2012 QB class has potential to match 1983, 2004 and 2011

Browns rookie Brandon Weeden is part of a QB class already being rated elite. (US Presswire)

There are some defining years to measure quarterbacks and QB growth in the NFL. The 1983 draft is usually acknowledged as the greatest class of all time with three members in the Hall of Fame (Dan Marino, John Elway and Jim Kelly).

Fans of the class of 2004 claim that's the best class because it already has four Super Bowl championships. (Eli Manning and Ben Roethlisberger have two each) and the class of 1983 only has two. The class of 2011 shocked everyone with the unprecedented amount of playtime in their rookie season, led by a record-breaking campaign of Cam Newton when he cracked 4,000 yards passing.

No one knows if any class will match the 1983 group for Hall of Fame entrants or if any class will catch the Super Bowl titles of 2004, but if experience counts, the class of 2012 is on its way to something big. Something even bigger than the class of 2011 is definitely in the cards.

Here's a look at how much things have changed when it comes to playing rookie quarterbacks since 1983. I thought last year was hard to ever top, but we are on a course for new levels of rookie participation. It seems almost impossible to keep a rookie QB on the bench and justify learning from the sideline.

It remains to be seen if playing right away is the best thing for quarterbacks. Cam Newton almost had as many passing yards as a rookie as the entire class of 1983 or 2004, yet he struggles now. Andy Dalton is on his way to more interceptions this year than he had as a rookie.

Look at the projections for the class of 2012 at the bottom. I never thought one year after the 2011 production of the rookie class we would see an even bigger year.

ROOKIE QB PERFORMANCES BY YEAR
YEAR	NAME	COMP/ATT	YARDS	TD	INT
1983	Dan Marino	173/296	2210	20	6
1983	John Elway	123/259	1663	7	14
1983	Todd Blackledge	20/34	259	3	0
1983	Tony Eason	46/99	557	1	5
1983	Jim Kelly	(USFL)
1983	Ken O’Brien	( DNP)
		362/688	4,231	31	25
2004	Ben Roethlisberger	196/295	2621	17	11
2004	Eli Manning	95/197	1043	6	9
2004	Matt Schaub	33/70	330	1	4
2004	Philip Rivers	5/8	33	1	0
2004	J.P. Losman	3/5	32	0	1
		332/575	4,059	25	25
2011	Cam Newton	310/517	4,051	21	17
2011	Andy Dalton	300/516	3398	20	13
2011	Blaine Gabbert	210/413	2214	12	11
2011	Christian Ponder	158/291	1853	13	13
2011	Jake Locker	34/66	542	4	0
		1012/1803	16,190	70	54
2012	Andrew Luck	160/288	1971	8	8
2012	Brandon Weeden	165/299	1912	9	10
2012	Robert Griffin	149/223	1778	8	3
2012	Russell Wilson	129/210	1466	10	8
2012	Ryan Tannehill	120/203	1472	4	6
		723/1,223	8,599	39	35

PROJECTION FOR CLASS OF 2012 (BASED ON 16 GAMES AT THIS PACE)
YEAR	NAME	COMP/ATT	YARDS	TD	INT
2012	Andrew Luck	365/658	4505	18	18
2012	Brandon Weeden	330/598	3824	18	20
2012	Robert Griffin	298/446	3556	18	6
2012	Russell Wilson	258/420	2932	20	16
2012	Ryan Tannehill	274/464	3364	9	14
		1,525/2,586	18,181	83	74