NFL's Future

The 2013 NFL Draft is full of mystery at this point, much more so than year’s past. A lot of mystery and intrigue lies in the quarterback

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class. Early on in the 2012 college football season it appeared that West Virginia’s Geno Smith was a virtual lock for not only the top quarterback spot but a likely No. 1 pick. Smith’s midseason struggles combined with the fact that he didn’t show up in Mobile has many questioning his viability as a No. 1 overall pick.

After Smith the clarity in the quarterback class only gets murkier. Tyler Wilson struggled through some tough times during his senior season but has the intrigue of a very solid season in 2011 leaving positive impressions on evaluators. The tough, gritty competitor is all over the board as he brings some positive upside to his game but his bad habits developed this season have some throwing up caution signs on Wilson.

The most talked about player leading up to April’s draft may be USC’s Matt Barkley. Barkley was widely considered the top prospect in preseason rankings. His lack of elite physical tools was on full display this season and has some grading him as a second round prospect. Barkley will be joined by Mike Glennon and Ryan Nassib to jockey for the rights to a first round selection despite not grading out that high.

Many consider this quarterback class to be ‘weak’, but I would argue the opposite. This year’s quarterback class could see as many as fifteen quarterbacks taken before the end of the draft. The strength in the class would appear to be with those teams that remain patient. With guys like EJ Manuel, Zac Dysert, and Tyler Bray comprising that second to third tier of players teams could wait and be rewarded down the road.

After the break, check out our 2013 NFL Draft quarterback rankings.

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