5. Cam Newton (2014)
Even though it was difficult to ignore his checkered past and “pay for play” allegations, teams with a “glass half full” perspective on Cam Newton believed he could be a “Steve McNair 2.0”-type of quarterback.
From a physical talent perspective, calling him “unique” would be an understatement, considering he would have one of the strongest arms in the NFL the day he walked into the league, he ran the 40-yard dash in under 4.6 seconds, and weighing 248lbs, he was bigger than many of the outside linebackers who were paid to hunt quarterbacks like Newton.
It certainly helped, of course, that Newton was the reigning Heisman Trophy winner and led the Auburn University Tigers to a National Championship during his lone season at Auburn.
4. Matt Stafford (2009)
A true gunslinger out of the football hotbed that is Texas, with an absolute rifle for an arm, Matthew Stafford arrived in Athens, Georgia as the top-ranked quarterback in the 2006 high school recruiting class, and became a three-year starter for the University of Georgia Bulldogs (prior to leaving after his junior season).
As a junior, Stafford was named an All-American, and won the Most Valuable Player award of the 2009 Capital One Bowl. When Stafford declared for the draft, it was all but a foregone conclusion that he was going to be taken #1 overall, by the Detroit Lions.
3. Sam Bradford (2010)
It’s easy to mock this pick with the benefit of hindsight, but don’t forget that Sam Bradford became just the second sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy, led the highest-scoring offense in NCAA history while at the University of Oklahoma, and took the Sooners to the 2008-2009 BCS National Championship.
At 6’4 and 236 lbs, Bradford looked the part of a professional quarterback, and his season-ending shoulder injury — prior to declaring for the NFL Draft — was seen as more of an unforeseen fluke rather an a tell of his future injury history.
2. Jameis Winston (2015)
Spearheading the renaissance of Florida State football (no pun intended) under Jimbo Fisher, for as much as teams gnashed their teeth at all of the off-the-field transgressions of Jameis Winston, that’s how much they loved what he showed as a football player. To a man, all you heard about Winston was his advanced ability to read defenses, scan the field, and deliver the football nearly anywhere on the field.
Winston also seemed to bring a swagger and bravado to which many of his teammates responded favorably. And with his 6’4 and 231lb size, teams were confident that he would be a nightmare to bring down by opposing defenders.
1. Andrew Luck (2012)
The son of an NFL player. Off-the charts intelligence. Described as having a near Eidetic memory. There’s good reason that Andrew Luck was considered to be the best quarterback prospect to enter the NFL Draft since John Elway nearly a quarter century prior. In a profession that’s quick to nitpick at every single college prospect, virtually nobody had a single legitimately negative thing to say about him.
Sure, there were times that he made throws that he would’ve liked to have back, but doesn’t every quarterback? But between his football IQ, mental processing ability, physical stature (6’4 and 234 lbs), deceptive athleticism (he ran the 40-yard dash in a virtually identical time as Cam Newton), and plenty of arm strength, he was considered damn near a “perfect prospect.”