John Clayton Ranks Kolb 24th Among Quarterbacks

Here are some thoughts regarding Clayton's article:

First of all, Clayton has his list broken down into three categories: The Elite, The Chad Pennington Division, and The Hit-Or-Miss Division. 

The Elite includes the usual suspects; Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Ben Roethlisberger, and Brett Favre round out the top 5.  Donovan McNabb is number 9 on the list.

I assume the Pennington division got its name for talented QBs who are not as talented as the guys in the elite class or who are on the comeback trail.  This includes guys like Jay Cutler, Vince Young, Jason Campbell, Matt Hasselbeck, and Kyle Orton.

I hate to admit it, but I agree with Clayton's analysis, which is as follows:

24. Kevin Kolb, Philadelphia Eagles

Analysis: Kolb is the perfect quarterback for Andy Reid's West Coast offense, which is why the Eagles traded Donovan McNabb to the Redskins. Kolb is a rhythm passer out of three- and five-step drops, and he should have a big statistical year.
Chance of being elite: 50 percent

He is ranked second in his category, behind second-year man Mark Sanchez, who is widely expected to lead his Jets to the Super Bowl this season.  It's tough to rank him any higher because this is his first year as a starter.  He is unproven and he isn't guaranteed to be a success.  This is the reality of the situation.  His first two starts last year gave us reason to be excited; but the growing pains will be there, make no mistake.  I wish for the sake of my nerves he was ranked higher, as it's just plain rough to see him ranked with the likes of Chad Henne, Byron Leftwich, and Matt Leinart.  Kolb's got a ton to prove, and I realize that his subpar preseason gave us all a few moments of pause.  I was among the more vocal supporters of Kolb when we were all arguing over who should be our starter this year, and I'll stand by that decision.  If I wind up being wrong, I'll accept it, admit it, and move on.  We can talk all day about how he needs the offensive line to come together, but whether that happens or not, he's going to have to show that he learned something after spending three seasons riding the pines.  Performances like he had against Kansas City won't fly for long...the organization really stuck their necks out for him by trading away the most successful quarterback in franchise history in order to move him up to starter.  The fact that they traded McNabb to a division rival gives Kolb even less margin of error.  There is much less wriggle-room for Kolb then people realize.  That said, the preseason matters not; I just hope that deer-in-the-headlights dazed look in Kolb's eyes during the KC game are gone in time for the showdown against Green Bay.