Well there are some things that we know for certain... I think.
1. We know that the 2017 QB draft has no one who can step in and start in the NFL (at least according to reports).
2. The best thing you can say about them is that there are a few that look like they are good athletes with very live arms, and whoyou know need 2 or 3 years to even see what you have.
3. When you look at some of the "success stories" of the QB draft like Winston and Marriota, it is clear that even THESE QBs are STILL works in progress after 3 years down the road....and lets not talk about the failures
4. It should be noted that any QB taken in first round is STILL going to be making more money next year than JG.
5. JG had a VERY successful 6 quarters of football where he flawlessly ran an one of the more complex offenses in the league without Gronk.
6. We also know that short term success will NEVER guarantee long term success. Colin Capernick not only took his team to the Superbowl and almost won it in his 2nd year in the league, the very next season he carried his team to the NFCCG. That is 2 full years of stellar production, and you can currently have Colin Kapernick as your QB for a 2022 7th round pick and bag of balls.
So while no one can guarantee you that JG will be a 10 year all pro, you CAN pretty much guarantee that for the next 2 years he's going to be better than any other QB available in the current draft. You can guarantee you can have him on the cheap for at least one year. You can guarantee them there won't be a 2 or 3 year training period to get him up and running. If he can run the Pats offense, he can run the crap you are running.
7. And here is someting that isn't mentioned much, there are some HC's on these losing teams that don't have the luxury to wait around and hope their high pick QB develops into something serviceable. What is a first round pick to them when it's likely another HC will be reaping the benefits of that pick.
8 Best to remember that Matt Cassel was traded, not just for A 2nd rounder, but for the 34th pick in the draft (or just 3 picks after their first round slot) at a time they had very little leverage in the market.
It is the confluence of all these events that could very well make JG a very valuable commodity in the trade market, much more that it would seem for a QB with only 6 quarters of football on tape.
Another thing to consider is that IIRC Cleveland has about 14 picks in next year's draft, mabye more. They are already one of the youngest teams in the league and had a ton of picks last season that are still with the team. The thing is that there comes a time in the team building process where you start to have TOO many draft picks and not enough players. Cleveland needs some time to develop those players and a QB to lead them.
All that being said, I still think that Chicago is the best landing spot for JG. Fox desperately needs to win next season. His team is showing some signs of progress, but Matt Barkley isn't going to be the answer. Bringing Jimmy home to Chicago would making giving up that high #1 more saleable to thier fans. JG gives that team a shot to win next year.
They can even make the deal even more palatable by trading down a few picks, get a few more picks for themselves and still give the Pats a top 1o pick for JG (and a 3rd next year)
