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The San Francisco 49ers did not think Aaron Rodgers was worth taking with the first pick in the 2005 draft. Their decision to take Alex Smith instead said as much. Knowing what they know now, there's little or no doubt the 49ers would have selected Rodgers No. 1. How many current quarterbacks, with the benefit of hindsight, would be worthy of the top overall pick in the draft? That's a question ESPN.com's Mike Sando posed to ESPN analyst Bill Polian, ESPN.com scout Matt Williamson and an anonymous NFL general manager. They came up with seven. Rodgers, of course, was among them. He was listed second behind Peyton Manning and just ahead of Tom Brady. Here's what Sando wrote about Rodgers:
"The order between Rodgers, Brady and Brees seems inconsequential. All three have consistently produced at a high level statistically. All three have carried their teams. All three have won a championship. Rodgers ranks second in Total QBR (77.2) and third in passer rating (103.1) among quarterbacks with at least five postseason starts since 2008, his first season as a starter. He ranks among the top two in both categories in the regular season over the same period."
The rest of the those on the list -- and a few that are close -- can be found in this ESPN Insider post.
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