NFL Draft 2019: Teams looking for quarterbacks in rough shape

Despite Drew Lock, Daniel Jones, Kyler Murray and Dwayne Haskins, but needing a quarterback in this NFL draft is problematic.

Last year might be one of the great quarterback drafts ever — at least it’s a thought at the moment. Last year, five signal callers went off the board in the first 32 selections. Four — Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold, Josh Allen and Josh Rosen — went in the top 10. All that happened before the Baltimore Ravens traded back into the first round to nab Lamar Jackson.

This year, there won’t be that type of talent sitting there waiting to be mined. The reality is that three quarterbacks likely find themselves as first-round choices. However, this is mostly because teams are desperate for any hope at that position. Then there’s Murray, who if he went in the first round, would be the first since Ted Marchibroda in 1953 to go that high as a quarterback when measuring under six feet tall.

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Looking around the league, there are a few teams with obvious holes there. The Miami Dolphins, New York Giants, Jacksonville Jaguars, Washington Redskins and Denver Broncos will all be in the mix. Meanwhile, Jacksonville, Washington and Miami have a more pressing need.

However, it’s Denver that has been the hot topic in Mobile at the Senior Bowl. It’s no secret that general manager John Elway and his personnel staff are very intrigued by Lock. Lock certainly looked the best of all eight quarterbacks on Tuesday’s practices. He has a sturdy frame and a good arm, although there are questions about his accuracy and consistency.

Jones is highly-regarded after starting at Duke for three seasons. Although, he sustained broken ribs in 2016 and then snapped his clavicle in September. Can he overcome being somewhat injury-prone, and does he have enough arm to make all the throws at the NFL level?

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While Haskins is likely to be the first quarterback chosen come April 25 down in Nashville, it’s hard to see him as an elite talent. Most in the NFL see Haskins as talented by raw, the kind of kid who needs to be brought along slowly. The problem is that most teams insert a first-round pick in right away. The only notable exception in recent years was Patrick Mahomes, who sat behind Alex Smith for a year with the Kansas City Chiefs before authoring a 50-touchdown, 5,000-yard season in 2018.

Being around club personnel, the notion is that Jones and Lock are going to be the two senior first-round quarterbacks, with Murray also in that mix. Will Grier struggled mightily in his action on Tuesday, and he seems destined to be a third or fourth-round pick. After him, all the other quarterbacks not aforementioned are wild cards that teams might be willing to take shots on as the picks roll by.