clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Is Blaine Gabbert the worst Top 10 QB draft pick in the modern era?

It looks like quarterback Blaine Gabbert might be done in Jacksonville, but is he the worst Top 10 quarterback pick of all time?

By Alfie Crow Updated
Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

The Jacksonville Jaguars will be starting Chad Henne against the San Diego Chargers, as Blaine Gabbert is still out with a hamstring strain he suffered against the St. Louis Rams. If Chad Henne can put together another game like he did against the Denver Broncos, which is to say to be serviceable at the least, it's possible we could have seen the last of Gabbert starting as a quarterback for the Jaguars.

If that is the case, is Blaine Gabbert the worst quarterback drafted in the Top 10, ever?

If you don't include the burden of a contract, which typically forces a team to hold on to a player longer than they'd like, and if Gabbert has truly started his last game as a Jaguar, you can make the case that he's been one of the worst ever.

Since 1936, only 19 quarterback drafted in the Top 10 have less career wins. While "wins" isn't necessarily an indicator, that's still a staggering number. Since 1993, so in the last 20 years, only two other quarterbacks have fared worse... Akili Smith and Ryan Leaf, though Leaf had just one less victory in six less starts while Smith had two less in 10 less starts.


Tom Pidgeon - Getty Images Sport

It doesn't look pretty.

Games Passing
Overall Pick Player GS ▴ QBrec Cmp Att Yds TD Int
8 Jake Locker 15 7-8-0 280 491 3439 20 11
3 Akili Smith 17 3-14-0 215 461 2212 5 13
10 Matt Leinart 18 8-10-0 366 641 4065 15 21
2 Robert Griffin III 20 10-10-0 383 602 4648 26 10
2 Ryan Leaf 21 4-17-0 317 655 3666 14 36
8 Ryan Tannehill 21 10-11-0 396 666 4677 18 18
1 Andrew Luck 21 15-6-0 454 813 5720 30 21
3 Heath Shuler 22 8-14-0 292 593 3691 15 33
1 JaMarcus Russell 25 7-18-0 354 680 4083 18 23
10 Blaine Gabbert 27 5-22-0 414 777 4357 22 24
1 Cam Newton 36 15-21-0 683 1155 9047 49 34
1 Sam Bradford 48 18-29-1 1011 1730 10810 58 37
7 Byron Leftwich 50 24-26-0 930 1605 10532 58 42
3 Vince Young 50 31-19-0 755 1304 8964 46 51
1 Matthew Stafford 50 21-30-0 1264 2102 14579 92 58
1 Tim Couch 59 22-37-0 1025 1714 11131 64 67
5 Mark Sanchez 62 33-29-0 1028 1867 12092 68 69
2 Rick Mirer 68 24-44-0 1088 2043 11969 50 76
3 Joey Harrington 76 26-50-0 1424 2538 14693 79 85
1 David Carr 79 23-56-0 1353 2267 14452 65 71
1 Alex Smith 81 44-36-1 1412 2393 15610 88 66
3 Matt Ryan 82 57-26-0 1805 2855 20606 137 63
1 Michael Vick 107 58-47-1 1697 3021 21459 128 84
6 Trent Dilfer 113 58-55-0 1759 3172 20518 113 129
4 Philip Rivers 117 72-45-0 2430 3787 29738 203 98
1 Carson Palmer 127 57-70-0 2699 4331 30948 196 141
1 Eli Manning 141 78-63-0 2735 4686 33248 220 159
3 Steve McNair 153 91-62-0 2733 4544 31304 174 119
2 Donovan McNabb 161 98-62-1 3170 5374 37276 234 117
5 Kerry Collins 180 81-99-0 3487 6261 40922 208 196
1 Drew Bledsoe 193 98-95-0 3839 6717 44611 251 206
1 Peyton Manning 230 160-70-0 5260 8033 61666 458 211
Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 10/15/2013.

Contract investment aside, as you can see comparatively over the last 20 years, Gabbert is one of the worst Top 10 picks at the position ever. Then, if you note that the Bengals used their natural draft pick to take Smith, rather than also trading picks to get in position like the Jaguars and Chargers did, it makes it that much worse.

I think Gabbert will probably start a game or two this season, why I'm not sure, but after the season is over I have a hard time seeing him stick around.

While this shows just how much picking the wrong QB can wreck your franchise, it also shows how much picking the right one helps.

More from Big Cat Country:

More From Big Cat Country