Poll Question: Let's Face it, the Raiders need a quarterback - and this is a good draft to get one. Assuming Oakland does take a quarterback with the #1 pick, which one should they target?
Brian Brohm
Brady Quinn
JaMarcus Russell
Troy Smith
This poll was not posted until after the last bowl game had been played, and was designed to assess how the bowl season affected fans' perceptions of the top QB prospects in this draft. I think it's a reasonably safe assumption that prior to any bowl games being played, Brady Quinn was regarded as the clear-cut #1 quarterback prospect in this year's class. JaMarcus Russell, who was not even a lock to turn pro, was in a battle for second with Brian Brohm. Troy Smith, fresh off his Heisman win, was making up ground and in the minds of some fans, the best of the bunch.
Then the bowls happened. All four prospects had led their team to BCS games, so we as fans got to see them face quality competition. Of the four, two had very good bowl games, and two had outright disasters.
Brian Brohm led Louisville to a hard-fought Orange Bowl victory over Wake Forest, going 24 of 34 for 311 yards. It was a standard Brohm performance: good percentage, no big mistakes, yet few (in this case zero) touchdowns. Pretty much what everyone expected going into the game.
JaMarcus Russell and Brady Quinn faced off in the Sugar Bowl; and after a close first half, the matchup proved to be no contest at all. Russell kicked it into another gear, posting 332 passing yards (his first 300-yard passing game of the year), 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception. Russell also ran for a touchdown as his LSU Tigers routed the Irish.
Meanwhile, Quinn looked like a boy playing against men. He went 15 for 35 for a paltry 148 yards, throwing for 2 scores but also 2 interceptions. Granted, LSU's defense is a lot tougher than Notre Dame's, but every phase of Russell's game looked better than Quinn's.
And finally, Troy Smith. His stock was at its peak after the Michigan game, but it came crashing down with every inexplicable 12-step drop he took in the BCS Championship. After that dismal performance, he's no longer a consideration for a top-10 pick in the minds of most fans.
So what affect did these performances have on the players' draft stock? According to readers of this site, a whole lot! Here are the final poll results:
Brian Brohm - 6.1%
Brady Quinn - 19.7%
JaMarcus Russell - 69.9%
Troy Smith - 4.3%
Total Votes: 751
Clearly, you all are putting a lot of stock in the bowl games! As the off-season progresses, I expect those numbers to smooth out a bit, especially between Quinn and Russell. But for now, JaMarcus Russell is clearly the fans' choice as the Raiders #1 pick.
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