In a move that wasn’t all too surprising, the St. Louis Rams have released Marc Bulger.  The 33-year old quarterback was released in move that most believe all but solidifies Sam Bradford as the number one pick in this years draft and will be the new face of the franchise in St. Louis.  The Rams were one of many teams that were impressed with Bradford’s workout during his pro day and silenced any doubts about his recovery from shoulder surgery.

The Rams have also signed quarterback A.J. Feeley during the offseason and currently have Kyle Boller and rookie Keith Null on the roster.  Bulger was due $8.5 million this upcoming season and will give the team a little bit more to play with to bring on some new talent for a team that finished 1-15 last season.

In his nine season career, all in St. Louis, he had a 62.1 completion percentage throwing for 22,814 yards with 122 touchdowns and 93 interceptions.  Bulger was a Pro Bowl selection in 2004 and 2006.

The trade rumors have finally been realized, Donovan McNabb has has been shipped out of Philadelphia.  If that didn’t surprise you, the team he will be playing for this season will.  McNabb is officially a Redskin.  The Eagles dealt their all-star quarterback to a division rival, a move many are debating to be a smart move or not, for a second round pick (37 overall) in this years draft and a provisional pick in the 2011 draft.

McNabb was entering into his final year of the contract with the Eagles and after head coach Andy Reid’s assurances during and right after the Super Bowl that the Pro Bowl quarterback would remain an Eagle, many figured the next step was contract extension.  Enter trade rumors.  Talk arose over the last few weeks that McNabb would be traded and the signal caller himself released a statement that he wanted to remain in Philadelphia.  He added however, that if he was going to be traded that the Eagles do it quickly.  Reid came out and said the Eagles were listening to offers for McNabb.

Many analysts are debating whether or not the decision to deal McNabb to a division rival will end up hurting the Eagles in the long run.  Yes the Eagles have a more than capable quarterback in Kevin Kolb and now backup Michael Vick, but with a rival power in the NFC East that desperately needed a proven quarterback obtaining McNabb things can get awful close and immediately makes the East a question mark.

There are several big name quarterbacks entering the 2010  draft. Just to name a few: Sam Bradford, Tim Tebow, Colt McCoy, Jimmy Clausen, Tony Pike. All were excellent in college, and are all hoping to make a big splash in the pros this year. You can never tell just how well or terrible a college ballplayer will do in the NFL, but just to give you an idea, I thought this would help to give a little insight.

Jimmy Clausen is a  6 foot 3, 222 pound junior from Notre Dame who has passing numbers to be proud of. In his 3 years starting for the Irish, he racked up  8,148 yards and 60 touchdowns.  In his last year at Notre Dame, he had a combined 161.43 passer rating which speaks volumes of his game. A highly accurate passer, he averaged  61.73% completions with 27 interceptions in 3 years at the school. He has had some trouble throwing the ball deep downfield, but other than that seems to be a top-notch QB. I predict he will probably be taken in the first round of the draft if not  in the top 10.  Clausen is expected to go early to the Redskins who are in need of a quarterback of the future.  Top interested teams include: Washington Redskins and Cleveland Browns.

Tony Pike is a big, 6 foot 6, 225 pound  senior out of Cincinnati. He has been the Bearcats starter for the past two years. His numbers have not been as stellar as his piers, with only a 121.9 rating over his career but that is still high for a quarterback at any level. He completed 59.6 percent of his passes for with 49 touchdowns and only 20 interceptions. He is efficient when throwing from the pocket but struggles throwing while running to the left or against the grain. He also has had trouble maintaining his health for a full season and will need to bulk up if he expects to make it in the NFL.

Sam Bradford is considered by some to be the most highly sought after quarterback entering the draft. He is 6 foot 4 and 236 pounds. He won the Heisman Trophy in 2008. He was the starting quarterback for the Oklahoma Sooners for 3 years, but in only his second game of his junior year he injured his shoulder and was out for the remainder of the season. But in his time as a starter he posted 8,403 yards and 88 touchdowns. He is highly accurate with a 64.5 completion percentage and threw only 16 interceptions. In his arsenal as well he has the ability to lead his receivers just enough to hit them in full stride as they are running down the field.  Bradford is going to be, save a huge trade or injury, the first pick in the NFL draft and become the new face of the franchise for the St. Louis Rams.  The Rams will need to play this smart and allow Bradford to sit behind Marc Bulger for at least a year or two, to get acclimated to the NFL climate.

Colt McCoy is one of the top three quarterbacks entering the draft at least. He has been the Heisman Trophy runner up and he played in the 2010 BCS National Championship game, where he injured his throwing arm in the first quarter and did not return. He is 6 foot 1 and 216 punds and was a starter for the Texas Longhorns for  four years and over those four years has posted incredible passing numbers. He had a career completion percentage of 70.2 and and overall rating of 158.25. He threw 112 touchdowns and 45 interceptions. His extremely good accuracy can be attributed to being a product of the Texas offense which was primarily dink and dunk passes.  When he was asked to send the ball deep down field however, Colt was happy to oblige.  His total yardage was 13,253. He does a good job of reading the different types of coverages and makes good decisions. But, he also has some trouble throwing the long bullets and tends to float them down there.  Colt is expected to go in the second round but could find his name being called on during the first after the great pro day he had recently.

Tim Tebow is arguably the most productive college quarterback in college football history. He played for the Florida Gators for four years and in those four years he won a BCS National Championship and the Heisman Trophy. He is 6 foot 3 and 236 pounds. In his four years at Florida, he had a rating of 176.0 and a completion percentage of 67.1. He threw for over 9,000 yards in his collegiate career and 88 touchdowns. Tebow can not only can pass his way down the field, he can also use his feet and proved it by rushing for 2,947 yards over his four year collegic career. He does need a lot of work though, seeing as he took most of his snaps in the shotgun formation. Also, his accuracy could use some work as he often threw on the move and he is not very quick on releasing the ball once he has made the decision of where to throw it.  The former Gator has worked on his fundamentals leading up to the draft, vowing to return to the basics and redevelop his game.  Only time will tell if it will pay off.  Most draft analysts have Tebow going in the second or third rounds but many wouldn’t be surprised seeing him scooped up in the middle or late first.  Tebow seems to have the eye of the Buffalo Bills as a major candidate, who is in serious need of a quarterback of the future and possible face of the franchise.  Other teams that seem very interested are the Browns, Patriots, Seahawks.

All these quarterbacks have been great in college, and all are hoping to repeat their excellent performances in the NFL. Hopefully this article has given you a better insight into the quarterback draft class this year. You decide which one you think would be best for your team and hope that the coaches think the same thing.