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NFL Draft 2012 Results: The Upcoming QB Depth Chart Battles

With the offseason pickup of Matt Flynn and the drafting of Russell Wilson, the Seahawks are positioning training camp to be a quarterback battle of very large proportions.

March 7, 2012; Madison, WI, USA; Wisconsin Badgers quarterback Russell Wilson prepares to throw a pass during pro day at the McClain Center. Mandatory Credit: Mary Langenfeld-US PRESSWIRE
March 7, 2012; Madison, WI, USA; Wisconsin Badgers quarterback Russell Wilson prepares to throw a pass during pro day at the McClain Center. Mandatory Credit: Mary Langenfeld-US PRESSWIRE

The Fieldgulls touched upon this fact already in depth, but it is worth pointing out in this draft story stream because it is the big story with the Seahawks third round draft pick of quarterback Russell Wilson.

Wilson was a very successful quarterback at Wisconsin. He is potentially going to be a very successful quarterback in the NFL. He does have one major knack against him though - Wilson stands at a shade below six feet tall. And sure - Drew Brees does too! But guess what, not all quarterbacks are Drew Brees. It will be interesting to see how much Wilson's height disadvantage affects his play, if it does at all.

One thing is for sure though, the Seahawks were looking to go into this offseason with a plan to make a shake-up at the quarterback position. Tavaris Jackson had the kind of year that doesn't exactly inspire playoff confidence, nor does it inspire a flat out dumping of the player. And after the Seahawks flirted about as unsuccessfully as possible in the beginnings of the Peyton Manning sweepstakes, the team settled on signing Green Bay Packers backup Matt Flynn for $10 million guaranteed and then some. Josh Portis also resides on the roster to make training camp battles extra interesting.

If money dictated who comes out on top, then Flynn will be the name in the shotgun formation we'll see most often. But money doesn't always speak the loudest, and Jackson showed that he was more than serviceable in multiple games last year, especially in wins against the Chicago Bears, Philadelphia Eagles and St. Louis Rams when he posted QB Ratings of 94.4, 137.0 and 96.4, respectively.

Since he was playing behind Aaron Rodgers, Matt Flynn saw time about as often as a back-up punter. But when he hit the field, specifically against the Lions on New Years Day, Flynn had a tendency to go absolutely beserk on the field. Now, the Seahawks receiving corps are not the Green Bay receiving corps, but it seems like the fundamentals are there. His senior year at LSU where he threw for 2407 yards, 21 touchdowns and with a QB rating of 125.8 seems to show that.

Wilson's strong senior showing at Wisconsin should be able to push his name into the mix as well. His 33 TD passes by the end of the year are second in Big Ten history to who else but fellow short quarterback Drew Brees. He completed 72.8% of his passes last year, so if anything, Wilson's strong grasp of the fundamentals of football should help him make a strong play in training camp for some actual time. if anything, the drafting of Wilson probably signifies the end of Portis seeing any meaningful playing time for the Seahawks unless Portis taps into some unknown football playing potential.

For more on the NFL Draft, make sure that you check out Mocking the Draft, and SB Nation's dedicated NFL hub. For more on the Seahawks, make you way over to Field Gulls.