FanPost

Andy Dalton. 2011 NFL Draft QB’s in review

As the ink still dries on Andy Dalton’s new 6-year extension with the Bengals, it’s time to go back to the 2011 NFL Draft and re-evaluate the QB’s taken in that draft class, and compare to the recently re-signed Dalton.

Honestly, back in April of 2011 most Bengals’ fans didn’t know the difference between Nevada’s Colin Kaepernick and the Democrat’s Cap & Trade. But Dalton often gets compared to Kaepernick, because of the closeness of where they were picked. But in all fairness, let’s compare Dalton to the entire draft class.

The 2011 draft saw 4 QB’s taken in the top 12 picks, and 6 total taken in the first 36 picks (including Dalton at #35). Similar to the famous 1983 draft which saw 4 QB’s in the top 15, and 6 in the top 27 picks. But perhaps not as stacked with Elway, Kelly & Marino...

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Cam Newton, Auburn, 1st round (#1 overall) - CAR

On draft day Cam was viewed as a high risk – high reward player. He had only started 1 full season at Auburn, and was viewed as very raw. But was a big strong runner with a powerful arm.

Cam has been a starter since day 1. He has passed for 11,299 yards with 64 TD’s and 42 INT’s, which all rank 2nd among QB’s drafted in 2011. He’s also cranked out 2,032 rushing yards and a ridiculous 28 rushing TD’s which are easily tops of any QB in that draft.


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Jake Locker, Washington, 1st round (#8 overall) - TEN

On draft day, Jake was viewed as a very erratic passer but a great athlete with good upside. His passing #’s in Washington were underwhelming, but his ability to run & throw were tantalizing as a potential 1st round target. The Titans had a good Matt Hasselbeck at QB, and could afford to draft Locker to sit & mature as a passer. But taking him at #8 overall caused quite a shock on draft day.

Injuries have been the keyword of Locker’s NFL career. Since being drafted, he has played in 23 out of a possible 48 games. He’s shown good running ability, and has been a decent passer, but with only 3,974 yards in 3 seasons, has yet to prove that he was worth the #8 overall pick.

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Blaine Gabbert, Mizzou, 1st round (#10 overall) – JAX

On draft day, Blaine Gabbert was 2011’s version of Blake Bortles. He was uniformly rated as having the best all-around traditional pro-ready passing attributes that one wants in a prototypical NFL QB. But he never seemed to turn that into a high level of production against the nominal defenses of the Big 12. Having parted was with productive David Garrard, and not willing to start journeyman Luke McCown, the Jaguars traded up to grab Gabbert.

Gabbert was given the starting reigns immediately, and proceeded to unimpress. He has the lowest completion % (53.3%) of any of the top 6 QB’s from 2011, with the worst TD % (2.8%). He was unable to fend off former Dolphin’s cast off Chad Henne from unseating him, and after 3 seasons, Gabbert has 22 TD’s to 24 INT’s, and only 4,357 yards.

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Christian Ponder, Florida St, 1st round (#12 overall) - MIN

On draft day, Ponder was viewed as a late 1st / early 2nd round QB. Was seen as an effective passer with a limited arm. Never ‘wowed’ in college as a passer, but was fairly athletic, and a good runner. There was some speculation that he might end up with the Bengals in the 2nd round, but the Vikings made something of a reach with Ponder at #12 overall. Apparently they wanted a younger option than 35 year old Donovan McNabb, and didn’t view Joe Webb as their QB of the future.

Ponder won the starter’s role halfway through year 1. He had a decent year 2, but an abysmal year 3 which led the Vikings to resort to the revolving door of Josh Freeman & Matt Cassel, and ultimately draft another QB just 3 years later (Bridgewater). He has a solid 60.2% completions, but the worst INT % (3.4%) of any of the top 6 QB’s drafted that year. For his career, he has 6,436 yards with 38 TD’s and 34 INT’s.


