The 2014 NFL draft is just under a month away, and still there is no consensus on who is the top quarterback prospect in this class. There are always different opinions on this matter each year, but usually there is that one guy the majority of people think is the top prospect. Last year it was West Virginia’s Geno Smith, the year before gave us Stanford’s Andrew Luck and the year before that was Auburn’s Cam Newton. However, this year there is no one guy. There are so many varying opinions, and as many as four quarterbacks in this class could be the first one taken. Louisville’s Teddy Bridgewater, Texas A&M’s Johnny Manziel, Central Florida’s Blake Bortles and Fresno State’s Derek Carr, by most accounts, are the top four quarterback prospects in this class. And one cannot forget about the growing support for Division II Eastern Illinois standout Jimmy Garoppolo, who I personally love. With all of these names and different opinions, it makes mocking the draft this year a near impossible task. But of all the quarterbacks available, which quarterback should be taken first? 
Bridgewater came into the season on most people’s overall boards as the second-best player available at any position after South Carolina’s Jadeveon Clowney. Bridgewater’s stock has fallen since then, but why? I know he opted not to throw at the combine and then did not do so well at the combine but what about what happened in the fall on the football field? I have questions about Bridgewater as a leader, and his pro day performance scared me just a little bit. However, I evaluate him from what I saw on the field. Bridgewater is by far the most NFL ready quarterback in this draft and performed the best as far as pure passing. Bridgewater is incredibly accurate on the short and intermediate patterns. His deep ball needs to improve, but he clearly is the most accurate overall in the class. Bridgewater showed off excellent ball placement, eye discipline, good throwing mechanics and the ability to run an offense at the line of scrimmage last season. Although his arm is not elite, he certainly has good arm strength and will be able to make all the throws at the NFL level. What separates Bridgewater from the other guys is his ability to do the little things. He utilizes pump fakes and seems to have a better understanding of reading defensive coverage and scanning the entire field. He can manipulate defensive backs with his eyes, and he knows when to just throw the ball away, which is a very underrated trait in a passer. Bridgewater seems to be a step ahead of the other quarterbacks in this class, as far as thinking the game through and being able to play with his mind and not just his ability. Those are the traits that best translate to the NFL level at the quarterback position. 
It is possible Manziel or Bortles could end up being better than Bridgewater, but of all the choices at quarterback in this draft, Bridgewater is the safest option.