With just over an hour to go until the Carolina Panthers step into the limelight and go on the clock, here’s a few things I’ve been mulling over throughout the day regarding the draft. As always, feel free to comment as you like at the bottom of the post.

1. With five quarterbacks potentially coming off the board in round one, will this draft be looked at in the same view as the 1983 draft class in which six QBs had their name called?

No. The 1983 class of quarterbacks will live on in immortality not because six guys were drafted but because of the overall level of success those QBs had in the years that followed. Half of that class now reside in Canton at the Hall of Fame in the form of John Elway (Broncos), Jim Kelly (Bills), and Dan Marino (Dolphins), and in 11 of the 16 seasons that followed the 1983 draft, quarterbacks taken in that class led their respective team to the Super Bowl.

This class has potential to be a quality group down the line, but in the end the probability of them replicating or passing the achievements set down by the class of 1983 is minimal at best, and it’s unlikely that we’ll look back on this draft with the same reverence that we do with 1983.

Also, I doubt five QBs will be drafted tonight. It’s possible, but given the issues that the bottom tier of that group has in their skill set, I suspect we’ll see a three quarterbacks taken for sure, with four being the max.

2. Will the lack of a free agency period and inability to trade current players during the draft affect the way teams approach the draft as a whole?

Yes and no. There’s a definite reason why the NFL typically has its free agency period take place weeks before the draft commences, as knowing what holes need to be filled via the draft plays a big role in how teams determine who they’ll pick. That said, there’s no doubt that every team has done its due diligence in researching every probable scenario possible regarding the draft AND a future free agency period that will likely take place shortly before the season begins in September. Teams will be prepared to fill holes as they usually do, knowing with some certainty who they’ll have a shot at signing if and when the labor strife comes to a close.