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Andy Dalton, Texas Christian, 2nd round (#35 overall) - CIN

On draft day, Dalton was viewed as a smart, accurate QB who won big games in college. He did not have a big arm for a vertical passing game, but was an idea QB for new O-Coord Jay Gruden WCO.

As the Bengals’ pick came up there were 3 potential names being thrown around as targets: The tall, big-armed statue Ryan Mallett. The smart, productive winner Andy Dalton. And the raw, athletic dark horse Colin Kaepernick. The Bengals drafted the QB they felt most comfortable could start right away in a work-stoppage shortened offseason, and replace the recently quasi-retired Carson Palmer.

Dalton has been the Bengals’ starter since day 1. He leads all 2011 drafted QB’s with the most passing attempts (1630), completions (992), yards (11,360), TD’s (80), INT’s (49), and completion percentage (60.9%). Along with Newton, is the only QB was has started all 48 games (Ponder is a distant 3rd with 36 games played). Although Dalton has a much better winning % than Newton.

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Colin Kaepernick, Nevada, 2nd round (#36 overall) - SF

On draft day, Kaepernick was the least well known of the top 6 drafted QB’s. He was a big time runner with three 1,000 yard rushing seasons in 4 years starting at Nevada. Was an efficient QB with few INT’s, but against WAC defenses. Was a project with a good arm that would take time to develop into an NFL passer. San Francisco traded up to grab him as soon as the Bengals passed on him, and he was the last of the top 6 QB’s to get drafted in the top 36 picks of 2011.

Colin did not become a starter until week 10 of his second NFL season, replacing the effective Alex Smith. Kaepernick has been an efficient QB with a 31:11 TD:INT ratio, and a solid 59.8% completion rate. For his 3-year career, he has only 5,046 passing yards to date. He has also shown an ability to run well. He is the only QB from 2011 to win a playoff game, although he’s been mostly a game manager in the playoffs, relying on his legs, and a strong SF defense for playoff success. He averaged only 192 passing yards per game in the 2013 playoffs with as many TD’s as INT’s.

Ryan Mallet, Arkansas, 3rd round (#74 overall) – NE

Despite the hype of possessing the biggest arm in the draft, Mallet was not taken in round 1, or round 2. He fell to round 3 where the Patriots scooped him up as a backup for Brady. In 3 seasons, Mallett has completed as many passes to Patriot receivers as he has to opposing defenses (1 each). Having unsuccessfully tried to trade him away in the offseason, Mallet’s future as Brady’s backup remains uncertain on a team who just used a 2nd round pick on Jimmy Garopollo a few months ago.

Ricky Stanzi, Iowa, 5th round (#135 overall) - KC

Stanzi possesses the ideal size of an NFL QB was garnered some pre-draft buzz of possibly being taken in the early-mid rounds. But this did not materialize. Neither did his NFL career. He has bounced around the league and has yet to attempt an NFL pass.

TJ Yates, UNC, 5th round (#152 overall) - HOU

Became an emergency spot starter for an injured Matt Schaub, with the 2 biggest games of his career coming against the Bengals in 2011. Since then, Yates has done nothing, and has been replaced by the likes of Case Keenum and Ryan Fitzpatrick.

Nathan Enderle, Idaho, 5th round (#160 overall) - CHI

Late round pick who never saw the field. Never made it in the NFL past 2011.

Tyrod Taylor, V Tech, 6th round (#180 overall) - BAL

Has become Joe Flacco’s backup in Baltimore. Is a better runner than a passer, having thrown for 199 yards with 2 INT’s and 0 TD’s.

Greg McElroy, Bama, 7th round (#208 overall) - NYJ

The recently retired McElroy played in 2 NFL games as Mark Sanchez’s backup. Became a deep backup in Cincy during part of 2013 after he was unable to make a dent in the Jets’ abysmal QB depth chart.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Cincy Jungle's writers or editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan, which is as important as the views of Cincy Jungle's writers or editors.