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2014 NFL Draft: Mike Mayock Updates His Rankings; Teddy Bridgewater Not Even A First Round Pick Anymore

Mike Mayock has revised his rankings for the 2014 NFL Draft. To say his outlook on Teddy Bridgewater's prospects as an NFL QB have cooled a bit is a gross understatement. Read on for the how and the why.

By Tim
Am I the only one still ready for Teddy?
Am I the only one still ready for Teddy?
Andy Lyons

Way back in early March, Mike Mayock thought Teddy Bridgewater was the best quarterback in the 2014 NFL Draft.

Approximately one month later, after Bridgewater's Pro Day (which Mayock described as "average at best"), Mayock dropped Bridgewater from the top slot in his positional rankings to No. 3 among draft eligible QBs, behind Johnny Manziel and Blake Bortles.

Now, four weeks after that, Mayock has apparently decided that Teddy Bridgewater is tied with Zach Mettenberger as the fifth-best quarterback in the 2014 NFL Draft. Mayock's current rankings of the QBs:

1. Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M
2. Blake Bortles, Central Florida
3. Derek Carr, Fresno State
4. Jimmy Garoppolo, Eastern Illinois
T-5. Zach Mettenberger, LSU
T-5. Teddy Bridgewater, Louisville

Mike Mayock goes on to say he would not take Teddy Bridgewater in the first round of the 2014 NFL Draft, much less with the first pick of the draft:

"I would say in general, tape is worth about 85 percent of an overall grade, and the rest of the process is set up for red flags, and to go back and watch more tape to try to confirm what you saw or didn't see," Mayock said. "I saw about four of his tapes prior to the combine, and I really liked him. I thought he had a chance to be a franchise quarterback from what I saw on the tape. ... Except you've got to see the quarterbacks throw the ball live. I've never seen a top-level quarterback in the last 10 years have a bad pro day, until Teddy Bridgewater. He had no accuracy, the ball came out funny, the arm strength wasn't there, and it made me question everything I saw on tape because this was live.

"I went back and watched a bunch more tape and compared him to the rest of the guys in the draft," he said. "And like it or not, I've come to a conclusion -- if I was a GM in the NFL, I would not take him in the first round of the draft."

What the...? What is going on here? Yahoo's Eric Adelson attempted to answer that question in this column, ultimately concluding that, " Bridgewater's fall is more likely because draft experts gravitate to big: big arms, big bodies and big personalities." As a fervent admirer of Teddy Bridgewater, I say:

The guy who virtually everyone once thought was the top QB available has been reduced to this:

As much as I value Mayock's opinion, thanks in large part to an unwavering belief that he does his homework, I find myself at odds with his current view on Teddy Bridgewater. Do you believe that Zach Mettenberger is an equivalent NFL prospect to Teddy Bridgewater? Is Bridgewater's fall primarily a media-driven creation? Or is there something legitimate here?

Would you embrace the Texans selecting Bridgewater first overall? How about trading back into the first round to scoop him up? Is he an option for you with the first pick of the second round? Or are you simply taking a pass on the idea of Bridgewater as a Texan altogether?

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