First in a series of columns on the upcoming NFL draft.

April 6, 2004 (morning)--Only a few teams can hope to get their hands on Eli Manning or Ben Roethlisberger, the top quarterbacks in this month’s NFL draft. Yet, recent Super Bowls make it clear a team doesn’t have to be at the top of the draft to acquire a championship quarterback.

Just a few months ago, we saw Tom Brady, a sixth-round draft choice, lead the Patriots to a 32-29 victory over the Panthers, led by undrafted castoff Jake Delhomme. The year before, we saw journeymen Rich Gannon and Brad Johnson playing for all the marbles.

Before then, we saw such formerly unwanted quarterbacks as Trent Dilfer, Kerry Collins and Kurt Warner in the Super Bowl. Of the eight Super Bowl quarterbacks over the last five years, only Brady and Tennessee’s Steve McNair were with their original teams.

So how should a team needing a quarterback proceed in the draft? Should it not proceed at all and buy a recycled one? Should NFL teams, in other words, take the same approach toward drafting quarterback they take toward kickers?

Probably not. After all, Peyton Manning, Donovan McNabb and McNair aren’t bad guys to have around. It’s interesting, though, that they were the only first-round picks among the 12 starting quarterbacks on 2003 playoff teams.

It’s also interesting that they, the Cowboys’ Quincy Carter and Brady were the only playoff quarterbacks with their original teams. The Chiefs are the fourth NFL team for Trent Green, who’s living proof you can still trade for a winning quarterback.

While NFL lore is full of discarded quarterbacks, such as John Unitas and Len Dawson, who produced championships, the marketplace for quarterbacks has changed dramatically during the free agency era. The legendary draft class of 1983 produced six first-round quarterbacks, most notably John Elway, Jim Kelly and Dan Marino.

Each made at least one Super Bowl start and spent his entire NFL career with one team. Since Elway retired after his second straight Super Bowl win in January, 1999, however, Trent Dilfer has been the only first-round quarterback to win a Super Bowl. Most Super Bowl quarterbacks have been coming out of the woodwork.

That’s largely because the least heralded quarterbacks often get the best chance to develop. A highly-drafted quarterback commands a huge signing bonus and can become a free agent down the road, so his team feels compelled to play him right away. But it takes unusual talent, poise and maturity for a rookie to step in and contribute. Manning and McNabb have been able to accomplish that. Ryan Leaf and Akili Smith have not.

Meanwhile, the late-round and undrafted quarterbacks get the chance to learn their trade. They gain experience in Canada, Europe or even the Arena League and come back to the NFL more polished, mature and hungrier than so many better known prospects. Though Brady was a Super Bowl winner in just his second season, he enjoyed the breathing room that came with being a late draft pick who sat behind Drew Bledsoe in 2000.

When you consider that only three first-round quarterbacks started in the playoffs last year, anybody ought to be able to draft a championship quarterback, right? Unfortunately for quarterback-starved teams, it’s not that easy.

There are still far more quarterback busts than Cinderella stories in the draft and identifying a talented passer is only half the battle. So much of a quarterback’s success depends upon the skill and system of his coaching staff. Championship coaches, even ones you would associate with defense or power football – like Belichick or Bill Parcells – have shown a knack for developing quarterbacks.

If a team can’t draft its championship quarterback April 24th, it’s not the end of the world. In today’s NFL, you can sometimes go to the end of the world and find one.