Dan Pompei

If after three years the Lions, Jets and Bucs have no more to show for Matthew Stafford, Mark Sanchez and Josh Freeman than the Titans, Cardinals and Broncos have to show for Vince Young, Matt Leinart and Jay Cutler, it is probably fair to assume there will be some new decision makers on those teams.

Drafting quarterbacks in the first round in 2006 has not exactly worked out as those teams envisioned.

That being said, Young, Leinart and Cutler each has had a somewhat unusual first few years in the NFL. And it is too soon to call any of them a failure.

In the case of Cutler, he has been far from a failure. Unless your definition of a failure is a player who last year made the Pro Bowl, was voted player of the week three times and set team records for passing yards, completions and 300-yard games.

Cutler’s only failure was getting along with new coach Josh McDaniels, and some would say the bigger failure should be attributed to McDaniels and Denver owner Pat Bowlen. But Cutler clearly could have handled the matter differently and avoided what turned into a nasty divorce.

Performance does not appear to be the issue for Cutler going forward as he continues his career in Chicago. His talent is a given. The only questions about him now are his willingness to integrate and his maturity level.

Maturity, or the lack of it, is a common concern with all three of the top quarterbacks from the 2006 class. Cutler, Leinart and Young all have drawn attention for their after hours exploits. Remember shirtless, dancing VY? Party boy Matt with the beer bong? And in the hot tub?

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Young has shown a penchant for putting his foot where his gum shield belongs, most recently telling a Baltimore television station he wants to regain his starting job — or move on. After his rookie season, he also said he was considering retirement, claiming the fun was gone. Young also went AWOL for a short time last season, apparently because he was upset at being booed.

He had the best rookie season of the three, winning eight of 13 starts. But it hasn’t gone as well since. Young has yet to develop into anything other than a runner who occasionally passes, and he lost his starting job to Kerry Collins last season.

Leinart’s first three years haven’t been as dramatic, in part because he hasn’t had as many opportunities. He’s started only 16 games, mostly because he has had the misfortune of playing on the same team as Kurt Warner, but also because of performance and injury issues.

There still is hope for Leinart and Young. And there is tremendous hope for Cutler. In Chicago, he is expected to rewrite the record books, win multiple Super Bowls and feed 5,000 families with five loaves of bread and two fish.

For each of the quarterbacks to fulfill his promise, he will have to mature. And the good news is, each should mature. None of them have yet celebrated their 27th birthday. So it’s safe to assume none of them have played their best football. And none of them have fully grown up.

The best should be yet to come for Cutler, Leinart and Young. Whether or not it will come is up to them.

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