"This year, I can't get over how good and talented JaMarcus Russell is. It just blew me away. If I had the first, second, third, fourth, fifth pick in that draft, I would be tearing apart his personal life trying to figure out whether or not I could trust this kid with $10-million ... From a physical skill set perspective, I've never seen a college quarterback with more ability than Russell. You put the tape on and it's frightening. The only thing that's going to keep [Russell] from being great is him. What it comes down to is you've got to figure out whether or not this kid wants to be the best quarterback in football. If he wants to be the best quarterback in football, he can be."
Mayock has Gabbert rated ahead of Newton as the 2011 draft's top QB prospect.
Gabbert worked out for a horde of talent evaluators and six NFL head coaches after opting not to throw at the scouting combine last month. He completed 44 of 49 throws Thursday.
According to Mayock, he can "drive the ball with accuracy, he drives it with timing, his arm strength is more than enough."
As for his developing footwork?
"Cleaner than I expected," said Mayock, who compared the pro day performance of Gabbert favorably with former first-rounders
Matt Ryan and
Sam Bradford.