DRAFT TRACKER 2013

Though Smith has had his ups and downs as a passer in West Virginia's prolific spread offense, NFL general managers appreciate his ultra-competitive nature, athleticism, arm strength and quick delivery. The Mountaineer turned down a Senior Bowl invitation after regressing in the second half of the season following a strong start. Smith's eye level and pocket movement can be great, but he reverted back to staring down his first read. During his sophomore season, Smith played in an offense where he frequently took snaps from center, so he might have a leg up compared to some other prospects in that regard.

After he looked like a superstar in the making after his 2011 campaign, Wilson was unable to improve upon his junior season for a myriad of reasons, including the loss of his head coach, the departure of his three favorite receivers, and a sub-par offensive line. Wilson spent much of the year under duress, but showed impressive toughness in consistently staring down the barrel to deliver throws while getting hit, and bouncing up right after.

While scouts will want to see more from Wilson in the vertical passing game, it’s tough to ignore his overall skill set. In addition to these quarterbacking skills, Wilson’s a proven leader and it has been reported that he comes off as quite charming in interviews with teams. When these facts are combined with the number of quarterback-needy teams in the draft, it’s very likely that Wilson will ultimately be a top-15 pick.

Dysert reminded scouts a bit of Roethlisberger by displaying toughness and more of a playmaker’s game than pure efficiency during his breakout 2011 season (3,513 passing yards, 65.8 percent completion rate, 23 touchdowns). He does not quite possess the two-time Super Bowl champ’s elite arm and bulk, but still has enough of both – along with the athleticism and deft passing touch to make NFL-caliber plays on the run – to become one of the top passers in the class. His career flew somewhat under the radar in the MAC conference, but has the size, arm, accuracy, athleticism, and production that NFL teams covet.

Expect Barkley to be the fourth first-round passer Southern California has produced since 2003 (Carson Palmer, Matt Leinart, Mark Sanchez). Though not elite in terms of his height, arm strength, or mobility, he will capably move an NFL offense with accurate short throws possessing sufficient zip (69.1 percent completion rate in 2011), solid decision-making ability, and enough downfield touch to take advantage of a talented receiving corps. Although it ended disappointingly, the fact he decided to return to school for 2012 to help his team compete for a national championship after being on a postseason ban is just one measure of his intangibles.

The lean, strong-armed passer performed fairly well in a difficult situation (3,054 yards, 31 touchdowns) when asked to take over for Wolfpack legend Russell Wilson in 2011. If he improves his accuracy and pocket poise in his second season as a starter, as well as his ability to recognize what defenses are trying to takes away from him, scouts just might project him as an eventual starter.

Nassib doesn’t have exceptional size or athleticism, but the muscle bound thrower has a rifle for an arm and was finally comfortable in the Syracuse offense in 2012, even though his happy feet might suggest differently. The senior might have a tendency to sail targets and force some poor reads, but multiple teams will likely consider adding Nassib as an early starter, not just a backup or developmental prospect as many suspected prior to this season.

As gifted as any quarterback in the class, the physically imposing Manuel has a chance to shoot up this list using his strong arm and mobility in 2012. Scouts appreciate his leadership qualities and toughness (played through his mom's cancer treatments and a broken leg in 2011’s Champs Sports Bowl win over Notre Dame), and hope he can improve on his consistency. The Seminoles' decision-making and accuracy drop in the face of pressure, but Manuel has the velocity and mobility teams look for in a project quarterback.

Based on pure arm talent, Bray is an extremely impressive quarterback prospect. However, his arm talent only resulted in a few standout plays amongst a season of poor decisions, and maddening inconsinstencies. An NFL team that drafts him will be doing so based on their faith in cleaning up the many aspects of Bray's game that leave much to be desired.

The NFL-sized pocket passer can be decisive and flashes the accuracy to pick apart defenses at the next level. However, his tendency to get rattled under pressure is a major issue. Also, when things start to go downhill, he lacks a short memory; his confidence is shaken. He is also inconsistent in his reads and decision making.

A high school All-American from California, Scott’s career in Tucson hasn’t gone exactly how he had imagined. He threw 176 passes in three years, lost his starting job to eventual 2012 third-round pick of the Eagles, Nick Foles, as a sophomore and decided to take a healthy redshirt in 2011 so he could be in charge after Foles used up his eligibility. His strong arm and excellent mobility fit perfectly the offensive system installed by new Wildcats head coach Rich Rodriguez however, and Scott will surely interest teams as a "dual threat" QB option to develop.

An older prospects who served a Mormon mission after high school, Sorensen played one year of junior college before walking on at BYU, then transferring to SUU when it looked like his playing time in Provo would be limited. The 2011 Great West Offensive Player of the Year has the NFL size and arm to earn himself a late-round grade as a he fights for a spot on a team.

Carder took over the Broncos’ spread attack from Tim Hiller in 2010 and never looked back. He lacks the size and pure arm strength to be an elite NFL quarterback prospect, but has enough of both, as well as the intangibles and intelligence to efficiently run a movement-style offense. If teams are willing to look past his senior season, and if Carder performs well enough in the postseason process, he could be a late-round pick.

Gray attended Ben Davis High School, where he was a three-year starter. He was a highly touted dual threat quarterback prospect, who participated in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. In that game, he completed 3 of 7 passes for 56 yards and a touchdown, while rushing for 41 yards and a TD.

In his freshman year, Gray saw time at both quarterback and receiver. He threw a touchdown, and caught one as well. In his sophomore year, Gray participated in all12 games, and logged seven starts at wide receiver. He had 42 catches for 587 yards and five receiving touchdowns. His junior season saw him move back to quarterback, where he started 10 of the 11 games he played. He completed 108 of 213 passes (51%) for 1,495 yards, eight touchdowns, and eight interceptions. Gray also ran for an additional six touchdowns. In his senior year, Gray split his time. He completed 34 of 57 pass attempts for 472 yards, five touchdowns, and two interceptions. Gray also caught 12 passes for 121 yards, and rushed for five touchdowns.

Renfree is a tall, well-built quarterback. He's made too many poor decisions resulting in interceptions over his career, but he has the arm strength to make all the throws. When this is combined with his experience in an NFL-like offense, it's possible that a team will take a liking to him as a backup quarterback.

Cameron won the Sammy Baugh award in 2012, which is awarded to college football's top passer. Cameron doesn't make mistakes with the football, and has a nice, quick release. However, he lacks the physical tools to ever be a starting caliber quarterback at the next level.

This native Iowan, who set many state high school passing records, patiently waited for Ricky Stanzi to graduate before getting the keys to the Hawkeyes’ offense. He didn’t set the college football world on fire with his play as a first-year starter in 2011 (58.7 completion percentage, 3,022 yards, 25 TD, seven INT) and struggled mightly as a senior (57.3 completion percentage, 2,249 yards, seven touchdowns, eight interceptions). Still, Vandenburg has shown the ability to be a rhythm passer who will likely be brought into camp as an undrafted free agent for a team that runs a more up-tempo type of offense.