More and more NFL rookies are expected to contribute early in their careers. However, for them to make an impact they need to beat out a veteran player. We are going to analyze the situation of specific rookies and determine the likely hood of them winning a position battle.
Rookie Depth Chart Battles: Blaine Gabbert
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Player: Blaine Gabbert
Team: Jacksonville Jaguars
Position: Quarterback
Chance of winning the battle: 25 percent
Thoughts: Of the 1st round quarterbacks, I feel that Gabbert has the worst chance of getting early playing time. He is in a situation with a decent vet ahead of him and a team/coaching staff looking to win now. The Jaguars just missed the playoffs last season and will be looking to make a run this season. However, if the season starts to take a downward spiral we could see the Gabbert era starting early.
Garrard has been a very steady NFL quarterback leading the Jaguars to a few playoff victories. He has a career touchdown to interception ratio of 89-54 which shows he takes care of the football. However, the majority feel that Garrard will never be an elite quarterback and will struggle to lead his team to a Super Bowl. And at age 33, the Jaguars have decided that it is time to start planning for the future. So if Garrard doesn’t lead the team to early season success he could find himself on the bench.
Blaine Gabbert has been dubbed the quarterback of the future and has a ton of talent. However, he needs to make some adjustments and develop before he will be ready to contribute. With that being said, it doesn’t mean the Jaguars wont insert him early and make him learn on the fly. This seems like an unlikely scenario but there is increasing pressure to get early draft picks on the field. I feel its doubtful that Gabbert begins the season as a starter but if the Jags struggle he could end the season as the starter.
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