NFL personnel people rank Sam Bradford the 23rd best starting quarterback

Mike Sando of ESPN put out a truly outstanding piece on NFL quarterbacks (pay site). Sando got an impressive voting panel of 35 league insiders (eight personnel directors, six general managers, four head coaches, five offensive coordinators, five defensive coordinators, three salary-cap managers, two ex-GMs, two ex-head coaches, and one offensive assistant coach) to spill their guts about the NFL's signal callers. Those personnel people ranked the quarterbacks by tiers, as explained here:

• Tier 1 quarterbacks can carry their teams week after week and contend for championships without as much help.
• Tier 2 QBs are less consistent and need more help, but good enough to figure prominently into a championship equation.
• Tier 3 are quarterbacks who are good enough to start but need lots of support, making it tougher to contend at the highest level.
• Tier 4 is typically reserved for unproven starters or those who might not be expected to last in the lineup all season. Voters used the fifth tier sparingly.

Here's where Sam Bradford and some other QBs of note to the Eagles ranked:

Sam Bradford, Eagles (ranked 23rd)

Reviews were mixed on Bradford. This one came as a surprise:

"I thought he was a 2 coming out because I did not see the big arm," a head coach said. "No one could tell from his pro day because [agent] Tom Condon wouldn't let him throw any deep comebacks. He has the intangibles, but you have to give him a 3 or 4 just because he is always hurt. Frankly, you probably want him to be your backup, just for his availability."

Personally, I see a live arm out of Bradford. I think it's one of his strengths. I wonder if that's just a guy who wanted to see some deep comebacks and is annoyed to this day that he didn't.

And this one represents what Eagles fans have heard since the Eagles acquired him -- "If he can stay healthy..."

"There is no quarterback I loved more than him coming out," a different head coach said. "I am pulling for him. If he can stay healthy, he can be so accurate. Keep him as a 3 but only because of the injury factor."

Tony Romo, Cowboys (ranked 9th)

Whoever said this about Romo is dead on:

"Last year's formula was outstanding for him and I'm wondering why they have not done that forever," an offensive coordinator said. "I do not care how sexy he looks throwing, he is a 2 to me because I know if it ends up in his hands, it is 50-50 [whether] he is going to make the big mistake."

I couldn't agree more with that assessment, and it's something similar that we said in the Cowboys' dumpster fire article:

"Credit the Dallas coaching staff for recognizing what the Cowboys were a year ago. They knew they had to keep their garbage defense off the field, so they successfully pounded the run with DeMarco Murray, stayed on schedule, and the offense converted third down conversions at a very impressive rate (47%), which was second in the NFL. They were able to sustain long drives, convert those drives into points, and make life easier on the defense."

In the same way the defense benefited from the Cowboys' efforts to pound the run, Romo benefited by not having to put the offense on his shoulders, which has hurt the Cowboys in the past.

Eli Manning, Giants (tied for 12th)

My favorite quote about Eli:

"I've seen him play some bad football," a head coach said. "Based on this scale, to keep it consistent, I think you have to give him a 2. The guy can go win a championship, but if we are talking quarterback evaluation, a 1 can go win it for you every week. Eli has been a 1 the right time of year."

Nick Foles, Rams (ranked 22nd)

Foles was ranked one spot higher than Bradford.

"Truthfully, I think Foles is a 4," a personnel director said. "I think in that Chip Kelly system, once he figured it out, he operated it and did a great job early on. But I do not think he is talented [enough] where he will be that way year in and year out, or week in and week out. He is a little stiff in the pocket. I don't think he has great arm strength. He has pretty good accuracy. I don't know that he sees everything."

Yep.

Robert Griffin III, Redskins (ranked 28th)

This is brutal:

"Five, and there's no coming back," one offensive coach said. "He is done. The reason is, the injury slowed his legs, and his ego will not allow him to hit rock bottom and actually grind his way back up the right way."

Griffin's stats last year: 4 TD, 6 INT, 9 fumbles, 33 sacks.

Follow Jimmy on Twitter: @JimmyKempski