With quarterbacks now locked in with certain teams, it is important to factor in team fit into the equation when ranking these quarterbacks. Some passers landed in difficult situations, while others ended up in prosperous environments for their skill sets. The order will still be loosely based off of talent, but factoring in their new professional teams may shake things up a bit.
1. Paxton Lynch, Denver Broncos
The Broncos got a steal in Lynch. He is a perfect fit for their offensive system, not to mention there is less pressure on a rookie quarterback here than anywhere else because of how good the defense is. Though, Lynch is talented in his own right and would be the best quarterback in this class regardless of fit. He has the mobility, deep passing ability and risk aversion to thrive in Denver early on and for years to come.
2. Jared Goff, Los Angeles Rams
Goff is not a spectacular talent, but he is in a sweet situation in Los Angeles. Todd Gurley will take pressure off of him by carrying a heavy load and forcing defenses to cheat up to the box. The Rams went out and grabbed a handful of rceivers in the draft, too, in an attempt to build around Goff. The offensive line will still be abysmal, but Goff should have enough weapons, on top of Los Angeles’ impressive defense, to put up a solid early career.
3. Connor Cook, Oakland Raiders
With Derek Carr in town, Cook will never get a shot at the starting job. Cook will have to show off his talents in the preseason, garbage time and, if the occasion arises, in emergency situations when Carr is injured. He certainly is talented, though. Cook likely fell due to perceived attitude problems, as well as the possibility of him still having lingering shoulder issues. At worst, Cook is a great backup for the Raiders after Matt McGloin leaves after the 2016 season.
4. Cardale Jones, Buffalo Bills
Buffalo did not need to address quarterback as early as they did, but what happened, happened. Jones is a big bodied athlete who has proven himself as a quarterback who can win under pressure and make key throws down the field. With him not being forced into a starting role, or even the backup role, immediately, Jones will have time to fine tune some of his game and rediscover the 2014-2015 championship run version of himself.
5. Carson Wentz, Philadelphia Eagles
This move was questionable the moment the Eagles traded for the second overall pick. They shipped off a lot of capital (2016 1st round, 2016 3rd round, 2016 4th round, 2017 1st round, 2018 2nd round) for a quarterback who was a borderline top 50 selection prior to an average Senior Bowl week. Wentz has enticing physical tools, but he has plenty of work to do in the areas of footwork, pocket movement, mental processing and deep accuracy before he is a legitimate threat to opposing defenses.
6. Kevin Hogan, Kansas City Chiefs
Kansas City is a great fit for Hogan. Andy Reid runs a timing-based West Coast offense, something Hogan is familiar with after his Stanford days. Hogan has an ugly release, but he shows the mental fortitude and functional mobility to keep an offense moving if he needed to. Considering the handful of other quarterbacks on the roster, there is little pressure for Hogan to show out early.
7. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys
With Tony Romo on his last leg, the Cowboys made a smart choice by bringing in a quarterback like Prescott. They missed out on Lynch and Cook, both of whom they expressed interest in, but Prescott is a fine consolation prize as a backup. Prescott has the athleticism and arm to be a play maker, though he does need to speed up his mental processing and work on throwing comfortably to the boundary. With as much as he likes to trust his number one receiver, a team with a receiver like Dez Bryant serves Prescott well.
8. Jacoby Brissett, New England Patriots
New England brings in quarterback projects more regularly than most. Brissett is reminiscent of the Ryan Mallett pick in the sense that Brissett is also a large, strong armed aggressive quarterback. Brissett does have some more mobility and a more level head on his shoulders, though. Having him compete with Jimmy Garoppolo will be interesting because the two are polar opposites of each other.
9. Christian Hakcneberg, New York Jets
Hackenberg has his work cut out for him. During his last two years at Penn State, he was a train wreck and seemed to simply not care about the fate of the team or how well he performed. How the NFL turned a blind eye to that is baffling, but the Jets feel as if they can get him back to form. With two other young quarterbacks on the roster, Hackenberg will not be gifted the starting job; a move that is for the best because he is far from ready to be a starting quarterback in the NFL. The fit is odd, too. Hackenberg struggled in a spread out, quick throw offense at Penn State, yet that is the type of offense Chan Gailey runs in New York. This pick has all the makings to be a train wreck.
10. Cody Kessler, Cleveland Browns
It sounds more and more as if the Browns wants Kessler to compete for the starting job with Robert Griffin III. Ultimately, he will lose that battle, but that does not make him a worthless selection. Kessler’s skill set fits into the Andy Dalton mold of what Hue Jackson can do with him. He can serve as an adequate backup while Griffin revitalizes his career and the Cleveland offense.
Best of the Rest
11. Brandon Doughty, Miami Dolphins
12. Brandon Allen, Jacksonville Jaguars
13. Jeff Driskel, San Francisco 49ers
14. Nate Sudfeld, Washington
15. Jake Rudock, Detroit Lions
