NFL Draft: 3 Surprise Teams That Could Take a Quarterback in Round 1

Finding a true franchise quarterback is not easy and because of that the position is talked about more than any other prior to the NFL draft.

The 2016 draft, like every year, has a few teams that are expected to claim a young signal caller on day one but there are also a few teams that could surprise us all and take a quarterback despite it not being an obvious need.

Playing quarterback in the NFL is really hard. Playing at an elite level is something that only about five people in the entire world are able to do. So when your franchise is in position to draft someone who has the potential to play at that level, you almost have to do it.

Cleveland and San Francisco are two franchises, picking in the top 10 of the upcoming draft that have been linked to this year’s quarterback crop. Cleveland has tried and failed seemingly endless times to find their franchise quarterback while San Francisco looked to have found their’s in Colin Kaepernick but he has regressed greatly since taking the 49ers to the Super Bowl in 2013.

Related Story: Browns, Don't Draft a QB at No. 2

But what about about the franchises that are picking outside of the top ten that have a not-so obvious need at quarterback? When Aaron Rodgers fell into Green Bay’s lap in 2005, they had other needs to address but by thinking long-term, they haven’t had to worry about quarterback for two decades.

The New Orleans Saints are a team that has not had to worry about quarterback for quite a while. Since signing Drew Brees as a free agent in 2006, the Saints have been one of the lucky few franchises that have been able to avoid the quarterback rat race. However that may change in 2017 as Brees is playing on the last year of his contract with New Orleans.

There have been reports that Brees, MVP of Super Bowl XLIV, and the Saints are having preliminary talk about a new contract but his age and past salary are certainly going to hold up those discussions. The Saints have been cap strapped for a number of years now and continue to extend older contracts while increasing the amount of dead money on their cap year after year. One way to solve that problem would be to draft a quarterback in 2016, allow him to learn from the bench while Brees plays out his contract in New Orleans, and take the reigns in 2017.

Unlike the Saints, the Buffalo Bills are a franchise that is no stranger to quarterback purgatory (courtesy of Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk).

Having most recently wasted a first round pick on EJ Manuel, the Bills find themselves in a situation where they may be again tempted to grab a quarterback in the latter half of the NFL draft.

Buffalo landed the steal of 2015 free agency when they inked Tyrod Taylor to a modest three year (with qualifiers to make it a two year) deal in March of last year.

Choosing Buffalo because he was guaranteed a chance at the starting gig, Taylor wowed in training camp and performed well enough in 2015 to warranty a contract extension.

The Bills who are in a little bit of salary cap trouble themselves, have chosen the wait and see approach with Tyrod, seeming comfortable with the young starter playing out his current contract in 2016. By virtue of not having to pay a quarterback the standard salary of $15 million plus per year, the Bills have been able to build a solid roster overall.

Opting to extend young stars like Marcell Dareus and Jerry Hughes in 2015 while picking up the fifth-year option on Stephon Gilmore and placing the franchise tag on Cordy Glenn in 2016, Buffalo has to be intrigued at the prospect of saving a large portion of their franchise tag by drafting a quarterback to play in 2017 if/when Tyrod Tayor is no longer with the team.

The last team on my list may surprise some people but Kansas City would be smart to consider a young quarterback.

Alex Smith is the Honda Accord of NFL quarterbacks. When you’re 22 and driving your 10-year old Taurus with a defroster that doesn’t defrost, on the interstate at 6:00 am in January, you would kill for an Accord (trust me, I’ve been there). But after five years of driving that Accord you were once so proud of, you can’t help but swoon when you pass the Range Rover dealership on the way home from work.

Alex Smith is good enough to get a team with an excellent roster and a game plan that doesn’t require 40 passes per game to the playoffs but Kansas City will never win big with Smith under center. According to Spotrac.com, Smith’s salary cap hit in 2016 is $17.8 million, in 2017 it’s $16.9 million and in 2018 it’s $20.6 million. This would be a great year for Kansas City to take a swing at a young quarterback who may develop into more than someone renown for his well-rounded mix of excellent packaging, superb fuel economy and rewarding performance.

Related Story: What Should the Buffalo Bills do with Tyrod Taylor

I don’t necessarily expect the Saints, Bills or Chiefs to draft a quarterback in round one this year but I also wouldn’t question the pick if either of these franchises decided to do so. League wide, the position is played at an extremely average level while being simultaneously obscenely overpaid and because of that, finding above-average talent at a good value could win any of these teams a championship very soon.