2011 NFL Draft: Does Blaine Gabbert Deserve a First Round Grade?

The one thing that I have learned while blogging about the last couple of drafts is that there are a million sites out there that evaluate players, and a lot of times it is impossible to find two sites that agree on any particular player, and that is especially true when it comes to quarterbacks.  That is especially true when it comes to this year's class.  There are sites that love Cam Newton and hate Blaine Gabbert.  There are sites that have that reversed.

One guy out there that I really trust the opinion of is Wes Bunting over at National Football Post.  He has a good track record of evaluating guys and is plugged in with a lot of personnel people around the league.  He says today that he is having trouble finding a scout that feels confident about giving Blaine Gabbert a first round grade.

That is a concern to me as a Titans fan because I think he is going to be a guy that is going to tempt them at #8.  I think Cam Newton goes off the board in the top 5.  Someone is going to fall in love with him because of the numbers that he puts up at the combine, but I really don't think anyone bites on Gabbert before the Titans have a chance.  I know the Titans will do their due diligence, unlike last time when the owner made them pick a guy, and they will decide if Gabbert is "the guy" or not.  It just looks to me like their isn't a big different between Gabbert and guys like Christian Ponder and Andy Dalton that will be available in the 2nd round.  Why not get a stud defender in round 1 that can come in and play from the minute he walks on the field, and take your QB, who is probably going to be a project either way, in the second round.