This is just me, but when I think "franchise QB" I don't think elite, I think a QB a franchise thinks it can't afford to lose. That's why guys like Romo and Rivers and Cutler get thrown into that category.

 

Elite QB means a QB that is actually capable of carrying a team. If the talent around him is poor he'll carry the team to playoff contention. If the talent around him is good he'll be a Superbowl contender.

 

I agree about the QB purgatory, too. That's where the Jaguars have been for most of their existence with Brunell, Byron, and Garrard. Recently we've come to the extreme low end with Henne and Gabbert, which is better than being in the purgatory segment, because when you're in that segment people are usually stupid enough to think that they're actually in contention for Superbowls when all they're really in contention for is a decade of guaranteed mediocrity.

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