Sold/Not Sold

By Twolf

The other day ESPN was discussing how each rookie quarterback was going to perform in their career. This gave me an idea, "I'll put my two cents in about which rookie will be solid and which will not. That should make a good first post." It's very simple, sold for ones I believe will be good and not sold for ones I believe won't.

Cam Newton - Not Sold

Newton is a great athlete, but I don't see him being a productive quarterback at this level. He doesn't have the weapons in Carolina, he has no one in front of him to learn from, and he's from more of an option system.

Jake Locker - Not Sold

His biggest upside is learning from Hasselbeck. He's an athlete, like Newton, but his accuracy is his major flaw. He may have gotten away with it at the college level, but he won't in the NFL. Another downside for him is the system the UW ran for him. Like Tim Tebow he was better in the spread, which is fine for college, but ends up hurting quarterbacks once they go pro.

Christian Ponder - Not Sold

Minnesota has a bad offensive line, very few weapons at receiver, play in a division with great defenses, and the wrong style quarterback to learn from. Don't get me wrong, Donavan McNabb is a good quarterback, but not for Ponder to learn from. It's hard for a pocket passer to learn from a scrambler because they each can do things the other is incapable of.

Blaine Gabbert - Sold

Being a pocket passer and smart helps you immensely in the NFL. Great footwork, velocity, and touch on his throws will make him a solid quarterback for years to come.

Andy Dalton - Sold

Nothing about his situation (starter right away, can't push the ball downfield, coach the could be fired soon, owner that's just one step above Al Davis, no weapons on offense, and bad defense) says he'll be a good NFL quarterback, but I have a feeling he'll prove everyone wrong. Maybe not until he leaves Cincy, but he will.

Ryan Mallett - Sold

I hope New England doesn't use him as trade bait (like Merril Hodge thinks). With a few years being tutored by Bellicheck and Brady he could turn out to be the best quarterback from the 2011 draft (yes, I said it). His biggest test will be whether his maturity level gets better.