Leinart is #3. That Aaron Rodgers dude is way down at way down there at #35.

http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/college-footballs-top-50-quarterbacks-bcs-era

TheOther1BTF;842105386 said:

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Leinart is #3. That Aaron Rodgers dude is way down at way down there at #35.

http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/college-footballs-top-50-quarterbacks-bcs-era

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Well it's hard to argue with the pundits. After all AR does hold the ball too high "on the shelf". Unlikely that he will amount to much. :p

i liked how the words got shorter and shorter as the list goes on lol

Leinart was an incredibly successful college QB. Obviously if the list were NFL QBs over the same period of time, Leinart wouldn't make the list and AR would be near the top.

Seeing that Leinart is a complete bust in the NFL makes me care about this article and thread less

Leinart came back for his senior season while Rodgers did not so Leinart spent the time in college to deserve the higher ranking. Too bad about the $10M or so that cost him.

dajo9;842105614 said:

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Leinart came back for his senior season while Rodgers did not so Leinart spent the time in college to deserve the higher ranking. Too bad about the $10M or so that cost him.

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Leinart HAD to come back for his senior season. He had surgery for chronic tendonitis on his throwing elbow after his junior season. He had to come back and show NFL teams that he could still throw, and last a full season. Otherwise, nobody was going to risk taking him in the first round.

And I don't get the "Aaron Rodgers is great in the pros and Leinart is a bust, so that makes me feel better" argument. I'm a Cal fan first, and then a college football fan. Rodgers did some great things at Cal, but Leinart is the best college QB I've ever seen. Leinart (and USC) performed on the stage I care about. Aaron's Super Bowl ring or MVP honors or whatever NFL accolades don't take away the sting of 23-17 (or 35-10 a year later, for that matter) one stinking bit. Leinart led USC to three BCS bowls, two of which were national championship games. It's OK to give the kid his due.

edit: Poor John David Booty gets no respect. Two Rose Bowl victories and 9-0 against ranked teams his two years at QB, and even the USC fans can't stand him.

AJ McCarron at #7? ... he good, not top 10 good.

Poll question: if you had to pick between Vince Young, Tim Tebow, RGIII, Cam Newton, or Michael Vick, at their college prime who would you pick?

mechaniCAL;842105648 said:

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AJ McCarron at #7? ... he good, not top 10 good.

Poll question: if you had to pick between Vince Young, Tim Tebow, RGIII, Cam Newton, or Michael Vick, at their college prime who would you pick?

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Nice list of dual threats, I prefer Vick followed by VY, Tebow/Newton, and RG3.

mechaniCAL;842105648 said:

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AJ McCarron at #7? ... he good, not top 10 good.

Poll question: if you had to pick between Vince Young, Tim Tebow, RGIII, Cam Newton, or Michael Vick, at their college prime who would you pick?

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For college, I'd take Michael Vick. He could win games all by himself at this level.

Clearly, the order of the list was heavily influenced by team success, a category that no doubt hurt AR's standing. I know that I'm in a distinct minority but I can't help thinking that rating a position player heavily on team success ignores the impact of the surrounding cast. Doubly so for a QB in a sport like football where the defense is a totally different unit and yet is so vital in team success. What does Leinart's record look like if the Trojans had had a defense like the one Barkley struggled with last year?

BearsWiin;842105629 said:

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... Leinart (and USC) performed on the stage ...

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Arthur Murray Ballroom Dancing contest? that stage?
Did Leinart do a solo?

TheOther1BTF;842105386 said:

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Leinart is #3. That Aaron Rodgers dude is way down at way down there at #35.

http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/college-footballs-top-50-quarterbacks-bcs-era

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In all fairness, Leinart won a national title and a Heisman. Rodgers won the Insight Bowl. It's really no comparison.

Leinart won the Heisman; USC won the national title and may very well have done so w/o Leinart since they had future NFL'er Matt Cassel on the squad.

59bear;842106853 said:

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Leinart won the Heisman; USC won the national title and may very well have done so w/o Leinart since they had future NFL'er Matt Cassel on the squad.

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I agree that quarterbacks receive way too much credit for team success (W-L records are assigned to them) and too much blame for team failures, but the rankings have to be based on something objective that they did in college. Apart from the National Championships and Heisman, I thought Leinert was an extremely effective college quarterback, especially his senior year (2005). Sure he was surrounded by great talent, but that is much the same as most on this board rate Longshore in 2006 so highly among Tedford QBs: He was surrounded by future NFL, even Pro-Bowl talent, but he did get the ball into the hands of that talent and that is what you want from your QB.