cliff Notes from that article regarding Watson. "Despite the winning(/leadership) and production that Watson had in college, his performances and his skill set don’t project well to the NFL."

@texasag1969 said:

Pretty good article. I'd like to see it applied to next year's QB's because this year should be the year we build a team foundation, not reach for a QB. My reasoning goes beyond the evals too. What good does it do to pressure a rookie to win every single game because there is no D to have his back? Ruins them every damn time in Cleveland. There's a reason we have a QB T-shirt and a long list of injured QBs to boot.

Should we take Mitch, MHO is there won't be pressure on him to win every game, he'll sit behind Kessler and learn for at least 1\2 the season. Garrett + BPA defense @ #33 works for me. OK we might have to trade up and use some of that draft capital. but if they're convinced Trubisky is the real deal- a Rams\Eagles trade scenario could be in the works.

I've said it before Ag, let's assume we go all defense this year and in 2018 Darnold (or some other qb) has "sure fire franchise" written all over him. In that scenario- the qb needy team holding the #1 overall isn't going to trade out of it, ala Andrew Luck, and even if they would, the Browns at an (optimistic) 7-9 would be trading their first, probably at least two of the seconds, and some 2019 picks to move up to #1. To my mind, do you want to roll the dice now or later? Welcome to the Texans position- studly defense, no qb to get them over the top, hope and pray another Derek Carr falls into your lap. The hometown angle for Trubisky is just as heavy a factor to the fans as Garrett at A&M. It won't for the Browns FO though.

BTW, IIRC- this year's qb class was supposed to be "better" than the 2016 class. Just like 2018 is supposed to be "better" than the 2017 crop. A funny thing happened in the intervening year.

His 4th quarter stats are pretty incredible. Never thrown a pick, has a 165 passer rating. 72% completion %. He's a guy who will bust his ass for his team and his coaches. He's played against very good defenses too.

http://www.cfbstats.com/2015/player/147/1062721/passing/situational.html

Quarter 12 73 53 72.6 652 4 0 165.71

@sd_tom said:

And with one exception he killed his Gruden Camp visit. The exception? His diction... going to have to clean his mumble-mouth up a bit.

@clevfan4life said:

U gotta be able to spin the ball in cleveland come fall and winter. U dont have to throw it through the goalposts from ur knees 80 yds away, but u have to zip it. Desauns velocity is an issue

I still have yet to see 49 mph on tape... from Watson anyway.

@texasag1969 said:

Interesting take on "safe" players to take this year including one from OSU I had NOT expected.

http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2017/4/11/15245634/2017-nfl-draft-myles-garrett-zach-cunningham-safest-picks

Eflein? Safe? Safe-ish, maybe... at best.

@jrb12711 said:

Sadly what you've talked about just is just a piece of the puzzle.

I counted at least five pieces in SD_T's post...

@sd_tom said:

The literal exact same statement (save different teams) could be said accurately about guys like Vince Young, Colt McCoy, and the list goes on and on like that but just two notable examples.

The college to pro transition at the QB is arguably the biggest "jump" in any professional sport at any position. Sadly what you've talked about just is just a piece of the puzzle.

http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2017/4/11/15245634/2017-nfl-draft-myles-garrett-zach-cunningham-safest-picks

@londonbrown said:

good read London. I had also heard Watson was the one leader that could start in NFL. hogwash. I don't like him in our division elements after Nov. & certainly not in our Murky pockets. Mitch & Kizer our the only 2 that can keep their eyes downfield relying on their good foot movement & body strength (JMc) in a murky pocket. As for Kizer's whined-up? it matters, but not if he can get it out of his hands. If either fall in our lap at our pick & if I could say they fit BPA at same time, why the hell not..my only reach is my beer draftday's

@sd_tom said:

I don't know how Watson isn't the top rated qb. He's played the best defenses, tore up bama twice, crushed the buckeyes. Great character, complete leader, teammates love him, and he's smart.

He's likely the only qb who'll be ready to go this season.

I love college ball, love the Buckeyes.... And he dominated those games. he was pressured early and often in the championship game, has ice in his veins. Kid's a stud. Got hit hard, never looked rattled. And shined in every big game.

Because teams look mainly for player traits to see how they transition to the NFL. The college game is different to the NFL it's not just football is football, one game is played on the perimeter and the other down the middle of the field.

This article touches on that stuff a bit

http://presnapreads.com/2017/04/12/evaluating-quarterback-prospects-mitchell-trubisky-and-deshaun-watson/

He's likely the only qb who'll be ready to go this season.

I love college ball, love the Buckeyes.... And he dominated those games. he was pressured early and often in the championship game, has ice in his veins. Kid's a stud. Got hit hard, never looked rattled. And shined in every big game.