Sports Illustrated's Chris Burke ranks the available QBs based only on how valuable they would be next season.
1. Tony Romo
Put him on any team with a passable defense and a couple of offensive weapons, and it’s a playoff threat in 2017.
2. Jimmy Garoppolo
The expectations for Garoppolo may be unfairly high if he lands somewhere as a starter next season. He won’t be dropping onto a roster as well-built as New England’s, but he still is ready for a shot.
3. Tyrod Taylor
Taylor always will have his flaws, like that he bails on the pocket too quickly or is scattershot with his accuracy. But he’s also proven to be a solid, if far from “elite”, quarterback. He can spin a deep ball and hurt teams with his athleticism outside the pocket.
4. Kirk Cousins
Want an All-Pro? Look elsewhere. Hoping for a QB that could be a steadying presence for a playoff-ready roster? Here ya go.
5. Deshaun Watson (rookie)
He has played against Ohio State, Oklahoma and Alabama (twice) in the playoffs, while making a combined 30 starts in the past two seasons. Does he turn the ball over too much? Yes. Will he need to improve his reading of defenses? Absolutely. However, he’s not going to be rattled by the stage.
6. Jay Cutler
Cutler comes with 11 years of experience and an arm capable of lighting up defenses. He’s also an aloof, turnover-prone QB with a checkered injury history. As a one- or two-year veteran stopgap, a franchise could do worse.
7. DeShone Kizer (rookie)
The Kizer from September through early November of 2015 looked darn near plug-and-play ready. The Kizer from ’16 often fell more under the “developmental prospect” umbrella—an inconsistent, at times skittish QB that struggled to close games. Should the team that takes him find a little of that ’15 magic, Kizer can be a Rookie of the Year contender.
8. Colin Kaepernick
His national anthem protest last season overshadowed the fact that he actually played pretty well. The wins never came, but he was among the least of San Francisco’s problems down the stretch. While Kaepernick may never again find his 2012-13 mojo, he still, at 29, provides a touch of intrigue as a dual-threat QB that has had success as a starter.
9. Mitch Trubisky (rookie)
This is the bandwagon currently running out in front in the 2017 QB race. He might be great, in time. Expecting him to lead a playoff push next season would be asking a lot.
10. Nick Foles
Hard to bank on there being much untapped upside in Foles, given that he will be on his fourth team in four seasons should he leave Kansas City—if he was that tantalizing as a potential starting QB, someone would have held on to him. Talent-wise, though, he’s ahead of several 2017 quarterback choices.
11. Brian Hoyer
He did a solid job for Chicago last season, before suffering a season-ending injury. In his five starts, Hoyer tossed six touchdown passes to no interceptions.
12. Patrick Mahomes (rookie)
Of all the quarterbacks eligible for the ’17 draft, there is a case to be made that Mahomes has the highest ceiling. His arm strength is downright silly, and he is cut from that mold of quarterbacks that almost seem to prefer making plays on the move vs. sticking in the pocket. Given time and space to develop, the payoff could be incredible. There is a lot to love here, but there would be a bevy of rough outings if Mahomes is a full-time starter out of the gate.
13. Mike Glennon
It goes without saying we’ve drifted beyond the dream solutions for 2017 playoff hopefuls into those QBs who can be serviceable.
14. Matt Barkley
Barkley’s star burned out quickly last season—after three weeks of decent play, he wound up throwing a whopping 14 picks in six games.
15. Ryan Fitzpatrick
Does Fitzpatrick, 34, intend to keep playing?
16. Case Keenum
Consider this space as standing in for “The Field” in this conversation.
www.si.com/nfl/2017/02/15/nfl-draft-free-agency-quarterback-rankings
