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The NFL scouting combine is a great place for a relatively unknown or borderline prospect to show off his stuff and get noticed by team representatives. Consistently good performances at the combine can increase a player's value and perhaps help him get drafted a couple of positions higher in April, which can mean the difference of a couple of million dollars in signing bonuses, salary, and other incentives. So obviously, most players take the combine very seriously and do their best to outshine the competition.

While one of the biggest negative-impact stories of this year's combine was Vince Young and his Wonderlic scores, one of the biggest positive-impact stories had to be the performance of former Vanderbilt quarterback Jay Cutler. The 6'4", 230-pound prospect from the town of Santa Claus in Indiana had a solid college career, but didn't generate much national buzz until his senior season. Cutler's stats aren't nearly as impressive as other first-round QB hopefuls like Matt Leinart and Vince Young, but scouts are surely going to take into consideration the fact that Cutler spent four years directing a weak Vanderbilt team with a supporting cast that didn't have nearly the amount of talent that the USC and Texas teams boasted.

Cutler became the starter at Venderbilt in the 2002 season after redshirting his freshman year. He threw for 1,433 yards, 10 touchdowns, and 9 interceptions as Vanderbilt posted a miserable 2-10 season. One of the most impressive things about the young Cutler was his passer rating, which was a healthy 112.44. Cutler improved by leaps and bounds in his sophomore season, throwing for 2,347 yards, 18 touchdowns, and 13 interceptions despite Vanderbilt's second 2-10 season in a row with Cutler at the helm. By the time Cutler ended his senior year in 2005, he was making opposing teams take notice of him. He threw for 3,073 yards, 21 touchdowns, and 9 interceptions on the season, which converted to a passer rating of 126.07. He was listed as the 17th most productive passer in the country, just ahead of Rose Bowl MVP Vince Young. After Cutler performed well in the Senior Bowl, his status as a first-round draft pick was pretty much cemented.

After doing so well at the NFL scouting combine, some people have begun to say that it's possible for Cutler to go higher than Young in the draft. However, when you take a look at mock draft boards, you can see that there's really place for Cutler to move up to. He has been projected as the number 10 pick, which belongs to the Arizona Cardinals. Young is still projected as the number 3 pick of the Tennessee Titans on most mock drafts. First of all, I don't think Young's stock will slide as much as people think it might. There's still well over a month between now and Draft Day, which will give Young and his agent time to put the Wonderlic thing to rest and bring the focus back to Young's football abilities.

So assuming that Young still goes at number 3, there are not a lot of teams between that pick and the 10th pick of the Cardinals that need a quarterback. One possibility would be the New York Jets at number 4, but that team has numerous other pressing needs and isn't likely to pass up the chance to select the top offensive lineman prospect in the country in D'Brickashaw Ferguson. Another possibility for Cutler would be at the number 9 spot with the Detroit Lions. The Lions of course have Joey Harrington, a former first round draft pick (third overall) on their roster. Harrington is by all accounts a bust. Nevertheless, the Lions don't seem to be in any hurry to roll the dice on another first round QB so soon after that debacle. As a result, Cutler will probably still go at the 10th spot, which is right where he was projected to be even before the scouting combine.

I think this is a great position for both sides to be in. The Cardinals obviously have a need at quarterback. Sometime-starter Josh McCown has left to test the waters in free agency, which means that the Cardinals will be relying on the arm of soon-to-be 35-year-old veteran Kurt Warner. Warner still has some good playing time left in him, but is clearly too old to be a long-term solution for Arizona.

By adding Cutler to the mix while Warner is still capable of starting week in and week out, the Cardinals will relieve some of the pressure that first-round draft picks generally feel when they break into the league. There will be no immediacy to the quarterback situation in Arizona (unless Warner gets injured), so the team will be able to bring Cutler along slowly. Cutler will have an opportunity to learn from a former NFL and Super Bowl MVP in a setting where both the team and the fans are bound of have pretty low expectations for at least the first couple of years. This will give Cutler a chance to develop at a speed that he is comfortable with, and will increase his odds of succeeding as a professional quarterback.

Cutler definitely exited the NFL scouting combine with a lot of hype surrounding his abilities. But in the long run, I don't think this hype will help him get selected any higher than 10th in the draft, which means he'll be in an Arizona Cardinals uniform next season.